miércoles, 12 de diciembre de 2012

3D imaging helps understand the role of birds in ancient Egypt

Entering the exhibition “Between Heaven & Earth: Birds In Ancient Egypt” at the Oriental Institute Museum, University of Chicago, you will immediately feel transported into the ancient Nile delta marshlands with its lush green flora.
The combination of colours, video footage, bird song and ancient artefacts gives the impression of travel through time and space. At the start of the exhibition, you will find one of their most impressive artefacts, an empty shell of an ostrich egg from 3100 BC. Ostrich eggs have not only been used in ancient Egypt as containers for liquids and raw material for bead carving, but also symbolize the deep integration of avian life into ancient Egypt’s spirituality. All life is at times described as entering and leaving the world through the egg as a vessel, and that birds are messengers that can travel between the realms of men and their gods. Many of the Egyptian gods are portrayed as birds, and even their people have been symbolized by different bird species.

X-ray CT imaging

The information for the exhibition has been extracted from many sources such as ancient texts and drawings, exploration of burial sites, and with the help of X-ray CT imaging from mummified bird specimens. As shown impressively by Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer, the reconstructed 3D X-ray images can be examined with Amira® 3D analysis software to extract the desired information and sometimes even discover surprises. Rozenn and her team of imaging scientists worked on several specimens.

Small falcon mummy

The most impressive imaging results were obtained from a small falcon (see above, not on display at the exhibit due to space limitations). The falcon’s size and its missing wrappings allowed this specimen to be imaged in a micro-CT system at a resolution of approximately 180μm; more than 40 times higher than the clinical imaging system used for larger specimens. Using Amira’s advanced segmentation functionality and volume rendering, which allows masking of segmented regions in the visualization, the exact species of the falcon could be determined. Furthermore, it was shown that its neck had been severed, but that internal organs were still intact. The intestines had been pushed to the posterior of the bird to make room for a filled gizzard. The images also revealed the contents of the gizzard, which was identified as the remains of a small rodent from a piece of intact jaw bone.

Juvenile Eurasian sparrow-hawk

CT images from another mummy revealed a small juvenile Eurasian sparrow-hawk. In this mummy, the wrappings were larger than required for a bird of this size. Missing bone calcification was evidence for the immaturity of the bird, and a posterior air pocket indicated penetration of insects that fed on the bird’s carcass. With this specimen, careful segmentation in Amira was the essential key for visualization of the mummy’s interior and identification of the bird. Here, the low calcification proved challenging during the segmentation process. Once the segmentation was completed, Amira’s crisp surface rendering allowed further analysis and identification.
A mummified juvenile sparrowhawk in its too large wrapping. The size of the mummy required image acquisition in a clinical CT, resulting in visualization of only coarse details. In addition the low bone calcification further reduces bone contrast. Image: Anna R. Ressman © Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago
A mummified juvenile sparrowhawk in its too large wrapping. The size of the mummy required image acquisition in a clinical CT, resulting in visualization of only coarse details. In addition the low bone calcification further reduces bone contrast. Image: Anna R. Ressman © Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago
“Between Heaven & Earth: Birds in Ancient Egypt” is an exciting exhibition combining traditional archaeological and anthropological methods with modern imaging techniques to inform the interested visitor about the role of birds in routine daily life as well as spirituality of ancient Egypt.
Source: Visualization Sciences Group/authors: Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer & Christian Wietholt

More Information

The Oriental Institute is open to the public without an admission fee. The exhibition is open until 28 July 2013.
Additional information about this exhibit can be found at: http://oi.uchicago.edu/museum/special/birds





lunes, 10 de diciembre de 2012

THE ORIGIN OF EMBALMING

I have already explained 2 how the increased importance that came to be attached to the corpse as the means of securing a continuance of existence led to the aggrandizement of the tomb. Special care was taken to protect the dead and this led to the invention of coffins, and to the making of a definite tomb, the size of which rapidly increased as more and more ample supplies of food and other offerings were made. But the very measures thus taken the more efficiently to protect and tend the dead defeated the primary object of all this care. For, when buried in such an elaborate tomb, the body no longer became desiccated and preserved by the forces of nature, as so often happened when it was placed in a simple grave directly in the hot dry sand.
It is of fundamental importance in the argument set forth here to remember that these factors came into operation before the time of the First Dynasty. They were responsible for impelling the Proto-Egyptians not only to invent the wooden coffin, the stone sarcophagus, the rock-cut tomb, and to begin building in stone, but also to devise measures for the artificial preservation of the body.
But in addition to stimulating the development of the first real architecture and the art of mummification other equally far-reaching results in the region of ideas and beliefs grew out of these practices.
From the outset the Egyptian embalmer was clearly inspired by two ideals: (a) to preserve the actual tissues of the body with a minimum disturbance of its superficial appearance; and (b) to preserve a likeness of the deceased as he was in life. At first it
p. 16
was naturally attempted to make this simulacrum of the body itself if it were possible, or alternatively, when this ideal was found to be unattainable, from its wrappings or by means of a portrait statue. It was soon recognized that it was beyond the powers of the early embalmer to succeed in mummifying the body itself so as to retain a recognizable likeness to the man when alive: although from time to time such attempts were repeatedly made, 1 until the period of the XXI Dynasty, when the operator clearly was convinced that he had at last achieved what his predecessors, for perhaps twenty-five centuries, had been trying in vain to do.

