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May
2008
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MUMMY
SCIENCE:
MARYLAND
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Professors
to analyze Akhenaten and unkown museum mummy at Historical
Clinicopatholoical Conference (baltimoresun.com)
"Who will speak for the
pharaoh Akhenaten, the builder of temples and cities who reigned over
ancient Egypt 2,400 years ago? Who will explain his oddly shaped head,
sunken eyes, pendulous breasts and a belly that made him look pregnant?
That would be Irwin M. Braverman. The Yale medical school dermatology
professor will address a University of Maryland medical school conference
today on the genetic disorders that might have determined Akhaenaten's
strange appearance. He has spent months pouring over images of Akhenaten
and come up with a theory about the teenage pharaoh's peculiarities.
"I think it's very exciting," he said. Braverman's forum is the
Maryland's 14th annual Historical Clinicopatholoical Conference, held each
year to diagnose disorders that afflicted prominent historical figures.
The conference, open to the public, is designed to spark interest in
pathology and encourage doctors to enhance their powers of observation
when they diagnose disorders, according Dr. Philip Mackowiak, the UM
professor who organizes the conference.... Dr. Barry Daly, a professor of
diagnostic radiology at the medical school, will speak tomorrow about CT
scans conducted on a mummy brought to University of Maryland Medical
Center from the Walters Art Museum on March 18. Scientists are still
evaluating the scans, but so far they appear to show the mummy was a woman
between 40 and 60, and not a young girl as they once thought, said Regine
Schulz, the Walters' curator of ancient art and director of international
curatorial relations...."
Braverman's
theory about Akhenaten can be tested with help of Egyptologists and DNA
analysis of mummy (dailymail.co.uk)
"One of ancient Egypt's
greatest kings had a strikingly feminine body shape even though he
fathered at least half a dozen children possibly including Tutankhamun.
Images of Akhenaten, who introduced monotheism to Egypt and died more than
33 centuries ago, suggest that the pharaoh had breasts and wide hips were
due to a genetic disorder, scientists were told today. The pharoah's
female form was due to a genetic mutation that caused his body to convert
an excessive number of its male hormones to female hormones, Dr. Irwin
Braverman was due to tell a conference on the deaths of historic figures.
Akhenaten's head was also misshapen - because of a condition in which
skull bones fuse at an early age. The husband of famous queen Nefertiti,
Akhenaten was Tutankhamun's predecessor on the throne of Egypt in the
mid-1300s B.C. - and either his father or his uncle. Dr. Braverman, from
Yale University, analysed statues and carvings of Akhenaten for the annual
conference at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. The pharaoh
had "an androgynous appearance. He had a female physique with wide
hips and breasts, but he was male and he was fertile and he had six
daughters," the physician said.... This was largely due to familial
gynecomastia, a hereditary condition that leads to the overproduction of
oestrogen, he said.... Dr. Braverman said determining whether he is right
could easily be done if Egyptologists can confirm which mummy is
Akhenaten's and if the Egyptian government agrees to DNA analysis on the
remains. "
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The
8,000 Capuchin mummies of Palermo and their crypt to get makeover
(telegraph.co.uk)
"The eerie catacombs
were constructed after the death of Silvestro of Gubbio, a famous 16th
century monk. Four long limestone corridors underneath the Capuchin Church
hold the mummies, hung from hooks by their necks and feet and wearing
their best clothes. Dozens of long-dead infants, still in their baby
clothes, line one hall, and many of the mummies have been posed, their
heads bent in prayer. It has been rumored that the body of Velasquez, the
Spanish painter, is somewhere in the catacombs. However, the Capuchin
friars have never attempted any sort of restoration of the site, beyond
fitting a simple set of bars to deter vandals. Now they are launching a
project, co-funded by the European Union, to conserve the mummies.
"This is a major tourist destination, but our facilities are no
longer capable of welcoming so many," said Father Calogero Peri.
"This is our very rare heritage which we must open up to academics
from all over the world," he added. The site will also be fitted with
an elevator, a fire alarm system and closed-circuit television cameras,
and a glass walkway will lead visitors though the mummies...."
More
on the Capuchin mummies (mailonsunday.co.uk)
"...The last person to
be interred there was a small girl, aged only two, called Rosalia
Lombardo, in 1920. She reputedly died of pneumonia and was embalmed by a
doctor called Alfredo Salafia - the only person in Capuchin capable of
doing the embalming. Her body survives almost entirely intact - from her
dark blonde flowing hair to her delicate eyelashes. Dr Salafia took the
secrets of his remarkable embalming process to the grave, but Rosalia
Lombardo continues to fascinate the many tourists who visit her...."
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May
2008
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MUMMY/FOSSIL:
NEW YORK
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Preserved
dinosaur poop from the Jurassic era sold at NY auction (cnn.com)
".A pile of dinosaur
dung 130 million years old sold at a New York auction Wednesday for nearly
$1,000. The prehistoric deposit fetched $960, said a spokeswoman for
Bonhams New York. Its pre-auction estimate was $450. The fossilized dung
is from the Jurassic era, the auction house said. It looks like a rock on
the outside and a colorful mineral inside. The buyer was Steve Tsengas of
Fairport Harbor, Ohio. The 71-year-old owns OurPets, a company that sells
products to treat dog and cat waste...."
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April
2008
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MUMMY
SCIENCE:
ÖTZI
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Tracing
Ötzi's
ancestors by analyzing his mitochondrial DNA
(businesswire.com)
"Since Oetzi’s
sensational discovery, in 1991 and his extraction from the glacier in Alto
Adige in Italy, Europe’s most famous mummy has
been the subject of intensive scientific study. The initial research
focused on dating the mummy, and with the aid of radiocarbon dating
analyses it has been established that Oetzi dates back to around 3,000 BC.
