How so? Well, believing that the afterlife would require the same kinds of provisions as needed in life, they packed a delicious lunch for their animals. Or, specifically in this case, for sacrificed sacred ibis birds.

Millions of ibis mummies have been found at shrines across Egypt, where they were sacrificed to the god Thoth who represented wisdom and writing. It was only recently that PhD candidate Andrew Wade (University of Western Ontario) and colleagues used a CT scanner to look inside an ibis mummy to discover what’s inside.

It’s known that the Ancient Egyptians removed and preserved the organs not only of humans, but also of the creatures they buried—but what wasn’t previously known was that they were so concerned about the afterlife that they actually packed food into the stomachs of the sacrificed ibis birds, likely to ensure they’d thrive on “the other side.”

Wade has commented that “the ibis mummies suggest Egyptians believed that birds also travelled to the afterlife. It suggests the provision of an afterlife food source to the bird, and lends support to the idea that the viscera of ibises and humans alike were meant to continue their living function within the afterlife."

It must have been nice to know that even in death, you’d never go hungry!

Reference: Journal of Archaeological Science, DOI: 10.1016/j.jas.2012.01.003

The parasites cause a disease known as schistosomiasis. The disease is not usually a lethal one but it can cause lingering health problems including anemia, impaired growth and impaired cognitive development. It can also cause damage to internal organs as well. It can be more serious in children but even in adults it makes day to day living much more difficult.

It is believed that approximately 200 million people are currently affected by schistosomiasis. It is most common in agricultural regions that rely on irrigation channels to keep crops hydrated. Because it tends to thrive in developed areas it was believed that the parasite was actually a product of modern urbanization.

This belief has been challenged by the Nubian mummies. Originally, scientists had thought that a close relative of S. mansoni had left the parasite eggs on the mummies. The eggs were originally thought to be those of S. haematobium. This parasite causes many of the same symptoms but is found in regions other than those with irrigation channels.

Now scientists have been able to determine that the Wadi Halfa were most affected by this parasite. The Wadi Halfa created farms alongside the Nile River approximately 1500 years ago. They utilized irrigation channels in order to keep their crops hydrated. Up to twenty-five percent of the Wadi Halfa were believed to have been infected by schistosomiasis.

The findings are also important because they point to the fact that the Wadi Halfa may have also used irrigation channels. Previously, it was believed that they were not sophisticated enough to have utilized this farming technique. Scientists had previously believed that the Wadi Halfa were reliant on nature in order to plant their crops and keep them irrigated.

Scientists tested skin found on some of the naturally mummified bodies that were unearthed in Egypt. Because the skin was dry and mummified it was possible to test it for various proteins. When scientists tested the skin of African mummies they found proteins that belonged to S. mansoni and not S. haematobium.

The snail that transmits this disease is found mainly in irrigation channels near civilized areas. It prefers standing water that may have higher levels of contaminants and additives in it. It’s relative, S. haematobium is also transmitted via snail but in this case, the snails prefer water that is moving, clean, and well oxygenated.

The discovery was only possible because the mummies had been buried. The environment in the area where they were buried not only preserved the external skin but the internal organs as well. This is different than man-made mummies which may have had the internal organs removed.

Like many other pharaohs, he had several wives. The two women, named Khenut and Nebet were actually buried together in a double mastaba tomb near the tomb that belonged to Wenis. It is believed that because the Fifth Dynasty ended with Wenis it was likely that he did not have any sons that survived long enough to take the throne after the death of Wenis.

Like some other pharaohs, Wenis built a pyramid. It was located at Saqqara and was positioned near the step pyramid which had been built by Djoser in the 27^th century BCE. Archaeologists have been able to obtain some information about what life was like when Wenis ruled by the reliefs that are located inside Wenis’ pyramid. There are also numerous inscriptions that line the inside of the pyramid as well.

These inscriptions were religious in nature. Wenis was the first pharaoh to use funerary texts in his pyramid. The inscriptions are actually among some of the oldest religious texts that have been found to date. The inscriptions were a series of spells which were also referred to as “utterances”. Their purpose was to help protect the remains of the pharaohs and would help to reanimate his body after his death.

They also talked about the ways that the Pharaoh would be able to travel to the heavens after his death. Some of the methods of transportation included ramps, ladders and flight. Other inscriptions were methods that could be used to call on the Egyptian Gods as well. A total of 228 spells were located on the walls of Wenis’ pyramid. Each tomb contained a variety of different utterances. A total of 759 spells have been found. Some of the tombs overlapped with the utterances that were inscribed on the walls but there is no one tomb that contains all of the spells.

One of the most interesting utterances was found on the walls of Wenis’ tomb. It is known as the “cannibal hymn”. In this inscription, Wenis is described as hunting the gods and consuming parts of their bodies.

