Experts claim two of the nine mummies in the collection are forgeries
Resin used on one of the mummified bodies dates to the mid-19th century
While scans revealed male and female bones in the same mummy
One of these bones was a tibia that is thought to date to the Middle Ages
A ‘modern nail’ was also found among the skeletal remains
Experts are due to present their findings at the museum on Thursday
Mummy forgeries have previously been used to scam people out of Money
Experts said resin used on one of the 'mini mummies' (pictured) was made in the 19th century
They may look like the real thing, but at least two of the mummies in the Vatican Museums' collection have been found to be fakes.
Using CT scans, X-rays and carbon dating, experts said the resin used on one of the ‘Ancient Egyptian’ mummified bodies was actually made during the mid-19th century.
While a scan of another revealed a mixture of male and female bones, as well as a ‘modern nail.’
The experts, led by Alessia Amenta, are due to present their findings at the museum on Thursday.
The Department of Antiquities of Egypt and the Near East of the Vatican Museums set up the Vatican Mummy Project in 2007 with the aim of cataloguing, studying and restoring its collection of mummies.
The Vatican collection holds nine complete Egyptian mummies, and eighteen body parts made up of heads, hands and feet.
Led by Ms Amenta, the team used X-rays and electron microscopes to study chemical elements in the bandages, as well as CT scans to create 3D images of the contents inside.
This involved carbon dating the mummies to determine their age, plus infrared and ultraviolet scans to show markings that would traditionally be hidden to the naked eye.
The two so-called ‘mini mummies’ were originally believed to date back to Ancient Egypt, and contain a child or animal.
During the tests, the researchers discovered that the wrappings around the 23-inch (60cm) long mummies were from approximately 3,000 BC, which suggested they could be real, but the bones found inside were from the Middle Ages.
The two so-called ‘mini mummies’ were originally believed to date back to Ancient Egypt, and contain a child or animal. During tests, the researchers discovered the wrappings around the 23-inch (60cm) long mummies were from 3,000 BC, which suggested they could be real, but bones found inside were from the Middle Ages
There was a mix of male and female bones, as well as various body parts, including an adult tibia and fibula (shown in right scan), foot bones and a vertebrae (shown left). A ‘modern nail’ was also found in the contents
There was a mixture of male and female bones, as well as various body parts, including an adult tibia and fibula, foot bones and a vertebrae.
EMBALMING IN ANCIENT EGYPT
Embalming was practiced for more than 2,000 years and was an important after life ritual in Ancient Egypt.
The earliest mummies were said to have been embalmed in around 2,600BC, but recent evidence suggests it may have started earlier.
Religious ceremonies accompanied the preparation of the body for the afterlife.
Priests wrapped the mummy with linen strips containing resin, placed the internal organs in the specially prepared canopic jars and blessed the entrance of the mummy’s tomb at the funeral.
The mummified remains remain in good condition because the process successfully removed moisture from the body to slow down the process of decay.
The Ancient Egyptians believed the body was the house of the soul so even after death the spirit could only live on if the body was preserved forever. If the body decayed, so too did the soul.
In Ancient Egyptian religion, the soul was made of the ka, which remained in the tomb, the ba, which was free to fly outside the tomb and the akh which travelled to the underworld for judgement.
A ‘modern nail’ was also found among the contents.
‘What a disappointment to find that the mummy in question was only a tangle of bandages arranged to simulate an ancient artefact,’ said Ms Amenta.
‘The mummy is an important witness to this phenomenon of forgery that was able to masterfully deceive collectors and often scholars.
‘Scientific investigations, carried out under the direction of Ulderico Santamaria and his assistant Fabio Morresi, have allowed us to reconstruct the manufacturing technique and probably the area and the period in which these forgers have operated.
‘Scattered in a dozen museums, there are forty examples of this particular type of mummies that Egyptologists have commonly referred to as ‘mummies child’ or animal mummies.’
Following further tests, the cartonnage - painted plaster and linen surrounding the mummified remains - was found to contain a resin that was typically used on antiques during the mid-19th century in Europe.
In particular, traces of zinc and tin were found in the paints that included pigments that wouldn’t have been used at the time.
Previous studies also found that a mummy in the collection identified as a female on the sarcophagus contained the remains of a male.
There have been a number of fake mummies found in collections globally, but the reasons for the forgeries are not known.
During the 18th and 19th century, Napoleon’s expeditions to Egypt caused a so-called ‘mummy mania’, in Europe in which people became fixated on the process.
