̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge - Julie Dawson

Youngest Ancient Egyptian human foetus discovered in miniature coffin at the Fitzwilliam Museum

fpjl2 — Thu, 12 May 2016 14:11:52 +0000

A miniature ancient Egyptian coffin measuring just 44cm in length has been found to contain the youngest ever example of a human foetus to be embalmed and buried in Egyptian society. This discovery is the only academically verified specimen to exist at only sixteen to eighteen weeks of gestation.

This landmark discovery from the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, is remarkable evidence of the importance that was placed on official burial rituals in ancient Egypt, even for those lives that were lost so early on in their existence. Curators at the Fitzwilliam made the discovery, during their research for the pioneering bicentennial exhibition Death on the Nile: Uncovering the afterlife of ancient Egypt.

̽��ֱ��tiny coffin was excavated at Giza in 1907 by the British School of Archaeology and came into the collection at the Fitzwilliam Museum the same year. It is a perfect miniature example of a wooden coffin of the ancient Egyptian ‘Late Period’ and may date to around 664-525 BC. ̽��ֱ��lid and box are both made from cedar wood. Although the coffin is deteriorated, it is clear that the wood was carefully carved on a painstakingly small scale and decorated. This gave the curators at the Fitzwilliam the first very clear indication of the importance given to the coffin’s contents at this time in ancient Egyptian society.

̽��ֱ��diminutive wrapped package inside was carefully bound in bandages, over which molten black resin had been poured before the coffin was closed. For many years it was thought that the contents were the mummified remains of internal organs that were routinely removed during the embalming of bodies.

Examination using X-ray imaging at the Fitzwilliam Museum was inconclusive, but suggested that it may contain a small skeleton. It was therefore decided to micro CT (computed tomography) scan the tiny bundle at Cambridge ̽��ֱ��’s Department of Zoology. ̽��ֱ��cross-sectional images this produced gave the first pictures of the remains of a tiny human body held within the wrappings, which remain undisturbed.

Dr Tom Turmezei, recently Honorary Consultant Radiologist at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge collaborated with the Fitzwilliam Museum, alongside Dr. Owen Arthurs, Academic Consultant Paediatric Radiologist at Great Ormond Street Hospital, London. ̽��ֱ��ground-breaking results were based on their extensive knowledge of CT imaging and paediatric autopsy.

Five digits on both hands and feet and the long bones of the legs and arms were all clearly visible. Although the soft skull and pelvis were found to be collapsed the categorical consensus was that inside the bundle was a human foetus estimated to be of no more than eighteen weeks gestation. It was impossible to give a gender to the specimen and it is thought that the foetus was probably the result of a miscarriage, as there were no obvious abnormalities to explain why it could not have been carried to full-term.

From the micro CT scan it is noticeable that the foetus has its arms crossed over its chest. This, coupled with the intricacy of the tiny coffin and its decoration, are clear indications of the importance and time given to this burial in Egyptian society.

"CT imaging has been used successfully by the museum for several projects in recent years, but this is our most successful find so far," Dr. Tom Turmezei explained. " ̽��ֱ��ability of CT to show the inner workings of such artefacts without causing any structural damage proved even more invaluable in this case, allowing us to review the foetus for abnormalities and attempt to age it as accurately as possible."

Julie Dawson, Head of Conservation at the Fitzwilliam Museum said, "Using non-invasive modern technology to investigate this extraordinary archaeological find has provided us with striking evidence of how an unborn child might be viewed in ancient Egyptian society. ̽��ֱ��care taken in the preparation of this burial clearly demonstrates the value placed on life even in the first weeks of its inception."

Tutankhamun’s tomb contained two small foetuses that had been mummified and placed in individual coffins, but these infants were both significantly more developed, at about 25 weeks and 37 weeks into gestation. Very few other examples of burials of miscarried babies have so far been identified from ancient Egypt.

̽��ֱ��miniature coffin is currently on display as part of the exhibition Death on the Nile: Uncovering the Afterlife of ancient Egypt until 22nd May 2016 at the Fitzwilliam Museum Cambridge.

Inset image: Micro CT scan image of the upper limbs

Tiny coffin excavated at Giza in 1907 is remarkable evidence of importance placed on official burial rituals in ancient Egypt.

̽��ֱ��care taken in the preparation of this burial clearly demonstrates the value placed on life even in the first weeks of its inception

Julie Dawson

̽��ֱ��text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. For image use please see separate credits above.

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Uncovering the afterlife of ancient Egypt

sjr81 — Thu, 25 Feb 2016 15:31:24 +0000

Going beyond the images of mummies, animal-headed gods, pharaohs and mystery often associated with ancient Egypt, Death on the Nile explores the beliefs and working practices behind these objects and reveals fascinating new information on how they were made.

