 "Photo: Jacky Fung")
Washington University researchers have recently made a series of important discoveries based on examinations of the bones and DNA of a mummy recently added to the permanent collection of the St. Louis Science Center.
Al Wiman, vice president of Public Understanding of Science at the Science Center, found the mummy in the Center's storage where it had been packed away since 1985. The mummy had been purchased privately in the Middle East at the turn of the 20th century-the same time that banker Charles Parson bought two mummies that he later donated to the University.
Wiman contacted the University's Department of Radiology in order to learn more about the mummy without tampering with its contents.
"On the computer we could electronically unwrap layers of bandage and remove skin," said Charles Hildebolt, professor of radiology.
Hildebolt led a team of researches who used X-ray computed tomography (CT) scanning to create three-dimensional images of the mummy.
From the scan, the scientists determined that the baby mummy was a boy. They also found corroborating evidence from three places-the mummy's teeth, skull structure and hand bones-which all suggest that the child was between seven to eight months old when he died.
"Teeth are the best things to use for determining age at death. We were able to determine the mummy's age by looking at crown and root formation," said Hildebolt.
The CT images show evidence from the mummification process. The research team found a hole in the left nostril through which the mummy's brain was most likely removed. Also, it was discovered that a wooden rod had been inserted during the wrapping process to support the mummy.
Anne Bowcock, professor of genetics, medicine and pediatrics, extracted and sequenced the baby mummy's DNA. She took specimens from four places where the mummy had already been partially unwrapped on the left side of its head and on its shoulder.
"The mummy was very hardened, like wood. We used thick needles to get some material. We removed a match-head sized piece of bone," said Bowcock.
Bowcock said that contamination had initially been a concern because mummy DNA assessments often contain DNA from people who have handled the mummy. Because she was able to take specimens directly from the bone, she is fairly confident in the results.
The baby's mitochondrion sequencing suggests that his mother was from the haplogroup which was found in Europe. Hildebolt said that this conclusion fits.
"Greeks and Romans often adapted burial practices of the Egyptians, it is certainly possible that the mother was Greek or Roman," he said
Bowcock said that her team is doing further analysis to confirm the conclusion that the baby's mother was from European descent. Also, the geneticists are attempting to study the y-chromosomes in order to identify the father's lineage.
The scientists sent a postage-stamp sized sample of the mummy's linen burial shroud to a firm in Florida for radiocarbon dating. The firm concluded with 95 percent probability that the baby lived at some point between 40 B.C. and 130 A.D. These dates place the baby's life either during the Ptolemaic or the Roman period of Egyptian history.
Despite all of these advances, the researches are unable to discover why the mummy died so young.
"One thing we haven't been able to determine is the cause of death, but that's not too surprising. The child could have died from a disease that didn't leave any evidence on its skeletal structure," said Hildebolt.
Examining the mummy was atypical for University researchers that typically study modern humans. The mummy's DNA is the oldest Bowcock has ever studied.
"Mummies are fairly rare. Child mummies are exceedingly rare," said Hildebolt. "We [usually] don't get any mummies to scan and study. It's unusual, and fun."
According to Hildebolt, American University of Cairo Egyptologist Salima Ikran said that this is the largest scientific study performed on a baby mummy.
The mummy was put on permanent display on March 15 in conjunction with the current showing of the IMAX film Mummies: Secrets of the Pharaohs.