Footnotes

15:2 Op. cit. supra.
16:1 See my volume on "The Royal Mummies," General Catalogue of the Cairo Museum.




 Evolution of the Dragon, by G. Elliot Smith, [1919], at sacred-texts.com

EARLY MUMMIES

In the earliest known (Second Dynasty) examples of Egyptian attempts at mummification 2 the corpse was swathed in a large series of bandages, which were moulded into shape to represent the form of the body. In a later (probably Fifth Dynasty) mummy, found in 1892 by Professor Flinders Petrie at Medlin, the superficial bandages had been impregnated with a resinous paste, which while still plastic was moulded into the form of the body, special care being bestowed upon the modelling of the face 3 and the organs of reproduction, so as to leave no room for doubt as to the identity and the sex. Professor Junker has described 4 an interesting series of variations of these practices. In two graves the bodies were covered with a layer of stucco plaster. First the corpse was covered with a fine linen cloth: then the plaster was put on, and modelled into the form of the body (p. 252). But in two other cases it was not the whole body that was covered with this layer of stucco, but only the head.
Professor Junker claims that this was done "apparently because the head was regarded as the most important part, as the organs of taste, sight, smell, and hearing were contained in it". But surely there was the additional and more obtrusive reason that the face affords the means of identifying the individual! For this modelling of the features was intended primarily as a restoration of the form of the body which had been altered, if not actually destroyed. In other cases, where no attempt was made to restore the features in such durable materials as resin or stucco, the linen-enveloped head was modelled, and a representation of the eyes painted upon it so as to enhance the life-like appearance of the face.
These facts prove quite conclusively that the earliest attempts to reproduce the features of the deceased and so preserve his likeness, were made upon the wrapped mummy itself. Thus the mummy was intended to be the portrait as well as the actual bodily remains of the dead. In view of certain differences of opinion as to the original significance of the funerary ritual, which I shall have occasion to discuss later on (see p. 20), it is important to keep these facts clearly in mind.
A discovery made by Mr. J. E. Quibell in the course of his excavations at Sakkara 1 suggests that, as an outcome of these practices a new procedure may have been devised in the Pyramid Age—the making of a death-mask. For he discovered what may be the mask taken directly from the face of the Pharaoh Teta (Fig. 3).
About this time also the practice originated of making a life-size portrait statue of the dead man's head and placing it along with the actual body in the burial chamber. These "reserve heads," as they have been called, were usually made of fine limestone, but Junker found one made of Nile mud. 2
Junker believes that there was an intimate relationship between the plaster-covered heads and the reserve-heads. They were both expressions of the same idea, to preserve a simulacrum of the deceased when his actual body had lost all recognizable likeness to him as he
was when alive. The one method aimed at combining in the same object the actual body and the likeness; the other at making a more life-like portrait apart from the corpse, which could take the place of the latter when it decayed.
Junker states further that "it is no chance that the substitute-heads … entirely, or at any rate chiefly, are found in the tombs that have no statue-chamber and probably possessed no statues. The statues [of the whole body] certainly were made, at any rate partly, with the intention that they should take the place of the decaying body, although later the idea was modified. The placing of the substitute-head in [the burial chamber of] the mastaba therefore became unnecessary at the moment when the complete figure of the dead [placed in a special hidden chamber, now commonly called the serdab] was introduced." The ancient Egyptians themselves called the serdab the pr-twt or "statue-house," and the group of chambers, forming the tomb-chapel in the mastaba, was known to them as the "ka-house". 1
It is important to remember that, even when the custom of making a statue of the deceased became fully established, the original idea of restoring the form of the mummy itself or its wrappings was never abandoned. The attempts made in the XVIII, and XXI and XXII Dynasties to pack the body of the mummy itself and by artificial means give it a life-like appearance afford evidence of this. In the New Empire and in Roman times the wrapped mummy was sometimes modelled into the form of a statue. But throughout Egyptian history it was a not uncommon practice to provide a painted mask for the wrapped mummy, or in early Christian times simply a portrait of the deceased.
With this custom there also persisted a remembrance of its original significance. Professor Garstang records the fact that in the XII Dynasty, 2 when a painted mask was placed upon the wrapped mummy, no statue or statuette was found in the tomb. The undertakers

