Egyptian researchers have used new digital technology to accurately see the inside of the mummy of Pharaoh Amenhotep I, without removing the bandages.
Digital scans have revealed details of the appearance and embalming style of the 18th Dynasty king, who ruled Egypt around 1525-1504 BC.The mummy of Amenhotep or Amenophis, as was his Hellenized name, bore rich decoration on his linen bandages and funerary mask.
The mummy of Amenhotep or Amenophis, as was his Hellenized name, bore rich decoration on his linen bandages and funerary mask. It was found, along with mummies of other kings and queens, in a crypt at Luxor in 1881 and was taken to Cairo. Because efforts were made not to destroy its decoration, it was one of the few royal mummies never unearthed in modern times, according to a study published in the scientific, medical journal Frontiers in Medicine.
In 2019, Egyptologist Zahi Hawas and Cairo University professor Shahar Salim used a tomograph to digitally unwrap the mummy before it was moved to its new home at the National Museum of Egyptian Culture in Cairo.
The results of their study were released yesterday. They show that Amenhotep's face resembled that of his father. It is estimated that he died at the age of about 35, but the cause of death was not apparent, according to a statement from the Ministry of Antiquities. It appears that he was the first pharaoh to be mummified with his arms crossed over his body and his brain was not removed, unlike the other New Kingdom pharaohs.
The tomographs also revealed 30 amulets or jewels that had been buried with him, including a belt with 34 gold beads, indicating that the priests of the 21st Dynasty, who later rewrapped the mummy, took care to preserve his jewels. In this second burial, the priests of Thebes reattached Amenhotep's head and repaired some post-mortem wounds probably caused by tomb robbers.
Source: CNA
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