Wenis had also started construction on a funerary temple that was not completed until after his death. The temple had a pink granite gateway which was also inscribed with the names of Teti, the ruler who came after Wenis and whose reign signified the start of the sixth dynasty. There was also a causeway that was decorated with a bas relief. This piece of artwork showed the transportation of a palm column via a boat that sailed down the Nile.

The parasite causes a disease called schsitosomiasis. It does not usually kill people however it does cause many different health issues. Some problems that are caused by schistosomiasis include anema, impaired growth, impaired cognitive development in children, and anemia. The parasite uses aquatic snails as a host. The eggs are excreted from the body in urine and feces. If this contaminates the water supply, the eggs hatch and live in snails until they can infect a human host. The parasite that causes this disease can lead to higher rates of bladder cancer.

What is interesting about the discovery of S. mansoni in humans is the fact that the snails generally inhabit irrigation channels. Infection rates are highest among people who use irrigation channels because the snails tend to prefer water that is clean, moving, well-oxygenated to water that is stagnant or heavily polluted. In the past, scientists thought that a similar parasite, S. haematobium was actually the one that was infecting the mummies.

The group of Nubians that had the highest rates of infection was the Wadi Halfa. These individuals settled along the banks of the Nile and were farming there as early as 1,500 years ago. It has now been discovered that as much as 25 % of the Wadi Halfa population was infected by this particular parasite. The fact that it is S. mansoni infecting these individuals is yet more proof that the Wadi Halfa were using irrigation channels to allow their crops to flourish. Archaeologists had not thought that these ancient Nubians had been sophisticated enough to make irrigation channels.

The mummies that showed infection were actually mummified naturally rather than by the methods utilized by ancient Egyptians. The dry air mummified the bodies and preserved them. The skin and some of the internal organs were usually dried out and preserved and are still able to be studied today. Hundreds of naturally mummified bodies were studied before the findings were announced.

Today, a modern city stands among ruins of the ancient Wadi Halfa population. Archaeologists have been searching for Nubian antiquities in the area because flooding from construction of the Aswan Dam. The Noba were a nomadic people who settled in the area around the fourth century CE. The words Nubia and Nubian are derived from the name Noba. They settled in northern Sudan as well as in southern Egypt. Ancient Egyptians imported luxury goods along trade routes that travelled through Nubia as early as 2300 BCE. This is when Nubia was first mentioned in records from Egypt’s Old Kingdom. They also traded directly with Nubia as well. The Egyptians also expanded into Nubia by building garrison forts along the Nile so that they could protect trade routes.

Professor Westerfeld of the University of Louisville has made a discovery on the walls of an ancient Egyptian temple that indicates a group of Coptic nuns visited the site and, when they did, added graffiti to the collection of ancient writings that were already there. The temple, which was located at Abydos, was part of a larger complex made up of courtyards, hypostyle halls, several chapels and a structure that was known as the “Osireion”. It is unknown what this structure was used for. The complex was built approximately 3200 years ago by the Pharaoh Seti I.

This Pharaoh lived from approximately 1294 BCE to 1279 BCE although exact dates are not known. Some archaeologists and historians believed that he reigned for fifteen years although there is only definitive evidence for eleven years of his reign. During the time that he reigned, Seti was able to put an end to social disorder within Egypt and reaffirm the country’s power over Canaan and Syria. He was able to confront the Hittites and was able to defeat them in battle even though he was unable to destroy them totally.

The memorial temple at Abydos, Egypt is one of the major structures that were completed during Seti’s reign. The temple is the location of the Abydos King List, a chronological list showing the cartouches of the dynastic Egyptian pharaohs. This list was extremely important as it has helped archaeologists determine the order in which many of the pharaohs reigned. A total of 76 pharaohs and Egyptian kings make up the list which is divided into three rows containing 38 cartouches each. Not all of the cartouches are the names of kings or Pharaohs. The cartouches on the third row are simply those of Seti’s throne name and praenomen. There are a number of other important structures that are also located at Abydos including a royal necropolis. This is the location where many early pharaohs were entombed and the town rapidly achieved the status of being an important cult site.

While the complex is 3200 years old, the writing is estimated to be only about 1500 years old. This estimate is supported by the Coptic faith’s history. While the majority of the country converted to the Muslim faith after the conquest of 639-642 CE, a minor part of the population continued to practice a form of Christianity instead. While they still make up a religious minority, the Coptic community in Egypt is still the largest population of Christians in the Middle East.

The graffiti on the complex is important because it proves that there was female monastic activity taking place in Egypt. While it is known that there was monastic activity taking place in the region, very little was known about their activities and information on them was fairly minimal in Egyptian history.