apparently realized that the mummy 1 which was provided with the life-like mask was therefore fulfilling the purposes for which statues
were devised. So also in the New Empire the packing and modelling of the actual mummy so as to restore its life-like appearance were regarded as obviating the need for a statue.
I must now return to the further consideration of the Old Kingdom statues. All these varied experiments were inspired by the same desire, to preserve the likeness of the deceased. But when the sculptors attained their object, and created those marvellous life-like portraits, which must ever remain marvels of technical skill and artistic feeling (Fig. 4), the old ideas that surged through the minds of the Pre-dynastic Egyptians, as they contemplated the desiccated remains of the dead, were strongly reinforced. The earlier people's thoughts were turned more specifically than heretofore to the contemplation of the nature of life and death by seeing the bodies of their dead preserved whole and incorruptible; and, if their actions can be regarded as an expression of their ideas, they began to wonder what was lacking in these physically complete bodies to prevent them from feeling and acting like living beings. Such must have been the results of their puzzled contemplation of the great problems of life and death. Otherwise the impulse to make more certain the preservation of the body by the invention of mummification and to retain a life-like representation of the deceased by means of a sculptured statue remains inexplicable. But when the corpse had been rendered incorruptible and the deceased's portrait had been fashioned with realistic perfection the old ideas would recur with renewed strength. The belief then took more definite shape that if the missing elements of vitality could be restored to the statue, it might become animated and the dead man would live again in his vitalized statue. This prompted a more intense and searching investigation of the problems concerning the nature of the elements of vitality of which the corpse was deprived at the time of death. Out of these inquiries in course of time a highly complex system of philosophy developed. 2
But in the earlier times with which I am now concerned it found practical expression in certain ritual procedures, invented to convey to the statue the breath of life, the vitalising fluids, and the odour and sweat of the living body. The seat of knowledge and of feeling was believed to be retained in the body when the heart was left in situ: so that the only thing needed to awaken consciousness, and make it possible for the dead man to take heed of his friends and to act voluntarily, was to present offerings of blood to stimulate the physiological functions of the heart. But the element of vitality which left the body at death had to be restored to the statue, which represented the deceased in the ka-house. 1
In my earlier attempts 2 to interpret these problems, I adopted the view that the making of portrait statues was the direct outcome of the practice of mummification. But Dr. Alan Gardiner, whose intimate knowledge of the early literature enables him to look at such problems from the Egyptian's own point of view, has suggested a modification of this interpretation. Instead of regarding the custom of making statues as an outcome of the practice of mummification, he thinks that the two customs developed simultaneously, in response to the twofold desire to preserve both the actual body and a representation of the features of the dead. But I think this suggestion does not give adequate recognition to the fact that the earliest attempts at funerary portraiture were made upon the wrappings of the actual mummies. 3 This fact and the evidence which I have already
quoted from Junker make it quite clear that from the beginning the embalmer's aim was to preserve the body and to convert the mummy itself into a simulacrum of the deceased. When he realized that his technical skill was not adequate to enable him to accomplish this double aim, he fell back upon the device of making a more perfect and realistic portrait statue apart from the mummy. But, as I have already pointed out, he never completely renounced his ambition of transforming the mummy itself; and in the time of the New Empire he actually attained the result which he had kept in view for nearly twenty centuries.
In these remarks I have been referring only to funerary portrait statues. Centuries before the attempt was made to fashion them modellers had been making of clay and stone representations of cattle and human beings, which have been found not only in Predynastic graves in Egypt but also in so-called "Upper Palæolithic" deposits in Europe.
But the fashioning of realistic and life-size human portrait-statues for funerary purposes was a new art, which gradually developed in the way I have tried to depict. No doubt the modellers made use of the skill they had acquired in the practice of the older art of rough impressionism.
Once the statue was made a stone-house (the serdab) was provided for it above ground. 1 As the dolmen is a crude copy of the serdab 2 it can be claimed as one of the ultimate results of the practice
of mummification. It is clear that the conception of the possibility of a life beyond the grave assumed a more concrete form when it was realized that the body itself could be rendered incorruptible and its distinctive traits could be kept alive by means of a portrait statue. There are reasons for supposing that primitive man did not realize or contemplate the possibility of his own existence coming to an end. 1 Even when he witnessed the death of his fellows he does not appear to have appreciated the fact that it was really the end of life and not merely a kind of sleep from which the dead might awake. But if the corpse were destroyed or underwent a process of natural disintegration the fact was brought home to him that death had occurred. If these considerations, which early Egyptian literature seems to suggest, be borne in mind, the view that the preservation of the body from corruption implied a continuation of existence becomes intelligible. At first the subterranean chambers in which the actual body was housed were developed into a many-roomed house for the deceased, complete in every detail. 2 But when the statue took over the function of representing the deceased, a dwelling was provided for it above ground. This developed into the temple where the relatives and friends of the dead came and made the offerings of food which were regarded as essential for the maintenance of existence.
The evolution of the temple was thus the direct outcome of the ideas that grew up in connexion with the preservation of the dead. For at first it was nothing more than the dwelling place of the reanimated dead. But when, for reasons which I shall explain later (see p. 30), the dead king became deified, his temple of offerings became the building where food and drink were presented to the god, not merely to maintain his existence, but also to restore his consciousness, and so afford an opportunity for his successor, the actual king, to consult him and obtain his advice and help. The presentation of offerings and the ritual procedures for animating and restoring consciousness to the dead king were at first directed solely to these ends. But in course of time, as their original purpose became obscured, these services in the temple altered in character, and their meaning became
rationalized into acts of homage and worship, and of prayer and supplication, and in much later times, acquired an ethical and moral significance that was wholly absent from the original conception of the temple services. The earliest idea of the temple as a place of offering has not been lost sight of. Even in our times the offertory still finds a place in temple services.