Oetzi the Neolithic man is assumed to have been a hunter or a high-ranking
warrior and the cause of his death, according to the most accredited
hypothesis was an arrow wound. Currently, Dr. Gianluca De Bellis of the
CNR Institute of Biomedical Technology is taking part in new
investigations promoted by Professor Franco Rollo of the University of
Camerino. De Bellis is analyzing Oetzi´s
mitochondrial DNA by means of ultrafast 454 sequencing. Previous studies
that were conducted by means of traditional technologies have determined
that Oetzi’s mitochondrial DNA does not
resemble any sub-type found in any present existing ethnic group. In using
the Genome Sequencer FLX System, it will now be possible to shed more
light on the subject of Oetzi’s descendents,
and establish his place in the genetic scenario of the present European
race. Furthermore, 454 Sequencing data will enable researchers to trace
Oetzi’s ancestors; and reconstruct an accurate
phylogenetic family tree, obtaining an authentic global view of human
evolution. In comparison to chromosomal DNA, which is protected within the
cell nucleus, Mitochondrial DNA has far greater molecular variability;
this is due to the influence of the external environment. Therefore, as
apposed to its nuclear counterpart, mitochondrial DNA is far better suited
for tracing evolutionary changes. “The Genome
Sequencer FLX from Roche Diagnostics has made a significant contribution
in the simplification and optimization of DNA testing. Compared to
traditional methods, it has increased productivity 1,000-fold,
considerably reducing time investment and costs. A vast number of
nucleotide sequences, the “bricks”
that make up the DNA, can now be analyzed simultaneously.”
explains Dr. De Bellis. He expects to finish sequencing of the DNA in the
first half of 2008. Following the mitochondrial analyses, De Bellis plans
to study Oetzi’s eating habits. Tissue
samples that have been extracted from the mummy’s
colon will enable an analysis of his intestinal flora. The reason for this
investigation will be to compare the genes between the embryonic digestive
tube bacteria of Neolithic man with those of the present day modern
man...."
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April
2008
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MUMMY
SCIENCE:
BRITISH COLUMBIA
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Kwaday
Dan Ts'inchi and his 17 living relatives
(news.aol.ca)
"Scientists have found
17 living relatives of a centuries-old "iceman," whose remains
were discovered in a melting glacier in northern British Columbia nine
years ago. The remains of a young aboriginal man were found frozen inside
a glacier in the Champagne-Aishihik territory in August 1999. Scientists
gave the man the nickname Kwaday Dan Ts'inchi, which means "long-ago
person found" in the southern Tutchone language. DNA testing has now
connected the iceman to a number of people living in the Champagne and
Aishihik First Nations in the North. The results were unveiled Friday at a
science conference in Victoria, where all aspects of the discovery are
being discussed. Scientists believe Kwaday Dan Ts'inchi was a hunter, who
lived roughly 300 years ago — but possibly longer. He appeared to be in
good health when he, for some reason, died an accidental death on the
glacier.... Chief Diane Strand, of the Champagne and Ashihik First
Nations, led a project to search for the young man's descendants. She said
241 native people from B.C., Yukon and Alaska gave DNA samples for testing
and the results produced 17 positive matches. "All of those 17
people, and potentially their families, have the same common female
ancestor as Kwaday himself," Strand said Friday.... "
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April
2008
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DISCOVERY:
MICHIGAN
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Detroit
woman lived with body of mummified sister for at least a year
(freep.com)
"Detroit authorities
made a gruesome discovery Wednesday north of Hamtramck. The partially
mummified body of a woman was found lying on the kitchen floor about 9:30
p.m. in the 18000 block of Buffalo Street, Detroit Police said. The
woman's sister was in the home, and police believe she has been living in
the house with the body for one to three years, the approximate time it
takes for a body to decompose to that extent. Officials said there was a
strong odor when they entered the house. The woman's body had been at
least partially covered with newspapers. Police say they believe a cat and
dog living in the house had eaten some of the remains. The sister has been
removed from the home and was being taken to a crisis center. She appears
to have mental problems, police said. Both women were believed to be in
their 80s...."
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April
2008
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DISCOVERY:
IOWA
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'Almost
mummified' dog found in woman's garage
(ketv.com)
"A Sioux City woman
faces charges after police said they found an "almost mummified"
dead pit bull terrier chained inside a garage. Authorities found the dog's
body Monday. They said it was chained with a logging chain in a garage.
The dog's owner, Lupita-Guadalupe Gonzalez, 23, faces a criminal animal
neglect charge along with several civil citations. Cindy Rarrat of the
Sioux City Animal Control said it's believed the dog starved to death.
Sgt. Mike Post said it appears the dog's body had been inside for some
time. He said it was "almost mummified"...."
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April
2008
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MUMMY
ARCHAEOLOGY:
ALPINE GLACIERS
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Looters
may destroy bodies and artifacts revealed by melting glaciers
(timesonline.co.uk)
"Prehistoric treasures
unearthed in the Alps as melting glaciers recede are under threat from
looters who are removing many of them. Such is the concern for the newly
revealed objects - which include weapons, clothing and tools - that a task
force of archaeologists, anthropologists, mountain climbers and Alpine
rescue teams has been formed in an attempt to salvage them. Franco Nicolis,
an archaeologist from Trento, said: “We must be ready to intervene as if
we were dealing with a public calamity.” He said that mountain climbers
and hikers would be asked to report any finds to the task force rather
than removing them. “An object removed from its context loses 90 per
cent of its historical importance,” he told La Repubblica, the Italian
newspaper. The initiative, which will ensure that items are preserved
before they can deteriorate, is being organized by the superintendency of
archaeology at Trento and the Stelvio National Park. The most spectacular
Alpine find so far is Oetzi the Iceman, also known as Similaun Man or
“Frozen Fritz” - the well-preserved, mummified body of a hunter or
shepherd in his forties, who died in about 3300BC.... More recent finds
include prehistoric bronze arrowheads, clothing and shoes at Schnidejoch
in the Swiss Alps and Roman and mediaeval treasures found at Vedrete di
Riete and Vioz in the Italian Alps. The bodies of three Austro-Hungarian
soldiers, who were killed in 1918 during the First World War, were also
discovered in the Trentino region...."
