The child mummies in the famous Capuchin Catacombs in Palermo, Sicily, Italy, are about to be comprehensively studied for the first time, and a team led by Dr. Kirsty Squires, Associate Professor of Bioarchaeology at the University of Staffordshire, UK, will use X-ray technology to analyze to uncover the 200-year-old secret of the catacombs.
The famous Capuchin Catacombs are located in the Sicily city of Palermo and are open to the public as a somewhat scary tourist attraction.
The Capuchin Catacombs, which reportedly house more than 1,280 skeletons and mummies, are open to the public as a somewhat scary tourist attraction. The remains from the late 16th century to the beginning of the 20th century are still dressed in the alchemist's uniforms of the time, lined up in the corridors and burial chambers of the catacombs.
Dr. Costi and his team have been given an exclusive visit to the catacombs to conduct a comprehensive study of 163 child mummies.
The research team will use a portable digital direct X-ray machine to examine all the dried cadavers of children who died between 1787 and 1880.
The research team will examine the cadavers of all children who died between 1787 and 1880 using a portable digital direct X-ray machine that will capture digital images of each child from head to toe. This is a non-invasive alternative to destructive techniques such as autopsies.
It is reported that the research team will take 574 X-ray photos to generate a biograph of the mummified child, based on factors such as age and sex, to determine whether the mummy is reserved for a specific child.
Radiographs will also detect developmental defects, stress indicators, and pathological pathologies, which are designed to gain insight into the health and lifestyle of children while they are alive.
So far, much of the research on Kapchin's remains has focused on adult bones, while less has been done on children.
Dr Costi said Kapuchin's remains are among the most important mummified collections in the world, and given that this funeral ritual is largely reserved for adults, the research team wanted to understand why children were mummified.
The catacombs include the embalmed body of Rosalia Lombardo, a young Sicilian girl who died of pneumonia from the Spanish flu in 1920.
Rosalia Lombardo's mummy's eyes open and close several times a day.
The mummy is famous for a phenomenon in which her eyes open and close several times a day, revealing a full blue iris.
Dr. DarioPiombino-Mascali of the Catacombs said the phenomenon was due to an optical illusion created by light passing through the glass windows covering her coffin, which changed during the day.
Dr. Dalio said her eyes weren't completely closed, in fact they were never.
Dr. Dario is working on the latest project with Dr. Costi, who investigated the preservation of Rosalia Lombardo about a decade ago.
Text/Nandu reporter Chen Lin