Footnotes

16:2 G. Elliot Smith, "The Earliest Evidence of Attempts at Mummification in Egypt," Report British Association, 1912, p. 612: compare also J. Garstang, "Burial Customs of Ancient Egypt," London, 1907, pp. 29 and 30. Professor Garstang did not recognize that mummification had been attempted.
16:3 G. Elliot Smith, "The History of Mummification in Egypt," Proc. Royal Philosophical Society of Glasgow, 1910: also "Egyptian Mummies," Journal of Egyptian Archæology, Vol. I, Part III, July, 1914, Plate XXXI.
16:4 "Excavations of the Vienna Imperial Academy of Sciences at the Pyramids of Gizah, 1914," Journal of Egyptian Archæology, Vol. I, Oct. 1914, p. 250.
17:1" Excavations at Saqqara," 1907-8, p. 113.
17:2 The great variety of experiments that were being made at the beginning of the Pyramid Age bears ample testimony to the fact that the original inventors of these devices were actually at work in Lower Egypt. at that time.
18:1 Aylward M. Blackman, "The Ka-House and the Serdab," Journal of Egyptian Archæology, Vol. Ill, Part IV, Oct., 1916, p. 250. The word serdab is merely the Arabic word used by the native workmen, which has been adopted and converted into a technical term by European archaeologists.
18:2 Op. cit. p. 171.
19:1 It is a remarkable fact that Professor Garstang, who brought to light perhaps the best, and certainly the best-preserved, collection of Middle Kingdom mummies ever discovered, failed to recognize the fact that they had really been embalmed (op. cit. p. 171).
The reader who wishes for fuller information as to the reality of these beliefs and how seriously they were held will find them still in active p. 20 operation in China. An admirable account of Chinese philosophy will be found in De Groot's "Religious System of China," especially Vol. IV, Book II. It represents the fully developed (New Empire) system of Egyptian belief modified in various ways by Babylonian, Indian and Central Asiatic influences, as well as by accretions developed locally in China.

19:2 The reader who wishes for fuller information as to the reality of these beliefs and how seriously they were held will find them still in active p. 20 operation in China. An admirable account of Chinese philosophy will be found in De Groot's "Religious System of China," especially Vol. IV, Book II. It represents the fully developed (New Empire) system of Egyptian belief modified in various ways by Babylonian, Indian and Central Asiatic influences, as well as by accretions developed locally in China.
20:1 A. M. Blackman, "The Ka-House and the Serdab," The Journal of Egyptian Archæology, Vol. III, Part IV, Oct., 1916, p. 250.
20:2 "Migrations of Early Culture," p. 37.
20:3 Dr. Alan Gardiner (Davies and Gardiner, "The Tomb of Amenemhēt," 1915, p. 83, footnote) has, I think, overlooked certain statements in my writings and underestimated the antiquity of the embalmer's art; for he attributes to me the opinion that "mummification was a custom of relatively late growth".
The presence in China of the characteristically Egyptian beliefs concerning the animation of statues (de Groot, op. cit. pp. 339-356), whereas the practice of mummification, though not wholly absent, is not obtrusive, might perhaps be interpreted by some scholars as evidence in favour of the p. 21 development of the custom of making statues independently of mummification. But such an inference is untenable. Not only is it the fact that in most parts of the world the practices of making statues and mummifying the dead are found in association the one with the other, but also in China the essential beliefs concerning the dead are based upon the supposition that the body is fully preserved (see de Groot, chap. xv.). It is quite evident that the Chinese customs have been derived directly or indirectly from some people who mummified their dead as a regular practice. There can be no doubt that the ultimate source of their inspiration to do these things was Egypt.
I need mention only one of many identical peculiarities that makes this quite certain. De Groot says it is "strange to see Chinese fancy depict the souls of the viscera as distinct individuals with animal forms" (p. 71). The same custom prevailed in Egypt, where the "souls" or protective deities were first given animal forms in the Nineteenth Dynasty (Reisner).
21:1 The Arabic word conveys the idea of being "hidden underground," because the house is exposed by excavation.
21:2 Op. cit. supra, Ridgeway Essays; also Man, 1913, p. 193.
22:1 See Alan H. Gardiner, "Life and Death (Egyptian)," Hastings’ Encyclopædia of Religion and Ethics.
22:2 See the quotation from Mr. Quibell's account in my statement in the Report of the British Association for 1914, p. 215.