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April
2008
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MUMMY
SCIENCE:
MASSACHUSETTS
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Berkshire
Museum reveals reconstructed face and life of Egyptian mummy
(berkshireeagle.com)
"The mummy has
returned. And he has new tales to tell. One of the county's most beloved
relics — the nearly 2,300-year-old corpse of the ancient priest Pahat
— is back on view at the Berkshire Museum's recently reopened Ancient
Civilizations gallery. But now, thanks to modern forensic science and
technology, specialists have been able to put flesh to his bones, creating
a three-dimensional reconstruction of Pahat's head. Further research has
also revealed that Pahat had a son, who now rests less than two hours
away.... Over the course of their research, the AMSC discovered that a
mummy at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., was Pahat's son, Shep-(en)-min....
"
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April
2008
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EXHIBIT:
ITALY
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Preserved
body of Padre Pio causes stir in Italy
(mirror.co.uk)
"The body of a monk who
was made a saint in 2002 is expected to attract a million visitors when it
goes on show. Padre Pio, who died in September 1968, was said to have
stigmata - crucifixion marks in his hands and feet. He was exhumed last
month to be prepared for display at a church near Foggia, southern Italy,
as part of celebrations for the anniversary of his death. No stigmata are
visible but bookings to view the body are running at 2,000 a day. A senior
churchman present at the exhumation said: "The upper part of the
skull was skeletal while the forehead was in perfect condition. The rest
of the body is also well preserved." Critics in Italy have slammed
"fetishism" and those who "judge spirituality from the
state of conservation" of a corpse...."
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Lindow
Man goes home to Manchester for a year-long exhibit
(manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
"For nearly 2,000
years, the murder victim lay in a peat bog at Lindow Moss, near Wilmslow,
the acid mush tanning his body like leather. When peat-cutters chanced
upon the remarkably well-preserved corpse in 1984, Lindow Man became
something of a celebrity. There was a ghoulish fascination with how he met
his untimely end, but there was local outrage when a coroner directed that
the body should go to the British Museum in London.... Interest is
expected to be just as keen when Lindow Man returns again to the museum
for 12 months in an exhibition opening [April 19, 2008]. Even now, there
is the air of mystery surrounding Britain's best-preserved bog body.
"I think he has to have been the victim of a ritual killing, and the
reasons for that we can only speculate on," says Bryan Sitch, curator
of archaeology at Manchester museum. "Was it an offering to the gods?
Was it punishment for a crime? Was Lindow Man a scapegoat, blamed for some
catastrophe, and high-up enough in society to be held accountable?"
For Lindow Man was no mere unfortunate peasant. The body yielded one very
important clue to that: in an age when all but the most important in
society had to get their hands dirty, Lindow Man had neatly-manicured
fingernails...."
More
on Lindow Man
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April
2008
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MUMMY
SCIENCE:
RUSSIA
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Scythian
princess mummy pits scientists against locals
(newsfromrussia.com)
"In the Altai region an
archeologist Natalya Polosmak found a mummy of a woman. She
probably died at the age of 25 about 2500 years ago. The scientists have a
unique opportunity to examine the clothes of the ancient representatives
of so-called Puzirsk culture. Also, some tattoos are found on the
woman’s body. Also, the tissue was very well preserved, which gave the
scientists an opportunity to examine DNA and thus find a key to
understanding the way Turkic race was originated. The body was found 15
years ago. Since that time the story was covered with countless rumors.
Someone didn’t take attention to the scientists trying to find the truth
about the origin of the mummy. Without any investigation, they declared
the mummy their new idol. They called it “princess”, “goddess”,
and “the mother of Turkic race”.... Then local “spiritual leaders”
went further and started to earn political importance by accusing
archeologists on “the princess’s revenge” that appeared in different
social and ecological disasters – from the earthquake in 2003 to
privilege monetization. Some administration representatives even proposed
to bury the mummy again. That would mean that the possibility to hold a
unique scientific investigation would be missed. But spiritual and
political leaders of Altai didn’t care – they tried to unite people
against “an enemy”. The enemy, they thought, were scientists."
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April
2008
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MUMMY
MOVIE:
FRANCE
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Fact
or fiction?: New documentary purports to show French tomb with mummified
corpse under Knights Templar shroud
(newsblaze.com)

"An underground tomb
found in the Languedoc region of southwest France has been discovered,
which may help substantiate the existence of a
Jesus Christ
and
Mary Magdalene
bloodline, according to the new documentary BLOODLINE, premiering May 9 in
New York and May 16 in Los Angeles. The rare find will be further examined
at a Monday, May 5 news conference at the Jewish Museum in New York City.
The chamber contains a mummified corpse on a rose-colored plinth under a
shroud bearing the distinctive red cross of the Knights Templar, and is
surrounded by wooden chests, revealing a cache of gold chalices and coins.
The discovery has been reported to the French Government agency, Direction
Regionale des Affaires Culturelles Languedoc-Roussillon (DRAC-LR), and
plans are underway for a full scale survey. "After the Crusades, it
was rumored that the Templars had discovered treasure underneath the
Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem that could debunk the Catholic Church's
doctrine," said BLOODLINE director
Bruce Burgess
, of the unprecedented discovery of what appears to be an intact Knights
Templar tomb. "This treasure was believed to be priceless relics --
documents, the Holy Grail, even the embalmed remains of
Jesus Christ
and
Mary Magdalene
-- which was then brought to southern France, and hidden." The
subterranean chamber was discovered by an English adventurer, Ben Hammott,
using a hidden code in the decor of the church at Rennes-le-Chateau left
behind by the 19th century priest,
Berenger Sauniere
. The film team was able to gain access into the tomb by using a remote
camera inserted through a small air shaft at the top of the
chamber...."
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April
2008
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MUMMY
SCIENCE:
NORTH KOREA/RUSSIA
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Eternally-preserved
North Korean leader Kim II Sung has good company
(dailynk.com)
"Kim Il Sung was born
in Nam-ri, Kohpyong-myon of Daedong, South Pyongan Province on April 15,
1912, and died at the age of 82 on July 8, 1994. The biggest North Korean
holiday is April 15, Kim Il Sung’s birthday, and this year would have
been his 96th birthday. With all the celebration, anyone would think that
he is still alive in North Korea, even though he died 14 years ago. In
June 1995, 11 months after his death, the Mt. Keumsoo Assembly Hall that
was once used as his private office was renovated and transformed into the
Mt. Keumsoo Memorial Palace to preserve his body permanently according to
Kim Jong Il’s order. A Russian biological research institute was
contracted preserve the body, the same institute in charge of preserving
Lenin's body. Kim Il Sung’s body became the 9th eternally-preserved
corpse among the former socialist countries’ leaders, including Lenin
(1924) and Stalin (1953) of the former U.S.S.R., Dimitrov (1949) of
Bulgaria, Gottwald (1953) of former Czechoslovakia, Ho Chi Minh (1969) of
Vietnam, Neto (1979) Angola, Burnham (1985) of Guyana and Mao Tse-tung
(1976) of China...."
