In 1935, archaeologists discovered a shocking mummy in an ancient tomb near Luxor. Her mouth was wide open as if she was screaming forever, a scene that aroused great interest among archaeologists.
Nearly 90 years later, another team of scientists has delved into the "screaming woman" who died about 3,500 years ago in an attempt to uncover the secrets behind her amazing facial expressions.
According to British media on August 3, the team of scientists used CT scanning technology to reveal details of the mummy's morphology, health status and preservation, and used infrared imaging and other advanced technologies to conduct a "virtual dissection" of the remains. They hope to use these modern technological means to understand what caused her facial expression to be so frightened.
In the latest study, published in the journal Frontiers in Medicine, scientists determined that the woman was about 48 years old when she died, based on an analysis of pelvic joints that changed with age. There are some striking aspects of the mummy-making process, such as the embalming of her remains with frankincense and juniper resin, expensive luxuries that were transported from afar.
Sahar ·Salim, a professor of radiology at Cairo University's Qasr Aini Hospital, said in a statement that there were no incisions on the mummy's remains, which is consistent with the assessment at the time of the initial discovery that her brain, diaphragm, heart, lungs, liver, spleen, kidneys and intestines were still present. Failure to remove internal organs is very rare, as the classical method of mummification of that period usually consisted of removing all organs except the heart.
The anonymous woman, who was about 1.54 meters tall and just over 5 feet, had mild spondyloarthritis, the researchers found. CT scans revealed bone spurs in her spine and several missing teeth in her lower jaw that were likely lost during her lifetime. However, studies have not been able to determine the exact cause of her death.
Eternal Scream: Unsolved Mysteries
Although the researchers came up with a frightening hypothesis that the woman's screaming expression may have been due to spasms caused by a violent death, they were unable to confirm this speculation.
Studies have pointed out that mummified facial expressions do not necessarily indicate how a person feels when they die, and that burial procedures or post-mortem modifications may be one of the reasons for the mummified screaming phenomenon.
Salim said via email that the cause of the woman's death, true history or circumstances were unknown, so it was not possible to determine the cause of her screaming facial expressions. Only a few ancient Egypt mummies were found with their mouths open, and embalmers usually wrapped the mandible and skull to keep the mouth of the deceased closed.
Salim had studied two other ancient Egypt open-mouthed mummies. The first mummy is believed to be the remains of a prince named Pentawere, who had his throat cut for the assassination of his father, Ramses III. Salim said the mummy had barely been embalmed, suggesting that the process was not meticulous enough.
The second mummy was of a woman known as Princess Meritamon who died of a heart attack. Salim's analysis suggests that her large mouth was caused by posthumous jaw contraction or movement.
Randall Thompson, a cardiologist and professor of medicine at the University ·of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine, said the study was helpful and detailed.
Although he was not involved in the study, he believes that the authors' explanation of the mummy's mouth opening "makes a lot of sense." Their investigation helps us understand what substances were in ancient times and how our ancestors used them, Thompson said.
Revelations from mummification-making techniques
Salim noted that the "screaming woman" was treated with expensive imported embalming materials, a discovery that overturns the conventional wisdom that failure to eviscerate meant poor mummification. Her research suggests that the mummy's "screaming facial expression" may be a rare form of muscle stiffness associated with violent deaths, suggesting that the woman may be screaming to death in pain or pain.
Researchers believe the woman may have been mummified within 18 to 36 hours of death, during which time her body began to relax or decompose, retaining the position she had in when she died, with her mouth open. However, this is only one possibility, and other factors such as the decomposition process, the drying speed, and the compressive force of the wrapping may also affect the mummy's facial expression.
The "screaming woman" is buried under the tomb of Semmut, the architect of the temple of Queen Hatchepsut (1479-1458 BC) of Egypt who held important positions during the reign of Hatchupsut.
According to research, it is believed that the woman is related to Senmut. Her remains were found during an expedition led by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, where her coffin is still on display today, while her mummified remains are stored at the Egypt Museum in Cairo.
The study of ancient mummies not only sheds light on the life, death, and funeral customs of ancient Egypt, but also provides us with valuable information about health and disease.
As Randall · Thompson said, we can learn a lot about health and disease from the study of ancient mummies. For example, we learned that heart disease is not a new disease as many people used to think, and that it is actually older than Moses.