Embalming was practiced for more than 2,000 years in Ancient Egypt. The earliest mummies were said to have been embalmed in around 2,600BC, but recent evidence suggests it may have started 1,500 years earlier. Traces of embalming agents were found in linen used to wrap bodies in Egyptian cemeteries (pictured)
This caused a rise in fake mummies being created and put on display, and in some cases, criminals would publicly ‘unwrap’ these forgeries to a group of tourists who would pay large sums to see it.
THE VATICAN MUSEUMS
The Vatican Museums were set up by Pope Julius II in the 16th century to promote knowledge of art history and culture.
The Etruscan Museum was established in 1837 and added archaeological finds discovered during excavations carried out from 1828 onwards in southern Etruria.
Two years later, the Egyptian Museum was opened that houses ancient artefacts from explorations in Egypt, together with other pieces already conserved in the Vatican and in the Museo Capitolino.
In the year 2000, the Vatican Museums opened a new large entrance that provides visitor information and other services, and on display are many new artworks, two of which were specially created for this hall.
The Department of Antiquities of Egypt and the Near East of the Vatican Museums set up the Vatican Mummy Project in 2007 with the aim of cataloguing, studying and restoring its collection of mummies.
The Vatican collection holds nine complete Egyptian mummies, and eighteen body parts made up of heads, hands and feet.
Ms Amenta told the Catholic New Service that 'mummies were in high demand from the Middle Ages up to the Renaissance because they were burned and used as a powder in apothecary potions for various ailments.'
She said that two pounds of 'mummy dust' would be equivalent to $17,000 (£11,270) today. Mummified bodies were also used to create brown oil paints.
Embalming was practiced for more than 2,000 years and was an important after life ritual in Ancient Egypt.
The earliest mummies were said to have been embalmed in around 2,600BC, but recent evidence suggests it may have started earlier.
In August last year, traces of complex embalming agents were found in linen used to wrap bodies that were placed in tombs in one of the earliest recorded ancient Egyptian cemeteries.
The formula used to treat the cloth predates the earliest scientific evidence of embalming in the area of northern Egypt by more than a millennium.
Experts identified a pine resin, an aromatic plant extract, a plant gum, a natural petroleum source and a plant oil or animal fat in the funerary wrappings in unopened tombs at Mostagedda, in the region of Upper Egypt.
This suggests the practice began around 1,500 years earlier than first thought.
Resin used on one of the mummified bodies dates to the mid-19th century
While scans revealed male and female bones in the same mummy
One of these bones was a tibia that is thought to date to the Middle Ages
A ‘modern nail’ was also found among the skeletal remains
Experts are due to present their findings at the museum on Thursday
Mummy forgeries have previously been used to scam people out of Money
Experts said resin used on one of the 'mini mummies' (pictured) was made in the 19th century
They may look like the real thing, but at least two of the mummies in the Vatican Museums' collection have been found to be fakes.
Using CT scans, X-rays and carbon dating, experts said the resin used on one of the ‘Ancient Egyptian’ mummified bodies was actually made during the mid-19th century.
While a scan of another revealed a mixture of male and female bones, as well as a ‘modern nail.’
The experts, led by Alessia Amenta, are due to present their findings at the museum on Thursday.
The Department of Antiquities of Egypt and the Near East of the Vatican Museums set up the Vatican Mummy Project in 2007 with the aim of cataloguing, studying and restoring its collection of mummies.
The Vatican collection holds nine complete Egyptian mummies, and eighteen body parts made up of heads, hands and feet.
Led by Ms Amenta, the team used X-rays and electron microscopes to study chemical elements in the bandages, as well as CT scans to create 3D images of the contents inside.
This involved carbon dating the mummies to determine their age, plus infrared and ultraviolet scans to show markings that would traditionally be hidden to the naked eye.
The two so-called ‘mini mummies’ were originally believed to date back to Ancient Egypt, and contain a child or animal.
During the tests, the researchers discovered that the wrappings around the 23-inch (60cm) long mummies were from approximately 3,000 BC, which suggested they could be real, but the bones found inside were from the Middle Ages.
The two so-called ‘mini mummies’ were originally believed to date back to Ancient Egypt, and contain a child or animal. During tests, the researchers discovered the wrappings around the 23-inch (60cm) long mummies were from 3,000 BC, which suggested they could be real, but bones found inside were from the Middle Ages
There was a mix of male and female bones, as well as various body parts, including an adult tibia and fibula (shown in right scan), foot bones and a vertebrae (shown left). A ‘modern nail’ was also found in the contents
There was a mixture of male and female bones, as well as various body parts, including an adult tibia and fibula, foot bones and a vertebrae.
EMBALMING IN ANCIENT EGYPT
Embalming was practiced for more than 2,000 years and was an important after life ritual in Ancient Egypt.