Eternally-preserved
Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin back on display in Red Square
(rian.ru)
"The mausoleum at Red
Square, where the embalmed corpse of ex-Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin is
housed, reopened on Tuesday after two-months of maintenance works. Lenin's
mausoleum, a major tourist attraction in the heart of Moscow, closes every
18 months for about six weeks to give Lenin a bath in a special embalming
compound and a change of clothes. Lenin's has been on public display in a
glass case since his death in 1924, although his organs, including his
brain, were removed during the autopsy. Regular checks are carried out of
Lenin's body and Russian scientists say he could be preserved for a long
time. "We believe the body could be maintained for an indefinitely
long period," said Professor Valery Bykov. He explained that
specialists who carry out the preservation work combine traditional and
modern techniques...."
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April
2008
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REPATRIATION:
CONNECTICUT/PERU
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How
many mummies--and artifacts-- from Machu Picchu does Yale University
have? (guardian.co.uk)
"Yale University is
holding 40,000 artifacts from the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, a Peruvian
government official told state news agency Andina on Sunday. Yale agreed
last year to return 4,000 pieces including mummies, ceramics and bones
taken when Yale scholar Hiram Bingham rediscovered Machu Picchu in 1911.
There were no indications of whether Peruvian officials previously knew
about the additional 36,000 artifacts, reported after an inventory by
Peruvian archaeologists, and no details of their historical significance.
Peru demanded the return of the collection in 2006...."
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April
2008
|
MUMMY
SCIENCE:
RUSSIA
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Baby
mammoth pictures? Scientists see her prehistoric internal organs for
first time (msnbc.msn.com)
"Russian scientists say
they have obtained the most detailed pictures so far of the insides of a prehistoric
animal, with the help of a baby mammoth called Lyuba found immaculately
preserved in the Russian Arctic. The mammoth is named after the wife of
the hunter who found her last year. The body was shipped back to Russia in
February from Japan, where it was studied using computer tomography in a
process similar to one doctors use to scan patients. "We could see
for the first time how internal organs are located inside a mammoth. It is
pretty important from a scientific point of view," said Alexei
Tikhonov, deputy director of the Russian Academy of Science's Zoological
Institute, who has been leading the project. "Her internal organs
were well preserved — the heart was seen distinctly with all its
ventricles and atria, as well as the liver and its veins," Tikhonov
told Reuters. "This is the best preserved specimen not only of the
mammoth but of any prehistoric animal." The mammoth species has been
extinct since the Ice Age. Tests on Lyuba showed she was fed on milk and
was three to four months old when she died 37,000 years ago in what is now
the Yamalo-Nenetsk region in Russia's Arctic."
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April
2008
|
MUMMY
SCIENCE:
NEW YORK
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Vassar
College's mummy receives revealing CT-scan
(recordonline.com)
"It was, at first
blush, a situation worthy of Mel Brooks: a 2,200-year-old man was getting
a CT scan at a local radiology lab. What, hadn't he heard of cling
peaches? You could almost hear the rim shots echoing off in the distant
Catskills. The guy's name was Shep. He's a mummy from ancient Egypt and,
boy, was he quiet — all wrapped up in himself. Down beneath those linen
sheets — nothing but skin and bone. An Egyptologist was going to send
him through a CT scanner to see what he could see. Call it CSI: Egypt.
Budda boom, said the hills. Though he had nothing directly to say about
his strange predicament, Shep-en-Min, priest of the fertility god Min,
who's resided for a sliver of his existence in a wooden coffin at Vassar
College, held the rapt attention of a roomful of reporters, academics and
medical staff — modern supplicants — eager to see and hear the
evidence of his life, as filtered through 21st century technology. In a
perfect mixture of modern and ancient ways, Egyptologist Jonathan Elias
used a Somaton Sensation 4 CT scanner to read the bones of the ancient
body. Elias is the director of the Akhmim Mummy Studies Consortium. Akhmim
was once one of Egypt's great cities...."
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April
2008
|
CRIME:
NEW MEXICO
|
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30
years later, stolen mummified skull leads federal authorities to Civil
War-era cemetery looted by thieves
(azstarnet.com)
"Working in secret,
federal archaeologists have dug up the remains of dozens of soldiers and
children near a Civil War-era fort after an informant tipped them off
about widespread grave-looting. The exhumations, conducted from August to
October, removed 67 skeletons from the parched desert soil around Fort
Craig — 39 men, two women and 26 infants and children, according to two
federal archaeologists who helped with the dig. They also found scores of
empty graves and determined 20 had been looted. The government kept its
exhumation of the unmarked cemetery near the historic New Mexico fort out
of the public's eye for months to prevent more thefts. The investigation
began with a tip about an amateur historian who had displayed the
mummified remains of a black soldier, draped in a Civil War-era uniform,
in his house. Investigators say the historian, Dee Brecheisen, may have
been a prolific looter who spotted historical sites from his plane.
Brecheisen died in 2004 and although it was not clear whether the looting
continued after his death, authorities exhumed the unprotected site to
prevent future thefts.... Federal officials learned of the looting in
November 2004, when Don Alberts, a retired historian for Kirtland Air
Force Base, tipped them off about a macabre possession he'd seen at
Brecheisen's home about 30 years earlier. Alberts described seeing the
mummified remains of a black soldier with patches of brown flesh clinging
to facial bones and curly hair on top of its skull. Alberts said the body
had come from Fort Craig...."
