Mummies Examined Today and Yesterday

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There are many different techniques archeologists used to study ancient egyptian mummies over the years. Over the past century techniques got much more advanced. Technology had a big influence on studies of the ancient mummies. It was an egyptian religion after someones death to preserve their bodies so that they could use them in the afterlife. First the clothes were removed and they washed and purified the body with a natron solution. Then all the organs were removed except for the heart and kidneys. They used stuffing such as sand, mud, or resin to fill up the body. Then they dehydrating with natron the body and applied a natural substance called Natron. Next, the body was wrapped in linen and placed in a stone coffin. A century ago archeologists examined mummies by physically opening them up. A mummy would be unrolled and destroyed in front of a group of people that came to watch the examination for fun. This procedure would damage the mummy severely. They extracted human muscle tissue and injected it into rabbits. They also studied tissues under a microscope and through studying the artifacts that were left in the tomb. A new technology was discover called x-rays and they were used to study many aspects of the mummy. They would have to handwrite all their findings which could be lost or damaged. After the unwrapping was over, the mummy and its wrappings were simply thrown away. Today we examine mummies in a very different way. We want to preserve them using nondestructive methods. We use advanced x-rays analysis, Cat Scanning, and DNA testing. Information can be determined in only a few minutes. They document its appearance with pictures. They examine the material in which the mummy is wrapped. They conduct a dental examination to show age, diet, and possibly how they died. They will study samples of tissues and use a

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