Modern Technology Reveals Mummy's Past

mamamia writes "The baby mummy had a European mom, and likely came from a wealthy family. But where he lived and why he died — and at such a young age — remain a mystery. The mummy, exhibited for the first time Thursday at the Saint Louis Science Center, has been the year-long focus of an international team of investigators. The museum said it may be the most extensive research project ever undertaken on a child mummy."

Comments

European mother is not surprising

[ucblockhead]

Given that this mummy died well after the time of Alexander the great, having a mother with European ancestry is not at all surprising. Since the Ptolomies, who ruled Egypt from Alexander's conquest to the time of Cleopatra were all descended from a Macedonian general, one would expect lots of Macedonian genes in the Egyptian aristocracy. This would only be interesting of the mummy was from before the time of Alexander, i.e. before 323 BCE. Hell, given how much inbreeding those guys did, it'd be more surprising if there were Egyptian genes.

This is not to say that the proofs are impressive...this sort of testing is cool stuff. But the results are pretty much what you'd expect knowing the history of the area.

(The death at a young age is also hardly surprising given the mortality rates for children in that era.)

Re:OK, so we can get the dirt on Mummy...

[WombatDeath]

Q: Why was the Egyptian boy confused?
A: Because his daddy was a mummy. ...fine, I'll get my coat.

Re:mortality

[Fex303]

Nonsense. "What's the death rate here?" "Same as everywhere - one each."

If recent documentaries such as The Mummy Returns have taught us anything, it's that those who are mummified actually likely to come back to life (and die again) many, many times.

Please, try to keep up with modern Egyptology.