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April
2008
|
MUMMY
SCIENCE:
OREGON
|
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700
pieces of mummified poop may change history
(thetechherald.com)
"The earliest evidence
yet of human DNA in North America has been found -- in fossilized feces,
known as coprolites. Dennis Jenkins, of the University of Oregon, wrote in
the journal Science that, since 2002, he and his team had found about 700
coprolite samples in caves in the north-western US state of Oregon.
Jenkins said the samples were found amidst a variety of other artifacts.
"We found a little pit in the bottom of a cave," he said,
"It was full of camel, horse and mountain sheep bones, and in there
we found a human coprolite." The find dates the extracted DNA to
around 14,300 years ago, which challenges the customary theory (known as
the Clovis theory) that the earliest American humans entered the continent
via the Bering land bridge that once connected Alaska to Asia. The theory,
named after the New Mexico town where remains were found) contends that
humans gradually moved south, taking advantage of a ice-free period. The
Oregon find, which links with previous finds, shows that humans arrived in
the Americas prior to the establishment of the Bering land
bridge...."
Coprolites
from Paisley Caves provide DNA evidence about arrival of humans in North
America (cordis.europa.eu) (with
photo)
"Fossilized human feces
found in an Oregon cave are forcing archaeologists to rethink the timing
of the arrival of the first humans in the Americas. The ancient excrement
has been dated to over 14,000 years old, suggesting that immigration took
place some 1,000 years earlier than previously believed.... The feces
under investigation were found in the Paisley Caves in the western US
state of Oregon. The extremely dry conditions in the caves meant that a
range of materials, including threads made of sinew and plant fibers,
hide, basketry, cords, rope and wooden pegs, as well as animal bones and
human and animal feces, were preserved for millennia. 'We found a little
pit in the bottom of a cave,' explains Dr Dennis Jenkins of the University
of Oregon, who led the field expeditions at the caves. 'It was full of
camel, horse and mountain sheep bones, and in there we found a human
coprolite.' DNA tests confirmed that 14 of the coprolites (dried-out
excrement) were human, and came from Native Americans with genetic ties to
Siberia or Asia. Carbon dating revealed that the oldest coprolites were
approximately 14,340 years old. According to the researchers, this not
only proves that the American Indians are the descendants of the first
immigrants to the Americas, it also proves that immigration took place
approximately 1,000 years earlier than once thought. Theories abound as to
the precise date and arrival route of the first human settlers of the
Americas. However, the most accepted theory is that people arrived around
13,000 years ago from Asia via the land bridge that once connected Siberia
and Alaska. These people rapidly spread out across the continent. Known as
the Clovis culture, they left behind distinctive points and other tools,
but little in the way of human remains."
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April
2008
|
MUMMY
CRIME:
MYANMAR
|
|
Glass
coffin with body of revered Buddhist monk stolen from Myanmar monastery
(iht.com)
"A group of armed men
on Wednesday stole the body of one of Myanmar's most revered Buddhist
monks, whose corpse has been preserved in a glass coffin since he died
more than four years ago. Officials said the coffin containing the body of
Sayadaw Bhaddanta Vinaya, better known as Thamanya Sayadaw, was stolen
from the monastery in eastern Myanmar where he had preached. The
officials, who insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to
release information, said at least nine armed men wearing camouflage
clothing carried out the theft. They said they had no idea who they were
or why they took the body. Thamanya Sayadaw — the abbot of Thamanya
mountain — was a highly revered monk who attracted thousands of
followers to his temple daily before he died in November 2003 at the age
of 93. Among those who journeyed to pay homage to him at his mountain
retreat 160 kilometers (100 miles) east of Yangon was pro-democracy leader
Aung San Suu Kyi. She, like most people in Myanmar, is Buddhist...."
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April
2008
|
MUMMY
MUSEUM:
UK
|
|
Moyse's
Hall Museum in Bury St. Edmonds and the preserved parts of the Red Barn
murderer (eadt.co.uk)
"On May 18, 1827, Maria
Marten, the 26-year-old daughter of a mole catcher, left her father's
cottage at Polstead to meet boyfriend William Corder in the Red Barn. She
never returned. It's said that Thomas Marten's wife later had a dream. It
prompted her to urged her husband to search the Red Barn. He discovered a
shallow grave and the body of Maria. Corder was arrested in London. In
August, 1828, he was found guilty of murder at a trial in Bury St Edmunds.
Corder was hanged at the county gaol in Bury, with thousands of people
ignoring heavy rain to watch. The body was taken to the Shire Hall, where
it was cut open and laid out on show. Thousands of people filed past to
view it before it was removed for dissection at West Suffolk Hospital. The
scalp and some skin was preserved, with the right ear attached, and
surgeon George Creed later had an account of the trial bound in Corder's
skin! “Unfortunately,” says Gill, “you've come when Norwich Castle
have just borrowed his scalp and his ear for an exhibition they're holding
. . . and the book bound in his skin!” Moyse's Hall does, however, have
a copy of William Corder's death bust. It was kept for many years at the
old West Suffolk Hospital. Offered to the museum, it was rejected by the
then curator as “too macabre” and thrown away. A passer-by rescued it
from a rubbish tip and offered it to a later, less squeamish, curator, who
accepted...."
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April
2008
|
DISCOVERY:
COLORADO
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Partially
mummified 'caveman' corpse found In Colorado cavern
(thedenverchannel.com)
"A partially mummified
body has been discovered in a cave west of Glenwood Springs, Colo.
According to a newspaper report, the body is believed to be that of a
transient. The body was found by hikers inside Cave of the Clouds, near No
Name, on Saturday afternoon. The deputy coroner of Garfield County told
the Glenwood Springs Independent that the hands of the corpse were
starting to mummify, indicating that death had occurred weeks before a
group of cavers made the grisly discovery. Thomas Walton was conducting an
autopsy to determine and cause and time of death for the unidentified man.
For years, cavers trying to visit Cave of the Clouds have been confronted
by a wild-eyed transient who sometimes threw rocks at them as they climbed
the walls of Glenwood Canyon to access the cave. The man told cavers that
he considered the cave his home and he stayed there year round. A
spokeswoman for the Garfield County Sheriff's Office said the man found
dead had been living in the cave.