Golden yellow, and covered from head to toe in bright hieroglyphs and pictures in reds, greens and blues, the set of coffins belonging to the man named Nespawershefyt (also known as Nes-Amun) was one of the very first gifts to the Fitzwilliam collection, given by two members of the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge in 1822, just a few years after the Museum was founded in 1816.

̽��ֱ��following year, Giovanni Belzoni presented the ̽��ֱ�� with the seven-ton granite sarcophagus lid of Ramesses III which he had retrieved from the Valley of the Kings. These and other gifts, as well as material from excavations, for which the Museum was a sponsor, created the remarkable collection of Egyptian coffins at the Fitzwilliam today.

̽��ֱ��coffins of Nes-Amun are not only incredibly beautiful, they also contain valuable clues to the man who commissioned them and to precisely how Egyptian coffins in his time were made. It is one of the finest coffin sets of its type in the world and in an outstanding state of preservation.

To uncover its hidden secrets, the coffins have been extensively studied with X-radiography at the Museum. And in February this year, the inner coffin was sent for CT scanning at the radiology department of Addenbrooke's Hospital, part of Cambridge ̽��ֱ�� Hospitals (CUH).

Julie Dawson, Head of Conservation at the Fitzwilliam Museum and co-curator of the exhibition, said: “ ̽��ֱ��inner coffin box is made up of a multitude of pieces of wood, including sections from at least one older coffin. Evidence of re-use includes cuts across old dowel holes, patching to change the profile of the coffin sides and a number of places where old mortise holes have been filled in and new ones cut beside them. Wood was a precious commodity and the craftsmen were incredibly skilled at making these complex objects from sometimes unpromising starting materials.

“ ̽��ֱ��radiographs and scans also reveal how people tried to restore or preserve the coffins in the past. Some parts of Nespawershefyt’s coffins are held together with 19th century ironmongery. Without these old repairs the coffins might not have survived so well, but they are quite intrusive on the original object and have rusted into the wood in places, causing damage.”

Examining the surface revealed other surprises, including several 3,000 year old fingerprints, suggesting that the craftsmen moved the lid of the inner coffin before the varnish had dried. NesAmun clearly commissioned his coffins during his lifetime, presumably at the point where he could afford a set worthy of his status as a priest of Amun-Re.

However, by the time of his death he had risen in rank and his new titles — as supervisor of craftsmen's workshops in Karnak and the supervisor of temple scribes of Amun-Re — had to be inscribed over the top of the old ones. This shows the importance attached to being properly prepared for death in ancient Egypt, even while one was still alive.

̽��ֱ��Nes-Amun coffin set is one of many stunning objects in Death on the Nile, the majority from the Fitzwilliam’s collections and complemented by loans from the British Museum and the Musée du Louvre. Through scientific analysis, the woods and the pigments and varnishes used by the craftsmen to make the decoration have been identified.

Evidence of working practices, from the variety of tool marks found on the wood to the drawing and painting techniques used to make the images, have been revealed through close study and a range of imaging techniques.

All this information helps bring us closer to the people who made the coffins as do the very human touches and stumbles – secret repairs hidden underneath a perfect finish, mistakes in drawings that had to be changed in the final painting and even the odd practice doodle on the underside of a coffin box.

A series of reconstructions will show how some of the coffins were made and, in a live conservation area, visitors will be able to examine in more detail the scientific techniques and the materials and construction methods uncovered during the project.

Helen Strudwick, Egyptologist and exhibition co-curator said: “This is a chance for us to encourage visitors to look more closely at these extraordinary objects. A coffin artisan in ancient Egypt had to deal creatively with many practical problems and sometimes restrictions on materials available because of the economic or political climate. Objects always had to be tailored to cost, but the finish had to meet the high aspirations of the customer. ̽��ֱ��coffins show the skill and care with which the Egyptians prepared for the afterlife.

“To us, for whom death is a taboo subject, this seems like a morbid preoccupation. In fact, it was an obsession with life and an urgent wish to ensure its perfected continuation.

“This is also a very appropriate exhibition for our bicentenary year. Not only did the Museum’s collection of Egyptian artefacts start with the gift of a beautiful set of coffins, that gift was also given in the year that Egyptology as a subject was born: 1822 was the year that Jean-François Champollion first announced his theories on the hieroglyphic script. And, as part of the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge, it is an excellent opportunity for us to bring the research we are carrying out on the Museum’s Egyptian coffin collection to the attention of a wider audience.”

Death on the Nile: Uncovering the afterlife of ancient Egypt is at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge 23 February – 22 May 2016. Admission is free.

̽��ֱ��Fitzwilliam Museum is marking its bicentenary anniversary celebrations with an exhibition on its remarkable collection of Egyptian coffins.

To us, for whom death is a taboo subject, this seems like a morbid preoccupation. In fact, it was an obsession with life.

Helen Strudwick

Death on the Nile - Teaser Trailer

Full length view of coffin from the coffin set of Nespawershefyt, About 1000 BC

̽��ֱ��text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. For image use please see separate credits above.

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