Fig 3 - uploaded by Rajiv Gupta
Content may be subject to copyright.
Posterior, anterior, and oblique views of the wrapping around the head. Notice the posterior occipital scalp defect and the near-normal appearance of the malar region despite extensive mutilations to the facial skeleton.
Source publication
Systematic facial mutilations during mummification have never been described before. The purpose of this work was to study a wrapped mummified head using high-resolution CT scanning.
An isolated mummified head from the Egyptian Middle Kingdom was scanned at 200 mum isotropic resolution. A prototype flat panel CT scanner was used to generate 800 non...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... the posterior, occipital/suboccipital location, there is an extensive area over which the scalp is missing. This is best seen in the left-most image in Fig 3. The linen covering this area is deficient as well. The underlying skull, however, is intact with- out any evidence of a depressed fracture or surgical defect. ...
Context 2
... external malar contours have been reconstructed bi- laterally by using linen wrapping and layers of glue-like mate- rial that, on CT, have the attenuation of soft tissue (Fig 3). By virtue of this postmortem restoration, the superficial appear- ance of the face belies the extensive surgical alterations that lie underneath. ...
Citations
... In turn, this might also indicate a postmortem exploration of the tumoural pathology. What is clear, is that the mummification process, when affecting cranial skeletal structures, does not involve cutmarks on the posterior region of the parietal (47,48). Also, these marks do not resemble postdepositional taphonomic marks such as trampling or similar [see (49)]. ...
The present case studies report malignant neoplastic and traumatic lesions observed on two ancient Egyptian skulls held at the Duckworth Collection (Cambridge University). The analysis aims to characterise the lesions and provide a diagnosis using a methodology based on micro-CT scanning and microscopic bone surface analysis. Results pointed towards neoplastic lesions in both cases and healed severe skull trauma in one of them suggesting successful traumatological therapy. Interestingly, our analysis has identified the presence of perimortem cutmarks associated with metastatic lytic lesions in one of the skulls, indicating a potential surgical treatment attempt or postmortem medical exploration. We argue that the two cases, although not contemporary, allow a palaeopathological discussion on oncological and traumatological understanding and management of such conditions in the past. The confrontation of two potential managements represented by two different types of lesions represent a clear boundary in ancient Egyptian medical care and a milestone in the history of medicine.
... In two cases, the removal of the brain through an induced trans-nasal defect creates a terminus post quem, as this was a frequently observed ancient Egyptian feature of mummification. The custom is already known from the Middle Kingdom (2055-1650 BC) as evidenced by the mummified head of Djehutynakht (Gupta et al. 2008). However, contrary to all expectations, the radiocarbon analysis indicated that two of the three items considered for this study are of a much later, Medieval date. ...
The permanent exhibition of the Hungarian National Museum, Semmelweis Museum of Medical History of Budapest, Hungary, displays some human remains believed to originate from ancient Egypt. Within the framework of the Nephthys Project, three objects consisting of two heads and one foot were studied via paleoimaging and archaeometric techniques in order to provide new anthropological and paleopathological data. It is argued here that even partial or fragmentary items are worthy of investigation as they can reveal new information about their owners, as well as their supposed authenticity.
... With an almost vertical inclination of the chisel to the cranial base, the embalmers created a perforation through the anterior skull fossa in the ethmoidal bone area, where the thin lamina cribrosa could easily be penetrated. This localization is found in a case from the 11th Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom (Gupta et al., 2008). There is also a preference for this anterior transethmoidal route in the New Kingdom, when transnasal craniotomy (TNC) was increasingly practiced (Wade, 2012). ...
In ancient Egypt, a unique technique for removing the brain was invented as part of the mummification practice and refined over the centuries. This usually involved piercing the anterior skull base through a nasal passage to remove the brain remnants through that perforation. From 2010 to 2018, an interdisciplinary team of the Universities of Basel and Zurich investigated tomb no. 40 (KV40) in the Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Egypt. Archaeological findings indicate a first burial phase during the mid‐18th Dynasty (ca. 1400–1350 BCE) and a second in the 22nd to 25th Dynasty (approx. 900–700 BCE). Repeated looting since ancient times severely damaged and commingled the human remains of the two burial phases. The detailed examination of the skulls showed evidence of different transnasal craniotomy practices. This study aims to provide a systematic presentation of the evidence for different excerebration techniques found in the mummy heads, skulls, and skull fragments from KV40, reflecting the long period of occupancy of this tomb by individuals of different social classes.