..."
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March
2008
|
DISCOVERY:
RUSSIA
|
|
|
Mummified
woman found in her apartment 13 years after her death (newsfromrussia.com)
"Praskovya died
at the age of 67. It seems she decided to have a nap after cleaning the
house and suddenly died. The dead body would continue to lie in the
apartment, but it was found by chance by the representatives of house
maintenance department. The house where Praskovya used to live got the
canalization damaged. The representatives of house maintenance
department wanted to ask Praskovya if she had any problems with
canalization. They have been knocking on the woman’s door several
times and finally decided to call the police. The police was shocked to
see the mummy of the woman lying on the sofa. It was covered with
parchment-like tissue - for 13 years it has completely decayed. Victor
Marichev, the woman’s neighbor, reveals: “She disappeared long time
ago. At first we thought that she was in hospital, and then…just
forgot about her”. An expertise proved that the woman died precisely
13 years ago. The window leaf in her apartment was open, that’s why
the neighbors never felt the terrible smell, life.ru
reports...."
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March
2008
|
MUMMY
SCIENCE:
KENTUCKY
|
|
|
Scientists
answer pressing question: What gender is Louisville's Then-Hotep?
(louisville.edu)
"A University of
Louisville research team recently helped the Louisville Science Center
learn more about an old friend — a 2,600-year-old friend. Actually, the
friend, a mummy called Then-Hotep, is more like a family member, having
been one of the most popular attractions at the science center and its
forerunner, the Natural History Museum, since the early part of the last
century. But throughout all of those years, it kept one big secret: Nobody
knew its gender. Until now. Under the leadership of professor Aly Farag,
director of the Computer Vision and Imaging Process lab at J.B. Speed
School of Engineering, the UofL team applied technological and forensic
expertise to verify that Then-Hotep is a female. The human skull holds
many clues to gender, so the team focused on making a faithful
reproduction of the mummy’s head, Farag said. Here’s how the team did
it...."
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March
2008
|
MUMMY
SCIENCE:
NEVADA
|
|
Dream
of Clark County body farm dies (lasvegassun.com)
"When a coroner
daydreams, it isn’t pretty. Mike Murphy has a regular morning routine:
He spends an hour eating a breakfast sandwich and reading the paper in his
pajamas before he changes into one of his sharp suits, drives to work in
his black beast of a county car, parks in his special spot, and walks
through a back door of a low building and into the lively world of
Vegas’ dead. When the coroner catches a few minutes, he’ll go eat an
omelette at a nearby cafe (he always brings a muffin back for his
secretary), or dust the photographs on his desk, most of which feature the
bald man and his blushing bride. And when he’s really alone with his
thoughts, when he’s snapping on the 10,000th pair of latex gloves, or on
hold waiting for someone important to pick up, the coroner might spend a
few seconds thinking about bodies rotting in the Clark County desert.
Dozens of them, laid out bare, or locked in cars, or buried in
refrigerators 6 feet underground, slowly decomposing or bleaching into
bone. When a coroner daydreams, it’s of body farms...."
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March
2008
|
MUMMY
MUSEUM:
RUSSIA
|
|
Altai
Princess to be returned to Siberia and exhibited in national museum
(rian.ru)
"A tomb to house the
remains of a woman found after being preserved in ice for 2,500 years will
be built in Siberia's Altai Republic, the director of a local museum said
on Thursday. The well-preserved remains of the woman dubbed the Altai
Princess were discovered in the region by a team led by a Novosibirsk
archeologist in 1993 near the Mongolian border, and have been studied at
the Archaeology and Ethnography Institute in Novosibirsk. Residents of
Altai, where shamanism is still widespread, had repeatedly called for the
body's return to its homeland, and blamed the removal for earth tremors
and other natural disasters. However, Novosibirsk scientists had been
reluctant to return the body, saying local museums did not have the
necessary facilities to preserve it. "A decision has been taken to
build a sloping building for the mummy, resembling a burial mound. This
will be an extension to the main building of the national museum" in
Gorno-Altaysk, the museum director said. The body will now be housed in a
state-of-the-art glass temperature-controlled case. Construction work
should be finished by the end of this year...."
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March
2008
|
MUMMY
SCIENCE:
RUSSIA
|
|
When
preserved bodies are discovered in Russia's thawing tundra, could
smallpox be reintroduced to the world?
(scienceline.org)
"Yards and yards of
clear plastic sheeting line the cellar floor, dwarfing the corpse:
headless, frail, supine. The young bony arms — covered in fine
black powder from centuries of immobility in the frozen tundra — are
crossed at rest, reminiscent of a ceremonial burial. Camera flashes
illuminate the scene. Several dozen scientists stand around the body,
murmuring in Russian and English about the find of the day. How long
do you think it was buried? Do you think it’s male or female? How did
they get it back to camp? And the pervasive thought: I don’t
think we should touch it. He could have died of smallpox. Smallpox
was a vicious disease before its eradication in the 1970s, but the virus
is hardy and can survive long-term storage. One such storage unit is the
tundra of the high northern latitudes that preserves an unknown number of
bodies that could have died from smallpox. Global warming is now rapidly
thawing this freezer, increasing the chance that someone could come into
contact with a smallpox-infested body, thereby reintroducing the
disease. Smallpox rivals malaria as the most deadly infectious disease
ever to affect humans. Throughout history, people looked for ways to
combat the disease, priming their immune systems with remedies such as
sniffing ground-up scabs or smearing pus into open wounds. The first true
vaccine — developed in 1796 by Edward Jenner — was for
smallpox...."
