Purpose
Before the development of modern radiology techniques,
ancient mummies had to be analyzed through a physical examination that foresaw the removal of the bandage followed by the physical analysis and,
eventually,
the dissection of the cadaver,
all irreversibly destructive methodologies and very far from the Egyptians’ desire of an eternal preservation of the body.
In 1898,
three years later from the revolutionary discovery of the X-ray by Roentgen,
the radiogram of a mummy was performed and published for the first time (1).
This signed the...
Methods and Materials
The human mummy and one of the crocodileburiedwith it have been examined with MDCT.The survey has been carried on using CT Philps Brillance multidetector 16-slice.
Mummies have been positioned singularly inside the gantry on their own wooden bearing and consequently two scout views,
frontal and lateral,
have been taken.
The axial captures,
cranium-caudal,
both of the mummy and the crocodile,
have been done at 90 kVp and 120mA without any gantry slant.
Afterward,
focused multiplanar tridimensional reconstructionsand targeted measurements of density with dedicated workstation have...
Results
The human mummy skeleton is severely damaged.
The right humerus is missing; the left one,
the scapular and the costal present multiple fractures.
The left femur shows a broad spiroide fracture.
No reparative signs can be detected in all the fractured bones,
indicating that they occurred post mortem,
most probably during the transportation from the discovery place to their final collocation.
The pelvis presents a round-oval shape and a typical pubic angle,elements that confirm the belonging to the feminine genre.
Important degenerative osteoarthritis alterations in...
Conclusion
Along with the laboratory result,
the radiological findings allow to validate the hypothesis that the mummy belongs to the Ptolemaic-Christian period,
a time during which the mummification process was undergoing important changes.
The entombment of the two animals placed at her sides is contemporary to the one of the woman,
as it is supposable from the sacred service given during life by the priestess.
The radiologic contribution to the paleo-archeological finds analysis has become fundamental,
also considering the possibility of conservative study of very delicate...
References
1.Petrie WMF.
Deshasheh,
I 897.
Fifteenth memoir of the Egypt Exploration Fund.
Published by order of the Committee,
Egypt Exploration Fund,
London,
I898.
2.
Cosmacini P.,
Piacentini P.
Notes on the history of the radiological study of Egyptian mummies: from X-rays to new imaging tecniques.
Radiol Med (2008),
113:615-626.
3.
Harwood-Nash DCF.
Computed tomography of ancient Egyptian mummies.
J ComputAssistTomogr 1979; 3:768-773.
4.
Romanato G.
Giovanni Miani e il contributo Veneto alla conoscenza dell’Africa.
Ed.
Minelliana,
Rovigo,
2005.
5.
Dolzani C.
Il Dio Sobek.
Roma,...
Personal Information
1,2Radiodiagnostic Department,
SS Giovanni e Paolo Hospital,
Venice,
Italy