                                           fig. 2
 WATER-COLOUR SKETCH BY MRS. CECIL FIRTH, REPRESENTING A RESTORATION OF THE EARLY MUMMY FOUND AT MEDÛM BY PROF. FLINDERS PETRIE, NOW IN THE MUSEUM OF THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS IN LONDON
fig 3
               A MOULD TAKEN FROM A LIFE-MASK FOUND IN THE PYRAMID OF TETA BY MR. QUIBELL
                                                                  fig 4

                                    PORTRAIT STATUE OF AN EGYPTIAN LADY OF THE PYRAMID AGE

Book: Evolution of the Dragon, by G. Elliot Smith, [1919], at sacred-texts.com

miércoles, 21 de noviembre de 2012

Algunas curiosidades sobre momias y momificaciones en el A.E. II

Erhard Metzel realizó un estudio con rayos X en la momia del faraón Seqenenra y detectó que el hueso que cincunda a la herida superior de la cabeza del infortunado tenia un cierto crecimiento, lo que demuestra que sobrevivió unos meses después de recibirla.
***
El enterramiento hicso de Tell el-Daba fue excavado por Bietak a finales de la década de los sesenta. En la fosa,con revestimiento de ladrillo y cubierta arqueada, se encontraron un grupo de momias las cuales habian sido enterradas de lado y con las piernas dobladas ligeramente. En el exterior de la tumba se encontró una cavidad con muchos huesos equinos que posiblemente fueron una ofrenda fúnebre..
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***

El señor Brugsh, conservador del museo de Bulaq, tiró a la basura el brazo del rey Dyer porque solamente le interesaban los brazaletes que tenía en el brazo del rey.
***
 A veces los embalsamadores no tenian muchos problemas si el cuerpo era más grande que el ataúd.
En la foto del Fiels Museum os Natura History y que aparece en el libro de Brier podemos ver la radiografía que se le hizo a la momia de un niño de 7 años y vemos que le habían encajado en un ataúd demasiado pequeño por lo que los embalsamadores le habían cortado los brazos y parte de las piernas.

***
En los talleres de embalsamamiento tendrían mucho trabajo y como siempre, habían buenos profesionales y otos no tan buenos. Aparte de la cantidad de cuerpos para momificar, algunos estarían mal momificados, se romperian y perderian partes, de algunos sobraria alguna parte y de otros faltaria. Mira lo que le pasó a lady Seshat y que puse en otro tema, le pusieron entre las piuernas una cabeza de otra momia.
Sobre todo en la baja época había úchas momias a las que les faltaba alguna parte del cuerpo.
***

Otro caso en el que los embalsamadores hicieron un mal trabajo fue en una momia que Petrie entregó a Armand Buffer para su estudio, ya que Buffer era médico.
En una de la momias que Armand Buffer desvendó observó que los embalsamadores habían momificado el cuerpo y le habían roto la espalda al cadáver y para que el cuerpo siguiera siendo rígido le habían incrustado una vara.
***

Brier cuenta en su libro que encontraron una momia que tenía los huesos de los pies en la región abdominal y además los huesos de los brazos estaban en lugar de los muslos.
Aparte de esto, la vértebra atlas mostraba agujeros.
Es decir, debajo de los vendajes habia una serie de huesos y no el cuerpo completo.
***
 Antes del periodo griego se utilizaban para confeccionar vendas, sábanas viejas de lino. En este periodo comienzan a confeccionarse vendas. Se realizan toda una serie de vendas confeccionadas con lino y se dibujan diversos adornos geométricos
***

Había embalsamadores que realizaban bien su trabajo y algunos realizaban chapuzas o no les preocupaban mucho los cuerpos de los difuntos o quizas al estar embalsamando varios cuerpos ya no sabían quien es quien. Ya he contado algunos casos. Pero aquí va otro más, citado por Brier.
En su libro, este autor cuénta que una de las momias del Museo Nacional de História Cultural de Pretoria en sudáfrica tenía en e exposición la momia que se creía era de un joven porque tenía la imagen de un muchacho joven y con barba y bigote, pero después de examinar a la momia con rayos X, onservó el doctor David Thompson que se trataba del cuerpo de una mujer
***