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March
2008
|
MUMMY
SCIENCE:
NORTH DAKOTA
|
|
Dakota,
the mummified duckbilled hadrosaur, is uncovered, bit by bit
(cnn.com)
"Using tiny brushes and
chisels, workers picking at a big greenish-black rock in the basement of
North Dakota's state museum are meticulously uncovering something amazing:
a nearly complete dinosaur, skin and all. Unlike almost every other
dinosaur fossil ever found, the Edmontosaurus named Dakota, a duckbilled
dinosaur unearthed in southwestern North Dakota in 2004, is covered by
fossilized skin that is hard as iron. It's among just a few mummified
dinosaurs in the world, say the researchers who are slowly freeing it from
a 65-million-year-old rock tomb. "This is the closest many people
will ever get to seeing what large parts of a dinosaur actually looked
like, in the flesh," said Phillip Manning, a paleontologist at
Manchester University in England, a member of the international team
researching Dakota.... Animal tissue typically decomposes quickly after
death. Researchers say Dakota must have been buried rapidly and in just
the right environment for the skin to be preserved.... Dakota was moved to
the museum early last month and is currently surrounded by precariously
perched desk lamps and a machine to suck up dust. State paleontologist
John Hoganson, of the North Dakota Geological Survey, said it will take a
year, maybe more, to uncover it. "
More
on Dakota
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March
2008
|
MUMMY
BURIAL:
NEW
HAMPSHIRE
|
|
Concord's
baby mummy to be buried Tuesday (bostonherald.com)
"Two years after police
in Concord confiscated an 18-inch mummified baby boy from a man’s
apartment, the city was expected to bury it Tuesday, no closer to
resolving who he was. A Merrimack County Probate Court judge ordered the
remains of "Baby John" buried after DNA tests failed to prove
the boy was related to Charles Peavey. Peavey’s family had the mummy for
80 to 90 years when the Concord police learned about it in April 2006.
Peavey, like his relatives before him, considered the mummy a family
heirloom and believed it was possibly the stillborn son of a
great-great-uncle. DNA samples taken from the mummy, however, were too
degraded to yield answers. In January, the state attorney general’s
office asked the probate court to order the remains buried...."
More on the
mysterious mummified infant from Concord,
NH
From September
2007:Judge
order burial of Concord's baby mummy
(concordmonitor.com)
"They'll be no
more holidays or show-and-tells for "Baby John," the
mummified baby displayed on Charles Peavey's bureau until the police
confiscated it last year. A probate court judge yesterday said state
officials can bury the infant's decades-old remains because Peavey
hasn't proven his claim that he and the mummy are kin. Peavey, 42,
of Concord, has 30 days to appeal that decision, but he said
yesterday he won't. "I'm just washing my hands of it,"
said Peavey, who said he skipped the court hearing because he can't
afford the DNA tests needed to prove kinship. "I'm disappointed
it came to this." Lack of DNA wasn't the only concern raised by
attorney Richard Head of the state attorney general's office.
Equally troubling, Head told Judge Richard Hampe, is Peavey's
MySpace page, a campy collection of haunted houses, skeletons and
references to Baby John. The online site opens with The Addams
Family's," familiar theme song: "They're creepy and
they're kooky, mysterious and spooky . . . " Next is The
Munster's theme song. The page also includes sayings like,
"Children shouldn't play with dead things." The website,
Head told the judge, raises "questions about whether the
remains are being treated with the appropriate respect." Hampe
looked at printed-out images from the site but limited his comments
to DNA. He said without proof of kinship, state law requires that he
insure that the infant's remains were released to a funeral director
for burial. And so apparently ends the long and unlikely tale that
began in April 200..."
From August
2006: Owner
doubts that baby mummy will be returned (concordmonitor.com)
"When Charles Peavey of Concord learned in
April that the police wanted his family's unusual heirloom - a
mummified baby - he gave it up with a mix of trepidation and hope.
The mummy and the stories surrounding it had been in Peavey's family
for generations. But DNA testing could finally confirm whether that
baby was truly a Peavey. It now seems unlikely the authorities will
spend the few thousand dollars to do the DNA testing, said Peavey,
41. And worse, he said, he's been told he may not even get the mummy
back. Instead, Dr. Marcella Sorg, the Maine forensic scientist
examining the mummy, investigated only the cause of death and
whether the corpse is diseased, he said. Sorg has finished her
autopsy, the Concord police said, but has not submitted a report.
Sorg could not be reached for comment, and neither the police nor
Peavey has heard her conclusions...."
From
May 2006: Did mummified infant come from Hawaii? (khon.com)
"The strange case of a mummified baby found
in a home in New England may have a Hawaii connection.... A man who
lives in the capital of New Hampshire, Concord, believes the body he
kept in his home was part-Hawaiian.... Charles Peavy, a cook in
Concord, New Hampshire, has had the mummified baby for eight years.
He says it's been in his family for about 90 years, left among the
possessions of his widely traveled great-great uncle. Peavy believes
his great-great uncle fell in love with a Hawaiian woman and she and
their baby died in childbirth. The mummy was kept in a box decorated
with shells, bearing the words: 'sacred to the memory of our little
Hawaiian home across the sea....' "
From A
reporter's story: How to track down the owner of a mummified body
(concordmonitor.com
"I've got at least another 30 years of
newspaper reporting ahead of me, but I already know some of the
stories I'll remember most. The election of Episcopal Bishop Gene
Robinson. Covering the state's abortion case at the U.S. Supreme
Court. And last week's hunt for the mummy baby. Here's why: I'm more
reporter than writer, and those three stories were tough to land.
But none was harder than the mummy. It took me six days of knocking
on strangers' doors and calling my best contacts to find the mummy.
At a daily paper, that's an eternity. The initial tip came on a
Friday, the busiest day in a newsroom, and I was in the middle of
two stories. 'You ready for this?' the tipster said. 'There is a
mummified baby in Concord. The Concord police got a call. That's all
I know'...."
From
April 2006:Investigation
continues...and consequences become clearer (upi.com)
"New Hampshire investigators have seized a
mummified baby's corpse that a family has been passing down as an
heirloom for decades. Charles Peavey, 41, told Concord police he was
told when he inherited "Baby John" from his father, it was
the stillborn son of a great-great uncle. The state attorney
general's office has forensic anthropologists investigating the
infant's age, origin and cause of death to rule out homicide, but
results could take months, the Concord Monitor reported. If no DNA
link can be found to the Peavey clan, he will not receive the
remains back. And if the infant is in fact more than 80 years old as
Peavey claims, the statute of limitations on any laws regarding
human remains have expired, the report said...."