... Az agy eltávolításának ezt a módszerét már a Középbirodalom időszakának leírásai is bizonyítják (Kr. e. 2055-1650) a Dzsehutinaht múmia fejéről leírtak szerint [32]. ...
Összefoglaló.
Bevezetés: Egy traumás eredetű sérüléseket mutató, ókori egyiptomi koponya vizsgálatát ismertetjük a Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum gyűjteményéből. A jelen cikkben egy mumifikált fej elemzését emeltük ki, ennek átfogó vizsgálatát és részletes eredményeit közöljük.
Célkitűzés: Célunk egy multidiszciplináris vizsgálatsorozat megvalósítása volt, amelyen keresztül képet kapunk az egykor Egyiptom területén élt emberek egészségi állapotáról.
Módszer: A kutatás során a múmiákon szerves és szervetlen kémiai analíziseket, komputertomográfiai és röntgenvizsgálatot, szénizotópos kormeghatározást végeztünk, és felhasználtunk biológiai antropológiai módszereket is.
Eredmények: A koponya igazoltan az ókori Egyiptomból származik, és mivel sebei gyógyulásnak indultak, véleményünk szerint az egyén túlélte a fejét ért behatást. Ez meglepő eredménynek minősül, hiszen ilyen jellegű életveszélyes traumás sérüléseket csak akkor lehet nagy valószínűséggel túlélni, ha megfelelő orvosi ellátás áll rendelkezésre. Következtetés: Úgy gondoljuk, ebben az esetben is ez történt, bizonyítva, hogy az egyiptomi orvosi ismeretek valóban igen fejlettek és az orvoslás magas színvonalú volt.
Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(51): 2162–2170.
Summary.
Introduction: We are presenting the analysis of an ancient Egyptian mummified head from the collection of the Hungarian Natural History Museum, which shows special traumatic injuries. The examination of this artefact nicely demonstrates the procedures we usually apply in our research on the Egyptian mummies of the Museum.
Objective: Our aim was to implement a series of multidisciplinary studies to get a picture of the health condition of these people once living in the territory of Egypt.
Method: When researching the mummies, we performed organic and non-organic chemical analyses, computed tomography, X-ray examinations, radiocarbon isotope dating as well as biological anthropological methods.
Results: In this article, we report on the comprehensive examination of the skull and the detailed results we got. The skull is proven to originate from ancient Egypt.
Conclusion: As the wounds began to heal, we can conclude that the individual survived the impact on his head. This is quite surprising as such life-threatening traumatic injuries can only be survived if adequate medical care is available. We believe this was the case also here, i. e., ancient Egyptian medicine was highly developed and of really high standards.
Orvosi Hetilap 2020; 161(51): 2162–2170.
... These include studying the wrappings through simple observation and polarised light microscopy, together with literature from ancient texts 6 . Pertinent to this study is the application of conventional radiography 11-16 , and medical X-ray computed tomography to mummified remains 5,12,[17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37] . ...
The clues to life and death of mummified animals can remain hidden beneath their wrappings. Developments in non-invasive imaging have enabled detailed study of their internal structures. Laboratory-based X-ray microcomputed tomography (microCT) and focussed imaging protocols permit smaller mummified remains, such as animals, to be studied at higher resolution. In this study, we use microCT to image three different animal mummies. Revealing the internal structures provides insights into their biography, the conditions in which they were kept, complex mummification practices, possible causes of death, and subsequent handling damage. Thousands of years after the production of these mummified animals, the X-ray microCT technique facilitates new investigations, revealing ‘harder’ skeletal structures, mummification materials, and even desiccated soft tissues. Potential evidence for an ‘opening of the mouth’ procedure was found in a snake, along with indicators of the poor conditions in which the snake was kept when alive, leading to dehydration. Examination of a cat mummy revealed it was less than five months old and had its neck purposefully broken. It was also possible to identify a bird mummy to species level from the X-ray data. Improved understanding of animal mummification through scientific imaging can thus inform conservation and understanding of past human-animal relationships.
... In an effort to learn more, the head was analyzed with computerized tomography (CT) in 2005. The CT scanning of the head revealed extensive bilateral post-mortem alterations of the facial bones [7]. The absence of these bones, together with the lack of comparative data on ancient Egyptian skulls, preclude definitive morphological sex determination; however, the presence of large mastoid processes, robust occipital and temporal regions, and pronounced gonial flaring of the mandible, suggest that the skull more likely belonged to a man [8], ( Figure S1). ...