Ruffer hizo unos estudios muy completos a las dentaduras de las momias. Sobre todo aprovechó y realizó estudios en las zonas de Nibia que iban a ser inundadas y debido a la inminente inundación pudieron excavar bastantes restos humanos.
El estudio de estas momias demostró que los egipcios tenian muy desgastados los dientes y muelas, uncluso algunos estaban tan desgastados que llegaban a la pulpa.
***

Battiscombe Gunn, al limpiar de escombros y piedras la cámara funeraria de la pirámide escalonada , encontró unos huesos humanos que correspondian a una cadera derecha y 6 vértebras, de un varón.
Esto ocurría el año 1926 y ocho años después, Quinbell halló fragmentos de costillas humanas, la parte superior de un húmero derecho y un pie izquierdo.
***


Sobre curiosidades a la hora de la momificación está el caso del noble Amentefnakht, el cual fue momificado en su propio sarcófago en su tumba de Saqqara.Cuándo abrieron el sarcófago sellado de este hombre, el doctor Zaky Saad, observó que la momia estaba sobre una capa semi liquida de color marrón. Es decir, lo que habían hecho los embalsamadores es meter el cuerpo en el sarcófago sobre un lecho de natrón y el líquido marrón era el resultado de la licuefacción de la parte trasera del cadáver sobre todo.


martes, 20 de noviembre de 2012

Curiosidades sobre momias y momificaciones en el A.E.

Momificación:

Los cortadores de cadáveres, pertenecian a la clase social más baja , y eran despreciados por su trabajo. Después de que el escriba dibujara la línea donde cortar en el cuerpo del difunto , el cortador debía hacer las incisiones en el cadáver para proceder a la embalsamación.Nada mas hacer los cortes ,el cortador tenia que salir corriendo debido a las piedras que le tiraban sus compañeros. Esto simbolizaba que, a pesar de que era necesario realizar una serie de operaciones para proceder a la embalsamación del cadáver.....se consideraba que no era lícito realizar ningún tipo e violencia sobre el difunto.
***

Debido al bajo estrato social al que pertenecian los embalsadores, no tenian relaciones normales con el resto de las personas, ni siquiera podian acudir a relacionarse con prostitutas.
Por eso y para evitar la violación de cadáveres de mujeres jóvenes y niñas, los familiares esperaban unos días antes de ser entregadas para comenzar la momificación, de esa manera al haber comenzado la putrefacción del cuerpo, serian menos apetecibles.

***

El polvo de momia


En el renacimiento se empiezan a criticar algunas supersticiones medicinales que estuvieron de moda en la Edad Media. y es que se habian utilizado momias y se las habia triturado para conseguir el famoso polvo de momia.
Debido a la confusión de la palabra "mummia" que en persa significada betún, y despues de que muchos viajeros comenzaran a contar cosas, como que las momias tenian caracter curativo ( heridas,etc) etc etc ,se produce una caza de momias egipcias para ser molidas y obtener el famoso polvo de momia.

Muchos boticarios diluian el polvo en vino y miel, otras veces se tomaba directamente con agua. Pero habia veces que no venían en polvo, sino que directamente venian trozos del cadáver o en forma de pasta negruzca What a Face

***

Sobre la esquistosomiasis (bilhariais) ..... la primera prueba arqueológica de la existencia de la esquistosomiasis en el antiguo egipto fue el descubrimiento de huevecillos calcificados ,que hizo Ruffer y que fue confirmado en fecha mas reciente por Millet en 1980 en una momia disecada y no embalsamada encontrada en Nakht y que data del Imperio nuevo.

***
La momia de Nesparehan muestra la enfermedad de tuberculosis de la médula espinal o enfermedad de Pott.
Esta momia fue encontrada en un escondrijo junto con otros 44 sacerdotes de Amón, sepultados durante la dinastía XXI
***
 Hay una anécdota sobre la momia de Ramses II que cita el escritor Vicente Blaco Ibañez en su libro "viaje de un novelista alrededor del mundo".,, pero posiblemente no es cierta.
Cuenta el escritor que cuando la momia de Ramses II fue colocada en la vitrina que tenia asignadaen el museo de El Cairo , movió uno de sus brazos y eso causo un estupor general ya que los asistentes corrieron despavoridos.

