Secrets of the Sky Tombs

Evidence discovered in the world’s highest tombs reveals ancient rituals and beliefs. Airing August 2, 2017 at 10 pm on PBS Airing August 2, 2017 at 10 pm on PBS

Program Description

The towering Himalayas were among the last places on Earth that humanity settled. Scaling sheer cliff sides, a team of daring scientists hunts for clues to how ancient people found their way into this forbidding landscape and adapted to survive the high altitude. They discover rock-cut tombs filled with human bones and enigmatic artifacts, including gold masks and Chinese silk dating back thousands of years, and piece together evidence of strange rituals and beliefs designed to ward off the restless spirits of the dead.

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Broadcast Credits

WRITTEN, PRODUCED AND DIRECTED BY

Liesl Clark

Edited by

Jean Dunoyer

Camera

Liesl Clark

ADDITIONAL CAMERA

Jake Norton
Pete Athans
Cory Richards
Ted Hesser
Ang Tshering Lama
Renan Ozturk
Mark McKnight
Pierre de Parscau
Piers Leigh

NARRATED BY

Jay O. Sanders

Associate Producer

Crescent Moegling

Production Manager

Pete Athans

Sound Recordists

Jyoti L. Rana
Pete Athans
Bryn Clark
Jason Alberts
Ben Marcus
Chris Syner

Assistant Camera and Drone Operator

Finn Clark

Music

APM

Animation

Mitch Butler Explain-O-Graphics, LLC

Assistant Editor

James Dunoyer

Online Editor and Colorist

David Bigelow

Audio Mix

Heartpunch Studio

Research

Danya Gordin

Production Assistant

Cleo Clark-Athans

Archival Material

Angela Simons
Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Jean-Marc Mandonnet
Tbmpvideo/Pond5
Stef Hoffer/Pond5

Special Thanks

Nepal’s Department of Archaeology
Village of Samdzong, Upper Mustang
Shangri-La Nepal
Sienna Craig
Robert Schoene
National Science Foundation
The North Face
Petzl USA
Marcos Martin-Torres
UCL
Dr. Laure Dussubieux
The Field Museum
National Geographic Society
Henry Luce Foundation

NOVA SERIES GRAPHICS

yU + co.

NOVA THEME MUSIC

Walter Werzowa
John Luker
Musikvergnuegen, Inc.

ADDITIONAL NOVA THEME MUSIC

Ray Loring
Rob Morsberger

CLOSED CAPTIONING

The Caption Center

POST PRODUCTION ONLINE EDITOR

Spencer Gentry

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC RELATIONS

Jennifer Welsh

PUBLICITY

Eileen Campion
Eddie Ward

RESEARCH

Ana Aceves

SENIOR SCIENCE RESEARCHER

Caitlin Saks

NOVA ADMINISTRATOR

Anne Barleon

PRODUCTION COORDINATOR

Linda Callahan

PARALEGAL

Sarah Erlandson

TALENT RELATIONS

Janice Flood

LEGAL COUNSEL

Susan Rosen

DIGITAL MANAGING PRODUCER

Kristine Allington

SENIOR DIGITAL EDITOR

Tim De Chant

DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL MEDIA

Lauren Aguirre

RIGHTS MANAGER

Lauren Miller

BUSINESS MANAGER

Ariam McCrary

POST PRODUCTION COORDINATOR

Brittany Flynn

SUPERVISING PRODUCER

Kevin Young

POST PRODUCTION EDITOR

Michael H. Amundson

BROADCAST MANAGER

Nathan Gunner

COORDINATING PRODUCER

Elizabeth Benjes

DEVELOPMENT PRODUCER

David Condon

PROJECT DIRECTOR

Pamela Rosenstein

DIRECTOR, BUSINESS OPERATIONS & FINANCE

Laurie Cahalane

SENIOR SCIENCE EDITOR

Evan Hadingham

SENIOR PRODUCER

Chris Schmidt

SENIOR SERIES PRODUCER

Melanie Wallace

DEPUTY EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

Julia Cort

SENIOR EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

Paula S. Apsell

A NOVA Production by Sky Door Films for WGBH Boston in association with Sky Vision Productions, National Geographic and France Televisions

This program was produced by WGBH, which is solely responsible for its content.

Original funding for this program was provided by Cancer Treatment Centers of America, the David H. Koch Fund for Science, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.