Egyptologists found a complex series of catacombs located between ten and twelve meters below the surface of the Saqqara desert approximately one century ago. Saqqara is an area where several important archaeological finds have been discovered. This particular structure was known at the time of discovery as the “Dog Catacomb” and individuals who located the complex found that it was full of the remains of mummified dogs. At the time that it was discovered, it was unknown just how many dogs had been placed in the structure. Now, scientists have returned to the site and have discovered that as many as eight million dogs and other animals were placed in the catacombs. They were placed there at some time between the sixth century BCE and the first century BCE.

The catacomb system is made up of a central corridor with side passages which branch off on either side. In many areas, the piles of mummified remains are up to three feet high. Unlike other animal mummies, which were carefully wrapped and placed in ornamented containers, the dog mummies in the catacombs were often poorly wrapped and were often undecorated. Because they were poorly wrapped, many of them had slowly deteriorated and so were difficult to separate into individual sets of remains.

The dogs were not all adults. Many were puppies and may have only been hours old when they were mummified. It is believed that the animals were bred at puppy mills that were located in the city of Memphis, the capital of ancient Egypt. It was believed that the animals could act as an intermediary between humans and Anubis. While the animal that had been mummified was sacrificed in the process, it was the dedication of the mummy that was considered the pious act and not its sacrifice.

When the catacombs were first discovered, a smaller side tunnel was also discovered. It was thought by many that this tunnel was used not to add more mummies to the catacombs but to remove them. Often in the past, animal mummies were sold and ground up as fertilizer. Many were shipped to England and used for such a purpose there.

The dog catacomb is not the only structure of its kind in the area although it is the largest. Several other catacomb structures were found in the same area. Some were dedicated to animals such as baboons, ibises, hawks, cats, cows and bulls.

While the practice of using animal mummies as an offering to various deities was quite common for centuries in Egypt, when the Romans conquered Egypt it slowly died out and eventually ceased sometime after 30 BCE.

Amenhotep III ruled Egypt from 1386 BCE to 1349 BCE. During this time, the country prospered and artistic splendor was allowed to reach its peak. Over 250 statues have been unearthed that depict this pharaoh in addition to large stone scarabs that commemorate everything from his hunting prowess to the creation of an artificial lake that Amenhotep had built for his wife, Queen Tiye. Tiye was only one of several women that Amenhotep married during his lifetime. Many of them were foreign and came from areas such as Babylon and Ammia (which is located in modern Syria). He also married the daughter of several of his allies as well.

The temple where the statue was found was not located in Luxor itself but was actually located on the West Bank of the Nile. Amenhotep had constructed a large funerary temple which was a normal practice for pharaohs at the time. The statue, which is constructed out of seven blocks of quartzite, was originally positioned in front of the northern entrance to the temple complex. Although the statue was missing a head, it was possible to identify it as being that of Amenhotep III.

Two other statues were also unearthed at the same time as the Amenhotep statue. One depicted the Egyptian God Thoth. While this deity is often depicted with the head of an ibis (a long-legged wading bird) the statue unearthed at the temple showed Thoth depicted with the head of a baboon. Thoth was associated with magical arts, writing, science and judging of the dead. A second statue measured six feet in height and depicted the goddess Sekhmet. Sekhmet was a warrior goddess who was also associated with healing.

The temple where these statues were found has recently been the focus of massive excavations. An earlier excavation in 1928 actually unearthed the statue but it was buried again. It is believed that a twin to the Amenhotep statue will be unearthed in future excavations. It is surprising that so many artifacts and statuary can be located in the ruins of the temple due to the fact that the structure was heavily damaged in the past. Both flooding and a massive earthquake in 27 BCE were believed to have contributed to the damage that the temple had sustained.

The temple is one of several that were constructed by pharaohs on the West Bank but of the temples, it is one of the largest and grandest that has been unearthed to date.

In Ancient Egypt, there were several examples of women not only working as doctors, but, in some cases, overseeing the work of other physicians. The literary works that they authored on the topic of medicine were, in some cases, being read and studied hundreds, if not thousands of years later.

Of the female doctors who lived and worked in Ancient Egypt, perhaps the best known was Merit Ptah. She lived around 2700 BCE and was believed by many to be the first named female physician in history. She lived and practiced around the same time as Imhotep, who was well known as a healer, architect and builder of the Pyramid of Djoser. Although she was one of the best known female doctors, she was not the first woman to have practiced medicine in Ancient Egypt, and unlike another female doctor, her writings were not studied for thousands of years. She gave birth to a son who later became a High Priest and who gave her the title of “Chief Physician”.