***

En "Los nueve libros de historia", en el segundo, titulado “EUTERPE”, Heródoto narra lo siguiente:



En cuanto a las mujeres de los nobles, no las entregan para embalsamar inmediatamente que mueren, y lo mismo las mujeres muy hermosas o principales, sino que las entregan a los embalsamadores tres o cuatro días después. Hacen esto para que los embalsamadores no se unan a las mujeres. Cuentan, en efecto, que se sorprendió a uno mientras se unía a una mujer recién muerta, y que un compañero de oficio le había delatado. 
***
 Y ahora hablando de duelos y funerales, Heródoto expresa lo siguiente:


"Los duelos y funerales son así; cuando en una casa muere un hombre de cierta importancia, todas las mujeres de la casa se emplastan de lodo la cabeza y el rostro. Luego dejan en casa al difunto, y ellas recorren la ciudad golpeándose, ceñida la ropa a la cintura y mostrando los pechos, en compañía de todos sus parientes. En otra parte plañen los hombres, también ceñida la ropa a la cintura. Concluido esto, llevan el cadáver para embalsamarlo"



Esto está recogido en "Los nueve libros de historia", en el segundo, titulado “EUTERPE


***

Según Heródoto:



Si un hombre, lo mismo egipcio que forastero, ha sido arrebatado por un cocodrilo o por el mismo río, y aparece muerto, los hombres de la ciudad a la que ha sido arrojado deben sin falta embalsamarle, tributarle las mayores honras y sepultarle en ataúdes sagrados. No se permite a ningún otro tocarle, ni de los parientes ni de los amigos, sino que los mismos sacerdotes del Nilo, con sus propias manos le sepultan, pues su cadáver es tenido por algo más que humano".
***

Sobre la momificación, es interesante leer lo que nos cuenta Heródoto r: “Hay gentes establecidas para tal trabajo y que tienen tal oficio. Estos, cuando se les trae un cadáver, presentan a los que lo han traído unos modelos de madera, pintados imitando un cadáver. La más primorosa de estas figuras, dicen, es la de aquel cuyo nombre no juzgo pío proferir a este propósito. La segunda que enseñan es interior y más barata, y la tercera es la más barata. Después de explicadas, preguntan de qué modo desean se les prepare el muerto; cuando han cerrado el trato, se retiran; los artesanos se quedan en sus talleres y ejecutan en esta forma el embalsamamiento más primoroso. Ante todo meten por las narices un hierro corvo y sacan el cerebro, parte sacándolo de ese modo, parte por drogas que introducen. Después hacen un tajo con piedra afilada de Etiopía a lo largo de la ijada, sacan todos los intestinos, los limpian, lavan con vino de palma y después con aromas molidos. Luego llenan el vientre de mirra pura molida, canela, y otros aromas, salvo incienso, y cosen de nuevo la abertura. Después de estos preparativos embalsaman el cadáver cubriéndolo de nitro durante setenta días, y no está permitido adobarle más días. Cuando han pasado los setenta, lavan el cadáver y fajan todo su cuerpo con vendas cortadas en tela fina de hilo y le untan con aquella goma de que se sirven por lo común los egipcios en vez de cola. Entonces lo reciben los parientes, mandan hacer un ataúd de madera, lo guardan y lo depositan en una cámara funeraria, colocándolo en pie, contra la pared”


"
***

sigamos con lo que nos dice Heródoto, esta vez en su apartado ochenta y siete, sobre el modo de preparación de los cadáveres : “Ése es el modo más suntuoso de preparar los cadáveres. Para los que quieren la forma media y huyen de la suntuosidad, los preparan así: llenan unos dísteres de aceite de cedro y con ellos llenan los intestinos del cadáver, sin extraerlos ni cortar el vientre, introduciendo el díster. por el ano e impidiendo que vuelva a salir, y lo embalsaman durante los días fijados. El último sacan del vientre el aceite que habían introducido antes; el cual tiene tanta fuerza, que arrastra consigo intestinos y entrañas ya disueltos. La carne la disuelve el nitro, y sólo resta del cadáver la piel y los huesos. Una vez hecho esto, entregan el cadáver sin cuidarse de más”.

***

Veamos como nos cuenta Heródoto la forma de embalsamamiento de los menos pudientes en el punto ochenta y ocho de su Euterpe: “El tercer modo de embalsamar con que preparan a los menos pudientes es éste: lavan con purgante los intestinos, embalsaman el cadáver durante los setenta días, y lo entregan después para que se lo lleven”.


viernes, 31 de agosto de 2012

New Life for Nubian Bones

A two and a half year transatlantic search by researchers at The University of Manchester for the remains of thousands of Nubian skeletons will culminate in a fascinating workshop later this month.
The project has been led by Professor Rosalie David of The University of Manchester and Professor Norman MacLeod of The Natural History Museum. Since 2010 they and a team of researchers, have been identifying the whereabouts of the remains of bodies collected on the first archaeological survey of Nubia more than one hundred years ago.
7,500 skeletons and mummies dating back to between 4,000BC and 1,000AD were excavated during the dig which took place in Southern Egypt from 1907 to 1911. It was a race against time for the American archaeologist, George Reisner, and his team who were battling the rising waters building up behind the newly completed Aswan Low Dam.

the area was flooded by the end of the excavation demonstrates the historical importance of what they found and the significance of the Nubian remains that were removed.