The earliest mummies were said to have been embalmed in around 2,600BC, but recent evidence suggests it may have started earlier.
Religious ceremonies accompanied the preparation of the body for the afterlife.
Priests wrapped the mummy with linen strips containing resin, placed the internal organs in the specially prepared canopic jars and blessed the entrance of the mummy’s tomb at the funeral.
The mummified remains remain in good condition because the process successfully removed moisture from the body to slow down the process of decay.
The Ancient Egyptians believed the body was the house of the soul so even after death the spirit could only live on if the body was preserved forever. If the body decayed, so too did the soul.
In Ancient Egyptian religion, the soul was made of the ka, which remained in the tomb, the ba, which was free to fly outside the tomb and the akh which travelled to the underworld for judgement.
A ‘modern nail’ was also found among the contents.
‘What a disappointment to find that the mummy in question was only a tangle of bandages arranged to simulate an ancient artefact,’ said Ms Amenta.
‘The mummy is an important witness to this phenomenon of forgery that was able to masterfully deceive collectors and often scholars.
‘Scientific investigations, carried out under the direction of Ulderico Santamaria and his assistant Fabio Morresi, have allowed us to reconstruct the manufacturing technique and probably the area and the period in which these forgers have operated.
‘Scattered in a dozen museums, there are forty examples of this particular type of mummies that Egyptologists have commonly referred to as ‘mummies child’ or animal mummies.’
Following further tests, the cartonnage - painted plaster and linen surrounding the mummified remains - was found to contain a resin that was typically used on antiques during the mid-19th century in Europe.
In particular, traces of zinc and tin were found in the paints that included pigments that wouldn’t have been used at the time.
Previous studies also found that a mummy in the collection identified as a female on the sarcophagus contained the remains of a male.
There have been a number of fake mummies found in collections globally, but the reasons for the forgeries are not known.
During the 18th and 19th century, Napoleon’s expeditions to Egypt caused a so-called ‘mummy mania’, in Europe in which people became fixated on the process.
Embalming was practiced for more than 2,000 years in Ancient Egypt. The earliest mummies were said to have been embalmed in around 2,600BC, but recent evidence suggests it may have started 1,500 years earlier. Traces of embalming agents were found in linen used to wrap bodies in Egyptian cemeteries (pictured)
This caused a rise in fake mummies being created and put on display, and in some cases, criminals would publicly ‘unwrap’ these forgeries to a group of tourists who would pay large sums to see it.
THE VATICAN MUSEUMS
The Vatican Museums were set up by Pope Julius II in the 16th century to promote knowledge of art history and culture.
The Etruscan Museum was established in 1837 and added archaeological finds discovered during excavations carried out from 1828 onwards in southern Etruria.
Two years later, the Egyptian Museum was opened that houses ancient artefacts from explorations in Egypt, together with other pieces already conserved in the Vatican and in the Museo Capitolino.
In the year 2000, the Vatican Museums opened a new large entrance that provides visitor information and other services, and on display are many new artworks, two of which were specially created for this hall.
The Department of Antiquities of Egypt and the Near East of the Vatican Museums set up the Vatican Mummy Project in 2007 with the aim of cataloguing, studying and restoring its collection of mummies.
The Vatican collection holds nine complete Egyptian mummies, and eighteen body parts made up of heads, hands and feet.
Ms Amenta told the Catholic New Service that 'mummies were in high demand from the Middle Ages up to the Renaissance because they were burned and used as a powder in apothecary potions for various ailments.'
She said that two pounds of 'mummy dust' would be equivalent to $17,000 (£11,270) today. Mummified bodies were also used to create brown oil paints.
Embalming was practiced for more than 2,000 years and was an important after life ritual in Ancient Egypt.
The earliest mummies were said to have been embalmed in around 2,600BC, but recent evidence suggests it may have started earlier.
In August last year, traces of complex embalming agents were found in linen used to wrap bodies that were placed in tombs in one of the earliest recorded ancient Egyptian cemeteries.
The formula used to treat the cloth predates the earliest scientific evidence of embalming in the area of northern Egypt by more than a millennium.
Experts identified a pine resin, an aromatic plant extract, a plant gum, a natural petroleum source and a plant oil or animal fat in the funerary wrappings in unopened tombs at Mostagedda, in the region of Upper Egypt.
This suggests the practice began around 1,500 years earlier than first thought.
fonte: @edisonmariotti #edisonmariotti http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2928091/Vatican-mummies-FAKE-Bones-inside-two-collection-s-ancient-Egyptian-caskets-date-Middle-Ages.html#ixzz3QFT2Lst3
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