High throughput sequencing (HTS) has been used for a number of years in the field of paleogenomics to facilitate the recovery of small DNA fragments from ancient specimens. Recently, these techniques have also been applied in forensics, where they have been used for the recovery of mitochondrial DNA sequences from samples where traditional PCR-based assays fail because of the very short length of endogenous DNA molecules. Here, we describe the biological sexing of a ~4000-year-old Egyptian mummy using shotgun sequencing and two established methods of biological sex determination (R X and R Y), by way of mitochondrial genome analysis as a means of sequence data authentication. This particular case of historical interest increases the potential utility of HTS techniques for forensic purposes by demonstrating that data from the more discriminatory nuclear genome can be recovered from the most damaged specimens, even in cases where mitochondrial DNA cannot be recovered with current PCR-based forensic technologies. Although additional work remains to be done before nuclear DNA recovered via these methods can be used routinely in operational casework for individual identification purposes, these results indicate substantial promise for the retrieval of probative individually identifying DNA data from the most limited and degraded forensic specimens.
... Gupta et al. 2008. ...
n 1901, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA) acquired a remarkable Roman portrait bust made
1
of terracotta through the of ces of Mr. Edward Perry Warren ( g. 1). In his initial report on the
terracotta, Warren noted the bust had been found somewhere between Cumae and Pozzuoli (the sites are about 5 miles apart) in southern Italy ( g. 2) and suggested a rst-century a.d. date for the work. A note in the curatorial records at the MFA refers to the assessment of Adolf Furtwängler that the piece is “a[n] unicum, of the highest importance and one of our greatest possessions.” Despite broad scholarly awareness of the object, only perfunctory discussions of the sculpture have been published to date.
The unusual nature of the object has caused some concerns about its authenticity. Thermolu- minescence (TL) dating in 1997 and again in 2002 concluded that the clay had been red between 700 b.c. and a.d. 300. This con rmed to our satisfaction that the sculpture is ancient, although the broad range of dates did little to further understanding of the signi cance of the sculpture within the art of classical antiquity.2 No detailed art historical or technical research was carried out at the time of these tests. In 2005, MFA curators and conservators met with a sculptor, Ray Pisano, who had had a long interest in the portrait bust. He described his observations in detail in an unpub- lished report, offering his conclusion that the “lifelikeness and degree of modeling substantiate the belief that the portrait was cast from a deceased subject, with supplemental modeling to complete a portrait in the round.”3 Stimulated by these observations, a multi-year study was undertaken, the results of which are summarized in this essay. Many of Pisano’s initial observations and speculations on how the sculpture was made have been incorporated into the present article.
Studies of complex works of art are most fruitful when they are collaborations that can involve in- sights from many points of view or perspectives. The present study involved art historians, conservators, and scientists at the MFA and radiologists from Massachusetts General Hospital, under the inspiration of a practicing sculptor.4 A principal aim of the study has been to determine how the sculpture was manufactured and the materials used to make it. As discussed at length below, it is probable that the object derives from a life or death mask with some reworking and modi cation, which has important implications for the understanding of Roman art in general and Roman portraiture in particular. The technical examination involved the application of ultra-high resolution at-panel volume computed tomography (fpVCT), which provided enhanced visualization and insights about working method inaccessible with the traditional X-radiographic procedures commonly used to study works of art.
... En el momento que se echó este relleno, es posible que el cráneo tuviese una inclinación izquierda ( fig. 13) 4,6,9,11,12 . ...
... Además, el escáner dental realizado mostró indemnidad de las piezas dentarias (fig. 14) 4,7,9,11 . Según indica Heródoto, la técnica utilizada en Tadimentet habría sido más económica que la de Herwodj. ...
... Analyses of mummies with CT and MDCT have yielded a sum of information that is greater than that contributed by conventional radiographic examinations or forensic studies [8][9][10][11][12][13]. Careful review of the archaeologic literature shows that the basic outline of the practice of excerebration is inaccurate with regard to time span, relation to social status, and anatomic description [1,2,[4][5][6][7][8][9][10]. ...