From
April 2006: New
Hampshire Attorney General's office to investigate (seacoastonline.com)
"A mummified baby that’s belonged to a local
family for decades is
being investigated by the state attorney general’s office. Charles
Peavey, 41, said the tiny preserved corpse has been passed down in
his family since it was discovered among his great-great uncle’s
possessions in a Manchester attic. Investigators got word of the
remains after Peavey’s 4-year-old niece was overheard telling
another child that her uncle was a killer and had a dead baby.
Police visited the girl’s mother and saw a photo of the mummy.
Peavey contacted police when he learned they were investigating. Now
the mummy is in the hands of investigators, and Peavey said he was
told a forensic anthropologist would be examining it...."
From
April 2006: A
family heirloom: Mysterious mummified infant? (concordmonitor.com)
"For decades, Charles Peavey's family has
passed down what he admits is a most unusual family heirloom: the
tiny corpse of a mummified baby whose mysterious history has been
filled with legend. But Peavey, 41, of Concord had never considered
the keepsake a problem until the Concord police learned of the
remains last week and took them for testing. The state attorney
general's office is investigating the infant's age, origin and cause
of death to rule out homicide. It seems unlikely that Peavey will
face criminal charges, but the investigation has him worried. Of all
the stories surrounding the mummy's birth and death, Peavey favors
the one that says he's an ancient relative - the stillborn son of a
great-great uncle. He calls the mummy "Baby John." Through
DNA testing, a forensic anthropologist will be able to determine
whether that theory is plausible....."
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|
March
2008
|
MUMMY
SCIENCE:
UK
|
|
Is
the son of Ramesses II on display at the Bolton Museum?
(telegraph.co.uk)
"An Egyptian mummy kept
on display in a provincial museum for nearly 80 years has been identified
as a son of the powerful pharaoh Ramesses II. The 3,000-year-old relic was
thought to have been a female temple dancer, but a hospital CT scan showed
features so reminiscent of the Egyptian royal family that experts are 90
per cent sure it is one of the 110 children Ramesses is thought to have
fathered. Tests showed that the mummy had a pronounced over-bite and
misaligned eyes, akin to members of the 19th Dynasty, and his facial
measurements were found to be almost identical to those of Ramesses
himself. Experts believe that the mummified man died in his thirties
between 1295 and 1186 BC of a wasting disease, likely to be cancer.
Chemical analysis also showed that the body had been embalmed using
expensive materials, including pistachio resin and thyme, the preserve of
priests and royalty. The story of the royal mummy was uncovered by a team
from York University who were filmed carrying out the tests for History
Channel series Mummy Forensics....."
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|
|
Egyptian
police arrest three men attempting to smuggle four mummies
(ap.google.com)
"Egyptian police
confiscated four ancient mummies on Wednesday and arrested three
antiquities smugglers who had stolen them from an ancient graveyard, a
security official said. Wrapped in layers of linen and decorated with
ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics, the mummies were found in the southern
province of Minya, 135 miles south of Cairo, the official said on
condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the press.
The three smugglers also were found with 10 small ancient statues. They
confessed that they had planned to sell the objects to antiquities
brokers, the official said. The mummies are of a child and three men, but
no further details were available, the official said. Archeologists were
summoned to check the mummies, he added. Egypt has drastically stepped up
efforts in recent years to stop the trafficking of its antiquities. It has
warned foreign museums that it will not help them mount exhibitions on
ancient Egypt unless they return smuggled artifacts...."
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|
March
2008
|
DISCOVERY:
CANADA
|
|
Mummy
mystery: Three preserved right feet in running shoes wash up on separate
island beaches in BC's Strait of Georgia
(azcentral.com)
"Three times in less
than a year, right feet inside running shoes have been found near separate
islands in the Strait of Georgia. Police don't know if there are any links
between them. Speculation in the region is rife, including that the feet
were from slaying victims or they were the remains from drownings. Police
haven't reached any conclusions. "It is very unusual," Royal
Canadian Mounted Police Constable Annie Linteau said Tuesday.
Linteau said two of the feet were size 12, but the size of the third was
not released. The first right foot was found by beachcombers on Jedidiah
Island in August. A few days later, a foot was found inside a man's Reebok
sneaker on Gabriola Island. The third was found on the east side of Valdez
Island on Feb 8. The shoe brand was announced only for the second foot....
She said the coroner's office was doing DNA testing. British Columbia's
corner's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Curtis Ebbesmeyer, a former professor of oceanography at the University of
Washington who studies floating objects, said the feet could have drifted
as far as 1,000 miles. He speculated the feet floated away in the buoyant
shoes after breaking from decomposing bodies, possibly of people who
drowned in boating accidents. Others said they could be from four men
whose bodies weren't recovered after their small plane crashed in the area
about a year ago...."
|
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March
2008
|
EXHUMATION:
ITALY
|
|
Well-preserved
Padre Pio is exhumed to prepare body for public veneration next month
(timesonline.co.uk)
"The body of St Padre
Pio, one of Italy's most popular saints, was exhumed last night to be
prepared for public veneration next month marking the 40th anniversary of
his death and the 90th anniversary of the first appearance of stigmata on
his hands and feet. Capuchin friars at the sanctuary at San Giovanni
Rotondo in southern Italy, where Padre Pio's tomb is visited by seven
million pilgrims annually, said that "parts of the body" had
been found to be "intact". Archbishop D'Ambrosio said the body
was in "surprisingly good condition. As soon as we got inside the
tomb we could clearly make out the beard. The top part of the skull is
partly skeletal but the chin is perfect and the rest of the body is well
preserved. The knees, hands, mittens and nails are clearly
visible.........If Padre Pio allows me, I might say he looks as though he
just had a manicure''. The body would be placed in a glass covered coffin
for veneration on 24 April for a period of "several months". The
friars denied that the remains would be transferred from the sanctuary
crypt to a new spacious and ultra modern church nearby at San Giovanni
Rotondo designed by the world renowned Italian architect Renzo Piano. The
exhumation - the first time the tomb had been opened since Padre Pio's
death in 1968 - was approved by the Vatican despite opposition from some
of the saint's most ardent followers. Padre Pio's relatives had threatened
to take the local archbishop to court if the corpse was exhumed, and a
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