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"Months after Egypt boldly announced that archaeologists had identified a mummy as the most powerful queen of her time, scientists in a museum basement are still analyzing DNA from the bald, 3,500-year-old corpse to try to back up the claim aired on TV. Progress is slow. So far, results indicate the linen-wrapped mummy is most likely, but not conclusively, the female pharaoh Queen Hatshepsut, who ruled for 20 years in the 15th century B.C. Running its own ancient-DNA lab is a major step forward for Egypt, which for decades has seen foreigners take most of the credit for major discoveries here. It's time Egyptian scientists took charge, said Zahi Hawass, Egypt's antiquities chief who spearheaded the quest to find Hatshepsut and build the lab. "Egyptology, for the last 200 years, it has been led by foreigners." But the Hatshepsut discovery also highlights the struggle to back up recent spectacular findings in Egypt, including the unearthing of ancient tombs and mummies, investigations into how King Tut died, and even the discovery in the Siwa oasis of possibly the world's oldest human footprint. So far, the science shown in the Discovery Channel's "Secrets of Egypt's Lost Queen" has not been published in a reputable peer-reviewed scientific journal--the gold standard of scientific research worldwide...."

'Mummified bodies' haunt site of razed landmark hotel in Provo (deseretnews.com)

"It's been more than three years since the Hotel Roberts put anyone up for the night. But Thursday 14 ghostly guests bedded down where the historic Provo landmark once stood. The translucent figures, lounging on beds of string and sticks, were part of a site-specific art exhibit created to remind residents of what used to occupy the now-barren lot at 192 S. University Ave. "The sad thing about losing these historical structures is they get forgotten," said artist Ryan Neely, owner of the downtown Mode Boutique. "I think when you have beautiful architecture like that it should be preserved." Neely, who graduated from Brigham Young University this month with a degree in fine arts, said he was shocked when the city tore down the 121-year-old building without warning in 2004. The hotel was once considered the social center of Provo and played host to high-profile guests such as Helen Keller. The similar demolition of the St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church earlier this year continued what Neely called a "frightening trend" of disregard for Provo's architectural history. Both Spanish mission-style buildings were listed on the National Register of Historic Places before they were torn down.... Neely's goal was to create something that would make people think. He wanted residents to be just as surprised to see his sculptures as they were to discover that the Hotel Roberts had been torn down, so he set up the beds in the middle of the night. The bodies, which were made of Saran Wrap and packing tape, were meant to represent sleeping hotel guests, but their mummy-like positioning was morbidly ambiguous...."

Parents of mummified toddler charged with his death (wane.com)

"The parents of an 18-month-old boy whose mummified body was discovered in a storage container have been charged in connection with the child's death. Police in Port Huron, Michigan, issued arrest warrants for 38-year-old John William Gonzales and 23-year-old Ashley Marie Snowden. Police believe their son, Braylon Bishop Gonzales, died in Port Huron in 2005. Police found a child's mummified body wrapped in a plastic bag in the Fort Wayne home that Gonzales and Snowden shared. Officials identified the body as Braylon but are checking DNA to confirm that. Gonzales is being charged with murder, child abuse and being a habitual offender, while Snowden is facing a charge of being an accessory after the fact to a felony...." 

Woman arrested in case of mummified toddler (journalgazette.net)

"A 23-year-old woman arrested in connection with a mummified toddler discovered early last week at a Fort Wayne home waived extradition to answer to criminal charges in Michigan. St. Clair County prosecutors charged Ashley Snowden, formerly of the 3500 block of Raymond Avenue, with accessory after the fact to a felony. They also charged John William Gonzales, 38, with murder, first-degree child abuse and being a habitual offender. The couple were charged Friday by Michigan authorities after Fort Wayne police discovered Dec. 18 the body of whom they believe to be 18-month-old Braylon Bishop Gonzales wrapped in a plastic bag and placed inside a storage container in a small house on Raymond Avenue. Investigators believe the body had, at one time, been encased in concrete, and an autopsy revealed the child died from blunt-force trauma to the head. Police in Port Huron, Mich., believe the child was killed there in 2005...."

Autopsy results pinpoint cause of toddler's death (journalgazette.net)

"Preliminary autopsy results Thursday determined the child whose decomposed body was found in a Raymond Avenue home Tuesday died from blunt-force trauma to the head with skull fractures, the Allen County coroner said. The body, believed to be 18-month-old Braylon Bishop Gonzales, was discovered Tuesday after police received a tip of a possible child’s body in the house and responded to 3501 Raymond Ave. A confirmation of the child’s identity will be made by DNA, Coroner E. Jon Brandenberger said. John W. Gonzales, 38, believed to be the child’s father, was arrested on initial charges unrelated to the death investigation after a brief standoff at the home Tuesday. Police would not verify Thursday whether Gonzales was a suspect in the death investigation...."

Mummified toddler found in Fort Wayne house (indianasnewscenter.com)

"It is...tragically...what police expected. The remains of an 18-month-old boy were found at a Fort Wayne home Tuesday and today the coroner has identified the baby. The remain found in this home were, at one time, encased in concrete, and mummified, so this made the coroner's examination simpler in ways. But, the emotional pain of seeing a dead child never becomes easy. The coroner says the death was caused by blunt force trauma to the head with a skull fracture. Police believe the death of Braylon Bishop Gonzales took place in July of 2005 in Port Huron, Michigan. The baby's remains were discovered in the Fort Wayne home of 38-year-old John Gonzales...." 

"The mummified body of a baby boy who could have died half a century ago has been found at a flat in Coley Park. Staff cleaning the Reading Borough Council-owned property in Wensley Road discovered the tragic tot’s remains wrapped in an old newspaper dating from the 1950s. Today an inquest into the death of the infant, poignantly registered at Reading coroner’s office as ‘Little Baby’, is due to be carried out at the Civic Centre. Reading coroner’s officer Nick Mainprice told the Evening Post a woman had previously occupied the Wensley Road flat in which the youngster’s body was found. She suffered mental health problems, and moved in April this year to Prospect Park Hospital in Tilehurst.... The woman has since died. Mr Mainprice described the body as being “mummified” and that it could have been stillborn or died after birth...."