... Analyses of mummies with CT and MDCT have yielded a sum of information that is greater than that contributed by conventional radiographic examinations or forensic studies [8][9][10][11][12][13]. Careful review of the archaeologic literature shows that the basic outline of the practice of excerebration is inaccurate with regard to time span, relation to social status, and anatomic description [1,2,[4][5][6][7][8][9][10]. ...
... If multiple attenuation values were noted in the same component, a range was given. The intracranial contents were identified by correlating the CT findings with what is written in the literature as follows: atrophic brain tissue, heterogeneous mottled soft tissue with undulating surface seen within dependent skull; resin or resinlike substance, homogeneous (70 HU); soil, inhomogeneous low density (-150 HU); and grains and other solid embalming materials, 430-1427 HU [8][9][10]. The embalming materials were recognized by their recorded CT features in correlation with the literature; chemical analysis of the embalming materials was not performed in this study. ...
ABSTRACT :
OBJECTIVE. The objective of our study was to use MDCT to study brain treatment and removal (excerebration) as part of mummification of royal Egyptian mummies dated to the 18th to early 20th Dynasties and to correlate the imaging findings with the archaeologic literature.
MATERIALS AND METHODS. As part of an MDCT study of the Royal Ancient Egyptian Mummies Project, we analyzed CT images of the heads of 12 mummies dated to circa 1493–1156 BC (18th to early 20th Dynasties). We reconstructed and analyzed CT images for the presence of cranial defects, brain remnants, intracranial embalming materials, and nasal packs. We compared the CT findings of mummies dated to the 18th Dynasty with those dated to the 19th to early 20th Dynasties.
RESULTS. The Akhenaten mummy was excluded because of extensive postmortem skull fractures. CT showed that no brain treatment was offered to three mummies (Thutmose I, II, and III) who dated to the early 18th Dynasty and was offered to the eight mummies who dated later. The route of excerebration was transnasal in eight mummies; an additional suspected route was via a parietal defect. CT showed variable appearances of the intracranial contents. There were larger volumes of cranial packs and more variability in the appearances of the cranial packs in the royal mummies dated to the 19th to 20th Dynasties than in those dated to the 18th Dynasty.
CONCLUSION. MDCT shows variations in brain treatment during mummification of royal Egyptian mummies (18th–20th Dynasties). This study sets a template for future CT studies of the heads of ancient Egyptian mummies and focuses on the key elements of cranial mummification in this ancient era.
Read More: http://www.ajronline.org/doi/abs/10.2214/AJR.12.9405
... We found an overlap of HU values in the measurements for the embalming material, tongue, philtrum , similar to that depicted in Motley et al. [9]. The attenuation values at different tube voltages, for a minimum of 20 ROIs, are summarized inTable 2. The wrapped linen was not strongly attenuating the X-rays, which is demonstrated by the low HU values inTable 2 [10]. The smaller tube voltage of 80 kVp led to an increase in the attenuation and larger HU differences.Figure 4 illustrates the mean HU values of mummified remains for the groups such as the linen, philtrum, tongue and embalming material. ...
Differentiation of ancient tissues is of key importance in the study of paleopathology and in the evolution of human diseases. Currently, the number of imaging facilities for the non-destructive discrimination of dehydrated tissue is limited, and little is known about the role that emerging imaging technologies may play in this field. Therefore, this study investigated the feasibility and quality of dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) for the discrimination of dry and brittle soft tissue. Moreover, this study explored the relationship between morphological changes and image contrast in ancient tissue by using X-ray micro-tomography (micro-CT).
An Egyptian mummy head and neck was scanned with DECT at tube voltage/current of 140 kVp/27 mAs (tube A) and 100 kVp/120 mAs (tube B). The CT attenuation was determined by regions of interest (ROI) measurements of hard and soft tissue of the mummy skull. Finally, two samples from the posterior neck were dissected to acquire micro-CT images of shrunken dehydrated tissue.
Dual-energy CT images demonstrated the high contrast resolution of surface structures from mummy skull. Bone density changes in the posterior skull base as well as soft-tissue alterations of the eyes and tongue were assessed. Micro-CT scans allowed the identification of morphological changes and the discrimination of muscle tissue from inorganic material in samples taken from the neck.
Significant attenuation differences (p < 0.0007) were observed within 12 of the 15 ancient tissue groups and organic materials using DECT. We detected a correlation between X-ray scattering and image contrast reduction in dehydrated tissue with micro-CT imaging.
