Abstract
Commonly exhibited in museum galleries, animal mummies have been the focus of interest of both visitors and researchers alike. The study of these animal remains not only provides new insights into embalming techniques, but also brings a unique perspective on religious, social and economic practices. Twenty animal mummies are discussed in this study, including cats, ibises, crocodiles, calves and birds of prey from the collections of the British Museum (London, UK) and the Museo Egizio (Turin, Italy). The external textile wrappings encasing the mummified body of the animals were investigated with the main aim of identifying the colourants used. In fact, these are mostly patterned using undyed and coloured (mostly red, brown and black) linen strips. Broadband multispectral imaging (MSI) was initially carried out to obtain preliminary information at the macro-scale on the distribution and chemical nature of the colouring agents. Fibre optic reflectance spectroscopy (FORS) was then used to survey several coloured areas of the textile wrappings. Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius) and red ochre were identified non-invasively. Representative samples were then taken and observed using optical microscopy (OM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), in order to obtain information at the micro-scale on the distribution of the colouring agents on the fibres, as well as the presence of other materials, including those from environmental contamination. Energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDX) revealed the elemental composition of particles and clear areas of the fibres, whereas high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC–MS/MS) provided the identification of the organic dyes at a molecular level. The use of hydrolysable and condensed tannins, in combination with iron as a mordant, was found to be used in the very dark shades, which generally corresponded to the textiles with the worst state of preservation. Nevertheless, other aspects, such as fibre processing and bleaching, fungal attack and presence of coating materials appeared to play a role in the evaluation of the conservation state of these textiles. The characterisation of the dyes and the additional inorganic materials contributed to elucidating the production technology of the colours used for animal mummification, and provided insights into ancient dyeing methods.
Highlights
Thousands of mummified animals have been found during archaeological excavations
It was not always straightforward to attribute an exact colouration, nor to distinguish deliberately coloured areas from regions of yellowing or darkening of the linen, as to the result of ageing, possible contact with body fluids, and/or additional materials used during mummification, such as resins and lipids
Non-invasive techniques, such as broadband multispectral imaging (MSI) and Fibre optic reflectance spectroscopy (FORS), provided fundamental preliminary information about the distribution of the colourants, as well as the distinction between intentionally dyed areas and colours perceived as a result of the natural ageing of linen, staining or the presence of additional organic materials
Summary
Thousands of mummified animals have been found during archaeological excavations. Many different species were embalmed, including cats, dogs, ibises, hawks, snakes, beetles, etc., to be buried with or without coffins, very often in dedicated necropoleis [1]. These living gods are just one type of animal mummy and they are very difficult to differentiate from mummies offered to the gods by the worshippers, sometimes known as ‘votive mummies’ They enclose the remains of animals that were raised, killed and embalmed to be sold as an ex voto to worshippers visiting the temple, who entrusted them with their supplications to the god [4]. This category, which yielded many thousands of mummies, will be the focus of the present study. The last category consists of victual mummies: ducks, geese and pieces of meat were embalmed and placed among the grave goods to nourish the deceased for eternity [5]
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