Ancient Egypt

ANCIENT EGYPT, THE RHIND MUMMY

Excavator digging a trench during archaeological excavation
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The excavation

Four mummies were recovered from a tomb in the city of Thebes in 1857 by James Rhind.

Cranial bone fragments among soil, leaves and vegetation
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The specimen

The mummy is of a late Ptolemaic young adult from a native Egyptian family of considerable ecomonic means.

Ancient Roman stone arches and architectural details
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The historical background

Stylistically, the burials cn be dated to the transition between the Ptolemaic (332-32 BCE) and Roman (32 BCE-380 AD). Generally held that the Ptolemaic and Roman periods saw a decline in the standard of mumification with greater emphasis on the mummies external appearance.

Scientists examining a specimen during archaeological research
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The scientific methods applied

The mummy was CT scanned with a CT slice thickness of 1mm at the Clinical Imaging Research Centre, Edinburgh.