The multifaceted nature of Egyptian mummification: Paleoradiological insights into child mummies.

ABSTRACT: In accordance with ancient Egyptian beliefs, the preservation of the body after death was an important prerequisite for the continued existence of the deceased in the afterlife. This involved application of various physical interventions and magical rituals to the corpse. Computed tomography (CT), as the gold-standard technology in the field of paleoradiology, enables deeper insights into details of artificial body preservation. Therefore, CT was applied to investigate age at death, sex, mummification techniques, and the state of soft tissue preservation in 21 child mummies. The specimens are housed in European museums and were found in various archaeological sites. This sample included 12 males, 7 females, and two specimens of unknown sex, all between the ages of one and 14 years. Time pe

SUBMITTER: Zesch S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11661624 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature