Staff news

Unwrapping ancient Egypt

A team of University staff have helped to unwrap Egyptian secrets for a new exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland.

Fascinating Mummies publicity shot

Using CT scanning equipment, University researchers from the Clinical Research Imaging Centre (CRIC) and Forensic Anthropology looked inside Egyptian mummies, never before unwrapped, to learn more about what lay inside.

Their discoveries will form a central part of the National Museum of Scotland’s Fascinating Mummies exhibition.

Ancient remains

Among the team’s findings were the remains of an Egyptian woman aged between 25 and 29, wrapped inside a 2,000-year-old mummy.

Gold amulets never before seen were reconstructed and reproduced from these images.

The mummy was brought to Scotland in 1857 by Egyptologist Alexander Rhind, who discovered it in a tomb in the ancient city of Thebes.

CRIC staff also investigated animal mummies, discovering a mummified crocodile was real, while a mummified baboon in fact contained the remains of an ibis - a bird considered sacred in ancient Egypt.

Fascinating insights

Opening on 11 February, Fascinating Mummies offers insights into the complex rituals surrounding death and the afterlife in ancient Egypt.

The exhibition features treasures from two of the world’s great ancient Egyptian collections - Leiden, the Netherlands and Edinburgh, Scotland.

Exhibition visitors can view objects dating back as far as 4,000 BC.