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The mummy project

Even today, with advanced imaging equipment and sensitive analytical methods, studying an Egyptian mummy is not a simple or straightforward task.

In the mid-1970’s when Manchester Mummy 1770 was unwrapped and autopsied, many of the methods we would rely on today were either less refined or completely unavailable.

A project that involves irreversibly damaging something as valuable as the mummified remains of a person who lived thousands of years ago must also never be undertaken lightly, and has to be approached with sensitivity and respect.

It is especially important that the right people are available to make sure that the project is carried out properly and that the best possible results are obtained.

When did the Manchester mummy project start?

 

The study of Egyptian mummies at the Manchester Museum was intended to help develop a new approach to the study of Egyptian mummies, one that combined both Egyptology and scientific analysis to help researchers to find out as much as possible while damaging the mummy as little as possible.

Such a novel approach requires testing to make sure it is reliable, however, so the results of this new method needed to be confirmed through direct study.

The aims of the Manchester mummy project

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