Scientists were shocked after discovering what was inside a tiny Egyptian mummy which recently underwent a Computerized Tomography (CT) scan. The said mummy, which was previously thought to contain remains of a hawk was revealed to contain a human fetus -- recorded as one the youngest human babies in the world.
Experts from the UK had the opportunity to study the mummy which was at least 2,300 years old using as CT scan from the Kent Institute of Medicine and Surgery. It was hard to identify what was inside the mummy which would be damaged if manually unwrapped. A previous speculation was, the mummy contains a hawk, which was commonly used by Pharaohs in hunting.
"Initial reviews identified the baby to be a miscarried c.20-week gestation foetus which, if found to be the case, will be one of the youngest human mummies recorded anywhere in the world," said Samantha Harris, Collections Manager at Maidstone Museum according to FOX News. There are speculations that the fetus love child of a pharaoh, however, the museum said there was no evidence to support the theory.
The researchers said they are conducting more studies of the mummy. Aside from the baby mummy, experts also revealed discoveries from other Egyptian mummies that also undergone CT Scan. Experts revealed that Ta-Kush actually died in her mid-20s. Previous records suggest that Ta-Kush died at an early age of 14 but the CT scan revealed that her age was higher than what Egyptologist thought.
The scan revealed that Ta-Kush has a fully erupted wisdom teeth which helped identified her age. The researchers also found evidences of wedge fracture in one of her vertebrae, which mean she might have died due to a fall.
"The scans conducted indicate evidence of well-worn teeth, loss of enamel, cavities, abscesses in the jaw and fully erupted wisdom teeth," Mark Garrad, lead radiographer at Kent Institute of Medicine and Surgery said according to Kent News. The researchers plan to uncover more about the said Egyptian mummy including a facial reconstruction of Ta-Kush.
