From Egypt to Lithuania: Marija Rudzinskaitė-Arcimavičienė's mummy and its radiological investigation

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Drobulė; Egiptologija; Marija Rudzinskaitė-Arcimavičienė; Mumija; Muziejai; Radiokarbono datavimas; Radiologiniai tyrimai; Sarkofagas; Suaugęs vyras; 10 amžius prieš Kristų; 11 amžius prieš Kristų; 10-11 cent. BC; Adult male; C-14 dating; Egyptology; Linen; Lithuania; Marija Rudzinskaitė-Arcimavičienė; Mummy; Museums; Radiological ecamination; Sarcophagus.

ENImportant findings have recently been revealed concerning a mummy in the collection of Marija Rudzinskaitė-Arcimavičienė, the first Lithuanian Egyptologist. From 1922 onwards, she lectured at the Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas. As a consequence of her three visits to Egypt during the early 20th century she amassed a small collection of Egyptian objects which she bequeathed to the National Museum of Art in 1940. The collection included a mummy acquired from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo during her 1924 trip, together with the inner coffin, but without a lid. Although the exact provenance of the artefact is not known, it was reported to come from Thebes. According to Rudzinskaitė-Arcimavičienė the coffin was associated with the mummy, and in the coffin inscriptions, the individual concerned is referred to as a singer of the god Amun. However, one cannot be absolutely sure of this, as there are no inscriptions associated with the mummy itself. The coffin has been approximately dated to the 21st Dynasty or slightly later (c. 1050-900 ВС) although the exact date has not yet been established. The name of the owner is not mentioned in the coffin inscriptions. Seemingly, it was made for any woman of rank rather than for a specific individual. The owners name may have been recorded on the coffin lid; however, this has now unfortunately been lost or at least separated from the base at some point in history. During conservation attempts of the mummy in 2011, a complete CT investigation was carried out.This revealed no evidence of craniotomy, the absence of the cervical spine, as well as approximately 38 ribs indicating that more than one individual was represented. Furthermore, post-mortem tooth loss was reported with the dislodged teeth visible intracranially and within the chest and abdominal area. The skeletal elements represented appeared embedded from the head to the pelvis and at the proximal femoral level within a inhomogeneous mass consistent with sand. Very little soft tissue was visible and disarticulations were also noted. Radiocarbon dating obtained from analyses of linen removed from the wrappings was compatible with the archaeological dating of 21st Dynasty (2843 a BP +/- 27,1 = cal ВС 1041-941). The authors propose two possible hypotheses: either the body was wrapped when the body had become partly skeletonized, or that ancient linen was reused to produce a fake mummy at some point in history to be sold as a tourist souvenir. Scientific analysis of this mummy is ongoing in the hope of providing clarification to this mystery. [From the publication]