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Scanning the Pharaohs: CT Imaging of the New Kingdom Royal Mummies

Zahi A. Hawass

4.19 · Rating details · 21 ratings · 4 reviews

The royal mummies in the Cairo Museum are an important source of information about the lives of the ancient Egyptians. The remains of these pharaohs and queens can inform us about their age at death and medical conditions from which they may have suffered, as well as the mummification process and objects placed within the wrappings.
Using the latest technology, including M ...more

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Paperback, 376 pages

Published September 4th 2018 by The American University in Cairo Press (first published February 28th 2015)

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Mar 08, 2018 Rex Libris rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This book is a fascinating treasure trove of information about Egyptian royal mummies. Prior to the work done by the authors, all of the physical evidence we had about the mummies came from visual examination and traditional radiographs. However, the authors were able to use a multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) to open up the skeletal and soft-tissue secrets of the mummies.

The authors were able to definitively establish age, health, and causes of death of numerous mummies. In doing so the ...more

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Nov 30, 2014 Lisa rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: ancient-egypt, reviewed

Over the past decade or so, there have been some amazing discoveries about Ancient Egypt that have been discovered through the use of modern technology. CT scanning debunked the theory that Tutankhamun had been murdered, proved that Ramesses III had been murdered, identified Hatshepsut's mummy and provided dozens of new information about the physical condition of many pharaohs of Egypt. DNA testing identified Tutankhamun's closest relatives, including identifying his parents and the mummy of Que Over the past decade or so, there have been some amazing discoveries about Ancient Egypt that have been discovered through the use of modern technology. CT scanning debunked the theory that Tutankhamun had been murdered, proved that Ramesses III had been murdered, identified Hatshepsut's mummy and provided dozens of new information about the physical condition of many pharaohs of Egypt. DNA testing identified Tutankhamun's closest relatives, including identifying his parents and the mummy of Queen Tiye. In Scanning the Pharaohs, authors Zahi Hawass and Sahar Saleem have collated all the evidence into one volume of work.

I will say this right now: if you are interested in Egyptology, it is worth having this book. It is supremely unlikely that another book will come out that covers the same information. For the first time, all those amazing discoveries are discussed in one book. You don't need to find the academic articles, the documentaries, the news articles and press conference video to get all the information – it's all there. What's also there is a good deal of information about other mummies that haven't been as well publicised, such as the mummies of the early 19th dynasty, who I hadn't even known had been scanned.

I should be clear: it's not a complete catalogue of the royal mummies. Not every royal mummy has been found and identified and not every identified royal mummy have been scanned. It's a bit frustrating but ultimately understandable. It's an expensive process and it makes sense to focus on marquee names like Tutankhamun, Ramesses and Hatshepsut. I don't know if there were any plans to scan the remaining royal mummies that were cancelled or delayed due to the political unrest in Egypt, but the text also makes it clear on a couple of times that there was more work and research intended to be done.

As for the actual book itself, I'm going to edge towards saying it's of middling reading experience. The language is highly technical and heavy on medical jargon in places, which means that it can be a slog to get through and it can be difficult for a lay person like myself to comprehend what's being communicated. There is a glossary (I think), which is helpful, but flipping to the back of a book every paragraph or so is not something I enjoy doing and does impact my enjoyment of a text.

Of course, as par by course with Egyptology, the initial announcements of the major discoveries mentioned in my first paragraph was met by a lot of debate and controversy. I was quite happy to see that the reasoning for the conclusions made has been expanded and that some of the controversies are addressed. However, Hawass and Saleem don't address some of the more notable questions raised, such as the reliability of DNA testing such ancient specimens and the impacts of heavy inbreeding on the results. I also feel like there's a bit too much dedication to one version of events, but that could just be me.

There are also a few little moments that make me sit back a bit and frown. At one stage, they talk about how they need to locate the bones of Queen Mutnodjmet, found in the Memphite tomb of Horemheb, as she's the sister of Nefertiti and her DNA will help them identify Nefertiti's mummy. But, although that has been a commonly accepted part of the "Amarna narrative", my understanding is that Egyptologists are now beginning to believe that Nefertiti's sister is not necessarily the same woman who became Horemheb's queen. For start, Nefertiti's sister probably was not named Mutnodjmet, but rather Mutbenret or Benretmut. So, if they do find Queen Mutnodjmet, her DNA might yield nothing at all about Nefertiti – but the text never even mentions that doubt.

So, all up this is a book that's definitely worth reading and looking at and, if possible, owning. It is a great resource. However, I also think that as great it is, the reading experience does not live up to the material and some of the information sits oddly with what I know about the current theories and debates in Egyptology.
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