Peseshet was a female physician who lived during the Fourth Dynasty (2613 BCE to 2494 BCE). Some historical records suggest that she may have been a physician and others that she may have been trained and employed as a midwife. Regardless of her training, she was given the title of “lady overseer of the female physicians”. This title is important because it shows that not only were a number of women working as doctors, but that they were also administrated and supervised by a woman as well. It was believed that she may have begun her medical training at a school for midwives that was located at Sais although it is unknown just how far her medical training progressed.

A third woman who was well known as a doctor in Ancient Egypt was Cleopatra (not to be confused with the former Queen and member of the Ptolemy dynasty). In Ancient Egypt, doctors tended to specialize in the treatment of certain diseases or parts of the body. Cleopatra was a doctor who worked in the twin fields of gynecology and obstetrics. In addition to working in the field, she also wrote extensively about her medical specialty and women’s health in general. Her works continued to be the focus of study for more than a thousand years.

Egyptian medicine was a unique mixture of magic and scientific fact. They were able to treat many diseases and injuries much more successfully than doctors could thousands of years later. They showed a need for cleanliness and a knowledge of anatomy and physiology that was very sophisticated for the time and yet, still believed in the need for divine blessings and magic charms.

But building pyramids is not Imhotep’s only claim to fame. He was also credited for inventing many things, including an improved form of the papyrus scrolls that were used for all types of writing. He was also believed to have been one of the earliest and best known Egyptian physicians as well. Although two other physicians, Hesy-Ra and Merit-Ptah also lived at the time, it is Imhotep’s writings on medicine that have attracted the most attention. The Edwin Smith Papyrus, believed to have been written by Imhotep, is full of his observations on anatomy as well as descriptions of various ailments and cures. The cures depicted on the papyrus are lacking in many of the incantations and strange ingredients that were common to Egyptian medicine at the time. The papyrus is notably lacking in the magical thinking that was so common at the time.

Although Imhotep seemed to have been able to separate out magical thinking from scientific observation, much of his life was steeped in religion and superstition. He became the patron saint of Egyptian scribes who were known to pour him a libation before they began any work. He was also depicted on a portion of a pharaoh’s statue. This had never been done before.

Although much of his work was done in the name of the Pharaoh Djoser, it was believed that Imhotep lived on after Djoser’s death. It was believed that he then went on to work for the Pharaoh Sekhemkhet. Unfortunately, Sekhemkhet’s reign was so short (only six or seven years) that he did not survive to see the completion of his pyramid. Although Imhotep was responsible for building some of the largest and most visible tombs in Ancient Egypt, his own resting place has never been found. It is believed to be located somewhere near Saqqara, an area that served as a necropolis for Memphis.

After his death, his reputation continued to grow. He was awarded divine status after his death and was worshipped by a cult that was based in Memphis. He was linked to several gods and goddesses including Nut (the sky deity), Hathor (who eventually became the wife of Ra), and Ma’at, who stood for truth, cosmic order and justice. He eventually became the god of medicine and healing although this did not happen until about two thousand years after his death.

If you were a ruler or a noble during the ancient period of Egyptian history, you were buried in something called a mastaba. This was a tomb that was shaped like a rectangle. It had sides that sloped outwards and was built from either stone or bricks that had been formed from mud. Because of the Egyptian’s belief in the afterlife, they needed a place where a person’s body could sit and not be disturbed. In Egyptian religion, you needed a body that had not rotted away or been disturbed by animals or other humans. If your body was destroyed, you were denied a place in the afterlife and eternal life was out of the question.

Although it looked like a fairly uncomplicated structure from the surface, a mastaba was actually fairly complex. The bench-like structure that emerged from the sand was not where the body was actually located. Instead, the bodies of the deceased were placed in a sealed chamber that was located deep below the surface of the sand. The structure above had places where offerings could be brought by family members could be placed. The body inside was mummified. This was necessary because the way that the body was sheltered meant that it could not dry out naturally, the way it would if it was placed in the dry air of the desert.

The problem was that these tombs were large, obvious, and known to be the resting place of wealthy Egyptians. So, what’s a poor person to do? In many cases, grave robbers broke into the mastabas and carried off most of the contents that had any value. They often went so far as to destroy the carefully wrapped and preserved bodies as well. Because a defiled body meant no entrance into the afterlife, this was something that frightened and upset ancient Egyptians. They wanted a way to make sure that their graves would remain untouched.

This was one reason why many ancient Egyptians chose to be buried in tombs cut in rock walls instead of mastabas. In fact, by 1550 BCE, the use of mastabas was quite rare. However, they were not totally overlooked. In fact, the earliest pyramid was actually constructed to look like a stack of mastabas that had been placed one on top of another. The Step Pyramid of Djoser was designed to look like mastabas that had been stacked to form steps. It was believed that the steps would allow the soul of the Pharaoh Djoser to climb into heaven.