10 Mummy Discoveries That SCARED Archaeologists
If there’s one group of people you don’t wanna mess with,
it’s the allegedly cursed mummies that have been buried for thousands of years. Throughout history,
archaeologists have made some mummy discoveries that even scared them, and here are some of them:
10. Lady Rai
One of the creepiest things about mummies is how real they are. These aren’t just a piece of art
but a formerly living being. It’s almost surreal to see someone who once lived thousands of years
ago in a state like that. One of the oldest mummies in ancient Egypt belongs to a woman who
is now dubbed “Lady Rai”. Lady Rai was around 30 to 40 years old when she died in around 1530 BC,
she was apparently a nursemaid to an ancient Egyptian queen.
What’s incredible about this mummy is how her hair is almost perfectly preserved to this day,
this hair is thousands of years old! And small parts of it still seem like they could’ve been
grown a few months ago, albeit unkempt. Lady Rai is the earliest known human to
have suffered from atherosclerosis, which is a disease where plaque can build up
around your artery walls, reducing blood flow and potentially causing blood clots.
9. Ramses II
Ramses II was one of ancient Egypt’s most iconic leaders. He’s one of the longest-tenured rulers of
ancient Egypt, having lived up to 90 years old (at a time where you’d be lucky to see
your 40th birthday) and he is believed to have fathered over 100 children. His mummy was found
in 1881 by archeologists who were shocked at how regal it looked. It almost looked like the
mummy would still wield unlimited power as he did during his reign. In 1974, the mummy’s condition
started deteriorating rapidly and a decision was made to fly the mummy to Paris for treatment.
Ramses II was given an Egyptian passport to fly to France and his occupation was listed as
“King (deceased)”. When the mummy arrived in Paris, it was given full military honors
that are usually reserved for royalty that arrive in France to this day.
8. King Tutankhamun
King Tutankhamun, or simply King Tut, was one of Egypt’s youngest rulers, having gained ultimate
power at the age of 9. King Tut actually was not that significant compared to other Egyptian rulers
when he actually ruled, but when his mummy was discovered in the Valley of the Kings in 1922,
it turned him into a household name. His tomb was one of the most extravagant ones
archeologists had ever seen, all sorts of ancient treasures and jewelry were found within it.
His funerary mask was incredibly detailed and made of solid gold, and King Tut is probably most
famous for actually unleashing the “mummy’s curse”. Opening an ancient Egyptian tomb is
thought to lay a curse upon whoever opens it, and the financer of the project to open King
Tut’s resting place, Lord Carnarvon, died within days of opening his tomb, due to a mosquito bite.
7. Crocodile Mummy
Crocodiles were a revered animal in ancient Egypt, signified by their strength and viciousness. The
Nile river crocodile is one of the largest crocodile species in the world, as well as
one of the deadliest, and ancient Egyptians even went as far as to mummify these crocodiles. It’s
believed that these mummies were used to signify the ancient Egyptian deity known as Sobek, who was
usually depicted with the head of a crocodile. Crocodiles were also considered a symbol of
fertility and speed by ancient Egyptians. What’s even more amazing is that ancient Egyptians
recycled papyrus scraps that they had previously written on to stuff the animals, leading to some
never-before-seen ancient text being discovered after the initial discovery of these crocodiles.
6. Gazelle Mummy
Crocodiles weren’t the only animals that were mummified by ancient Egyptians.
One of the best-preserved examples of a mummified animal from ancient Egypt is this gazelle from the
late period of Egyptian civilization. This gazelle was the pet of an ancient queen and a loyal one at
that. Archeologists were shocked to see the care with which this gazelle was preserved,
it was given the same treatment as one would expect of a mummy belonging to a
major king or queen, and was given a royal burial no different to that of a human.
Goes to show the significance that animals had in the ancient Egyptian empire.
5. Mud Covered Mummy
Most ancient Egyptian mummies were covered in a thick resin shell to protect them
from the damage of time, however, Australian researchers were shocked
when they found a mummy covered with a thick layer of mud in southern Egypt.
Mud was inexpensive, while resin was only available to the super-rich, and this particular
mummy shows how even Egyptian commoners were inspired by the mummies of the royals and they
tried to mimic the style using the resources they had available to them. This particular
mummy was of a woman in her 20s who was placed in this coffin much later than when she died.
4. Infant Mummies
There have been quite a few infants who have received the mummification treatment after their
death in ancient Egypt. Most of these children were those of kings and queens, who died early
due to the various diseases we didn’t know how to treat back then. In some cases, even fetuses
have been mummified. In 2021, archeologists even announced the discovery of a pregnant mummy with
a child inside of her, this was the first known example of a pregnant mummy ever being found.
3. Mummy With Tattoos
Tattoos may be a sort of fashion statement in the 21st century, especially in the western world,
but for tribes and religions throughout history, it was a tradition that was quite important and,
in some cases, compulsory. At the Deir El Medina site in Egypt, archaeologists were
surprised to find seven mummified women who had tattoos all over their bodies.
One mummy had over 30 tattoos on her body, more than they have ever found on any mummy.
It’s believed that tattoos held some sort of significance in ancient Egypt, but we
don’t quite know what, since before these, only 6 other mummies had ever been found donning tattoos.
The mummies found in Deir El Medina were of artisans who worked on various art projects
in the region, and their tattoos might be a symbol of their artistic expression.
2. Chinchorro Mummies
Mummies are some of the most iconic aspects of the ancient Egyptian civilization,
but not all mummies come from ancient Egypt. In fact, some of the oldest mummies in the
world are the Chinchorro Mummies, which were found in Northern Chile and Southern Peru.
Now, these mummies weren’t nearly as lavishly decorated or well-preserved as their Egyptian
counterparts, but they date back to 7020 BC! Back when there wasn’t even an Egyptian civilization!
Some of these were naturally mummified, while in later years,
they were carefully preserved the same way ancient Egyptians were.
Some of these mummies included infants, men, women, and pretty much anything you can think
of, there were a total of 282 mummies found in the area after the initial discovery in 1917.
The Chinchorro people started to artificially mummify their dead in around 5000 BC, which is
2000 years before the ancient Egyptians got a hold of the idea. This also goes to show how little
we knew about the “New” World in the Western Hemisphere, and how it’s not so “new” after all.
1. Hatshepsut
Hatshepsut was the 5th pharaoh of the 18th ancient Egyptian dynasty. She is considered
one of the most powerful women in history, and the most successful female Egyptian monarch,
as well as one of Egypt’s most prolific rulers. Some have referred to Hatshepsut as the greatest
woman in history, but despite her significance, we didn’t even know where she was buried until very
recently. It was always assumed that Hatshepsut was buried somewhere in the Valley of the Kings
near Luxor, and indeed, a tomb for Hatshepsut was actually found in the early 20th century,
however, when they opened the coffin bearing her name, along with one bearing her father’s name,
they both came out empty. A few years later, another tomb named
KV60 was opened, inside it were two coffins, one contained the remains of mummified geese,
and the other contained woman who was named Sitre-In, Hatshepsut’s wet nurse,
she was notable as a mummy for having for particularly bad teeth. That was in 1902,
and for another hundred years, we had no idea where Hatshepsut was. But 100 years later, still,
in search of the mummy, archaeologists decided to open a box with many of her personal belongings,
among which was a tooth she had lost. This immediately alerted the archeologists,
who rushed to match the tooth with the mummy they found a hundred years ago, and after conducting a
DNA test, they concluded that the mummy was not Hatshepsut's wet nurse, but Hatshepsut herself!
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