Scattered around the world

However, over the past century the remains have been scattered around the world; placed in various collections where their significance has been lost. Many have also been damaged, including a substantial number of skeletons which were destroyed by a bombing raid in London during the Second World War.
Dr Jenefer Cockitt from the Faculty of Life Sciences worked on the project: “We wanted to bring together as many of the remaining skeletons as we could in a virtual database so researchers could properly compare them. We also realised the full potential of these fascinating remains hadn’t been properly fulfilled as research techniques have developed so much since 1911.”
Starting with the collection brought back to Manchester by the lead anatomist on the original dig, Sir Grafton Elliot Smith, Dr Cockitt and her colleagues began the painstaking investigation work to identify the bones. They used photos from the dig, notes from the archaeological team, records of the shipments of remains into the UK and identification marks such as the grave number recorded on the bones themselves.
They also looked at the very well preserved collection at The Natural History Museum in London. Their investigations eventually led them around the UK and even to America to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.
Burial image from Firth (1912) The Archaeological Survey of Nubia. Report for 1908-1909. Cairo, Government Press. Image: The University of Manchester
Burial image from Firth (1912) The Archaeological Survey of Nubia. Report for 1908-1909. Cairo, Government Press. Image: The University of Manchester

Eureka moment

Dr Cockitt recalls: “I had a real eureka moment in Cambridge when I found a packet of 400 cards that recorded the details of specific remains. Another high point was in America when we looked through thousands of photos that George Reisner had taken of the dig. It was hard work following the clues but so rewarding when we found what we were looking for. We began to feel that we knew the people behind the bodies and that we were giving them their voice again after all these years. ”
Professor MacLeod comments: “In the past, the dispersal of a collection inevitably resulted in the degradation of the collection’s significance and ease of access. But through the use of new technologies collections that physically reside in multiple locations can be brought back together in a virtual sense to support a greater range of scientific investigations than any of the host institutions could provide on its own. This project is a pioneering effort to move collections management into the virtual space and as such will have an influence far beyond the study of Nubian archaeology per se. It also shows what can be accomplished through inter-museum collaboration.”
In total Dr Cockitt and her colleagues have identified around 2,000 bodies. The researchers have used modern techniques to re-investigate the remains, focusing on what they can tell us about disease and trauma.
Images of the bodies have now been put on a virtual database, bringing them together for the first time since they were removed from the ground more than a hundred years ago. Descriptions of any known pathology or trauma suffered by the individual are recorded, along with a complete dental survey of all bodies with surviving teeth. It should prove to be a significant tool for researchers looking at disease.
As the project nears completion, the initial results will be presented at a workshop held at The Natural History Museum, London on the 29 and 30 August, titled “Palaeopathology in Egypt and Nubia: A Century in Review”. The workshop will also bring together researchers from around the world to discuss the history of the discipline in these areas, and what the next steps will be as new and increasingly powerful technologies are brought to bear on the subject.
Source: The University of Manchester

More Information

  • Tickets for “Palaeopathology in Egypt and Nubia: A Century in Review” (on the 29 and 30 August) cost £45 and can be purchased online from The University of Manchester http://estore.manchester.ac.uk/
  • The workshop will be held at The Natural History Museum (London). It’s been organised by The Natural History Museum, London and the KNH Centre for Biomedical Egyptology, The University of Manchester, as part of a joint project funded by The Wellcome Trust. It is open to anyone who wishes to attend.
  • A small number of bones from the collection of Nubian remains held by The Natural History Museum will be on display.
  • The workshop will include lectures by: Prof Don Brothwell, The University of York, Dr Derek Welsby, The British Museum, Prof Albert Zink, EURAC and Prof Rosalie David, The University of Manchester
A public lecture will also be given by Prof. Michael Zimmerman from Villanova University on the evening of the 28th August, with tickets for workshop attendees included free of charge. Lecture only tickets are £10.

jueves, 28 de junio de 2012

Momias egipcias


Meryet-Amu. Foto de Winlock
Seti II
Catalogue General Antiquites Egyptiennes du Musee du Caire: The Royal Mummies Le Caire : Imprimerie de L'institut Francais D'archeologie Orientale, 1912 Catalogue General Antiquites Egyptiennes du Musee du Caire DT57.C2 vol 59





Seti II
Seti II

                                               Menenra I


                                             Mut Nodjmet


Cabeza de Momia. Museo Australiano


                                  Cabeza de Momia. Museo Australiano



                                        Maiherpri
                                                      Tut



                                           Ramses II

                                      KV35

                                              momia de sacerdote  Museo Rosacruz




                                    Tuuya y Yuya


                                           Seti I










  Ramses II



                                        
                                                              Seti I