Andrew D. Wade

A synthetic radiological study of brain treatment in ancient Egyptian mummies

Variability in brain treatment, as a part of the Egyptian mummification process, is poorly appreciated in the literature, as variability in the details of excerebration have not been addressed comprehensively nor with respect to social, geographic, and temporal variation. The description of Egyptian mummification commonly used in the popular and academic literature is derived largely from accounts by Herodotus and Diodorus Siculus. However, this normative description does not acknowledge the existence of a wide range of mummification techniques practiced and so stifles the study of geographic and chronological changes in the practice and their causes. Therefore, the goal of this study is to use the classical description as a hypothesis for empirical testing, using published literature and primary radiographic data, with a specific focus on the practice of excerebration. Three primary treatments of the brain in mummification, and their variation over time and across social strata, are discussed in relation to their treatment in the literature, their radiological indicators, and their technical considerations. In order to examine Egyptian mummy excerebration, this study makes use of two samples: (1) a literature-based sample of 125 mummies, and (2) a sample of 6 mummies examined directly using computed tomography. In spite of an apparent high degree of variability, the literature continues to focus on modern and classical stereotypes rather than the rich variability in the Egyptian mummification tradition. Detailed, large-scale examination of this and other mummification traditions, and their meanings, is required to further our understanding of this important early complex society.

Scenes from the Past: Multidetector CT of Egyptian Mummies of the Redpath Museum

As a nondestructive method of historical and anthropologic inquiry, imaging has played an important role in mummy studies over the past several decades. Recent technologic advances have made multidetector computed tomography (CT) an especially useful means for deepening the present understanding of ancient cultures by examining preserved human remains. In April 2011, three ancient Egyptian human mummies from the Redpath Museum of McGill University were examined with 320-section multidetector CT as part of the IMPACT Radiological Mummy Database project headquartered at the University of Western Ontario. Whole-body scanning was performed with a section thickness of 0.5 mm and a peak voltage of 120 kVp, and the raw CT datasets were postprocessed by using smooth body and high-resolution bone convolution filters. Two of the mummies were scanned at different energy levels (80 and 135 keV). The high-resolution CT scans revealed the details of mummification and allowed observations about the socioeconomic and health status of the human subjects based on both the mummification technique used and the appearance of the remains, particularly the bones and teeth. The paleopathologic information obtained from the scans confirmed some findings in studies performed in the same mummies in the late 19th and 20th centuries. The CT scans also demonstrated a high degree of variability in Egyptian mortuary practice, variability that is not generally recognized in the literature. Unusual features that were observed included a relatively uncommon retained heart in mummy RM2718, retained lungs in a mummy from which the heart had been extracted (RM2720), and a cartonnage plaque placed over the left abdomen of a mummy that had been eviscerated transperineally (RM2717).

Radiological evaluation of the evisceration tradition in ancient Egyptian mummies

Descriptions of the preparation of ancient Egyptian mummies that appear in both scientific and popular literature are derived largely from accounts by the Greek historians Herodotus and Diodorus Siculus. Our reliance on these normative descriptions obscures the wide range of techniques practised, and so stifles the study of geographic, chronological, and social variations in the practice. Using published descriptions in the literature for 150 mummies and 3D reconstructions from computed tomography data for 7 mummies, this study compares empirical data with classical descriptions of evisceration, organ treatment, and body cavity treatment. Techniques for accessing the body cavity, removal and treatment of the organs, and treatment of the eviscerated body cavity vary with time period, sex, and status, and are discussed in relation to their treatment in the literature and their radiological appearance. The Herodotean and Diodorean stereotypes, including the restriction of transabdominal evisceration to the elite and cedar oil enema evisceration to commoners, are falsified by the data. The transperineal forms are present only in elites, and chemical evisceration is not apparent at all. Additionally, the dogmatic contention that the heart was universally retained in situ, or replaced if accidentally removed, is also greatly exaggerated.