FBI cracks 4,000-year-old Egyptian mummy cold case

The FBI has cracked its oldest case after successfully extracting DNA from a 4,000-year-old mummy’s head, answering a centuries-old question: exactly whose head it was.

The mummy’s severed head was found in 1915 by a team of American archaeologists working in the ancient Egyptian necropolis of Deir el-Bersha. The remains were sent to Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts a few years later, and the mystery began, the New York Times reported.

FBI cracks 4,000-year-old Egyptian mummy cold case

There were several reasons why scientists were stumped on identifying the severed head.

The tomb, according to researchers, was believed to be the resting place for an Egyptian Middle Kingdom governor named Djehutynakht and his wife.

Archaeologists found the tomb had been ransacked and robbed sometime over the 4,000 years and the bodies tampered with. The ancient looters also tried to burn down the tomb.

For over a hundred years, researchers debated whether the mummified head belonged to the Egyptian governor or his wife.

How did the FBI solved the mystery of the severed head of 4,000-year-old  mummy - Pictolic

The head reportedly has missing cheekbones and parts of its jaw hinge — crucial skull features that would otherwise give insight into the mummy’s Sєx — were removed as part of an ancient ritual to allow the deceased to eat, drink and breathe in the afterlife.

In 2009, Dr. Fabio Nunes, then a molecular biologist at Mᴀssachusetts General Hospital, extracted a tooth from the mummy, hoping to use it to solve the mystery.

In 2016, the crown of the tooth was brought to Dr. Odile Loreille, a forensic scientist at the FBI.

Mystery over idenтιтy of 4,000-year-old Egyptian mummy finally solved by FBI  | The Independent | The Independent

“The problem was that at the time in 2009 there had been no successful extraction of DNA from a mummy that was 4,000 years old,” Dr. Rita Freed, curator of Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts, told the Times.

Loreille, a veteran forensic expert who previously extracted genetic material from a 2-year-old child who drowned on the тιтanic and a 130,000-year-old cave bear, drilled into the tooth and collected enough tooth dust to make it possible to multiply the amount of DNA she was working with.

“Male,” computer software determined after analyzing the ratio of chromosomes in the DNA sample. The results confirmed that the severed head had belonged to Egyptian governor Djehutynakht and not his wife.

“You almost feel like it’s a child, like you just identified the gender of a baby,” Nunes told the Times. “It is a boy!”

“We now know that we have the governor himself,” Freed said. “We already show the head at the museum, but now we’ll have to change the label!”

Related Posts

The Great Sword of Dunvegan: A Legendary Tale of Scottish Medieval Craftsmanship

A Masterpiece of Highland Heritage In the heart of Scotland’s rugged Highlands stands an extraordinary piece of history – the great sword of Dunvegan. This magnificent claymore,…

Remarkable Discovery: 500-Year-Old Incan Mummy Sporting a Feather Headdress Found Near Lima

An Ancient Cemetery Revealed In a remarkable archaeological find near Lima, Peru, thousands of Inca mummies have been uncovered from a significant ancient cemetery located beneath a…

The Inlaid Eye of the Seated Scribe: A Marvel of Ancient Egyptian Craftsmanship

The Seated Scribe, an iconic piece of ancient Egyptian art dating back to the Old Kingdom (circa 2600-2350 BCE), stands as one of the finest examples of…

The Lion Fortress: A Kingdom Carved from Fear and Dream

In the heart of Sri Lanka, a stone giant rises from the encircling jungle. This is Sigiriya, the Lion Rock, a colossal volcanic plug that bears the…

The Stone Sentinel: A Dream of the Desert

In the painted badlands of southern Utah, where the earth is a furnace and the sky a vast, unbroken blue, a silent army of stone stands in…

The Balancing Giant: A Sentinel of Ice and Time

In the vast, untamed silence of Baffin Island, where the sky meets the earth in a stark and endless horizon, a stone giant keeps its watch. This…