The secrets of the mummy of Amenhotep remained hidden under its intact wrappings and funeral face mask until recently revealed in the scientific study published on December 28, 2021 in Frontiers in Medicine scientific journal. The revelation was made by Dr. Zahi Hawass, the famous Egyptologist, and Dr. Sahar Saleem, Professor of Radiology at Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University and the international expert in radiology of antiquities.
Hawass and Saleem used advanced x-ray technology, CT (computed tomography) scanning, as well as advanced computer software programs to digittaly unwrap the mummy of Amenhotep I in a safe non-invasive method without the need to touch the mummy.
The Egyptian study revealed for the first time the face of King Amenhotep I, his age, health condition, in addition to many secrets about the mummy's unique mummification and reburial.
The mummy of King Amenhotep I with its gorgeous funerary mask, was the icon of the majestic Golden Royal mummies’ Parade that took place in April 2021 to escort the Royal Ancient Bodies from the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir to their new home at the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization (NMEC) in Cairo.
King Amenhotep I was the son of King Ahmose I, conqueror of the Hyksos and founder of the New Kingdom of Ancient Egyptian Civilization.
Amenhotep I took the throne of Egypt after his father Ahmose I; he ruled the country for twenty-one years (from 1525 to 1504 BC in the 18th dynasty).
The mummy of King Amenhotep I was found in 1881 in the Royal cache at Deir-el Bahri in Luxor, where the priests of the twenty-first dynasty reburied and hid the mummies of many previous Kings and Queens to protect them from the recurrent tomb theft.
After their transfer to Cairo, all the royal mummies were unwrapped between year 1881 and 1896, except for the mummy of King Amenhotep I. It was the only royal mummy that has not been unwrapped in the modern era in order to preserve the unique beauty of this mummy covered with a funerary mask and garlands of colorful flowers.
The face and secrets of Amenhotep I were hidden beneath his wrapped mummy until recently revealed in the scientific study published in Frontiers in Medicine Journal by Dr. Zahi Hawass, the famous Egyptologist and Dr. Sahar Saleem, professor of radiology at the Faculty of Medicine at Cairo University and the expert in mummies.
The two Egyptian scientists examined the mummy of King Amenhotep I using a computerized tomography (CT) machine located in the garden of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
This modern technique of CT scanning and advanced computer softwares enabled Dr. Saleem to digitally remove the wrappings on the mummy of King Amenhotep I.
This advanced technology helped to virtually unwrap the mummy of King Amenhteop I non-invasively without touching it. This digital unwrapping method is safe unlike the old method of physical unwrapping and dissecting the mummies, which caused damage of the precious heritage.
The study by Saleem and Hawass, for the first time, to revealed that the face of King Amenhotep I, and proved the facial resemblance with his father Ahmose I (whose mummy is preserved at Luxor Museum).
The study also accurately determined the age of King Amenhotep I at the time of death and estimated it to be 35 years.
The study also predicted the good health of the king, and no diseases or injuries to the mummy appeared to indicate the cause of death.
The study revealed exciting information about the distinctive embalming method of King Amenhotep I, as it became clear that the position of the crossed forearms on the body of the mummy of kings (which is called the Osiris position) began with the mummy of King Amenhotep I.
Osiris situation was not seen in those who preceded King Al-Munthob I, and continued after him in the kings of the modern kingdom.
The study proved that the brain is still present in the skull of King Amenhotep I. The brain was not removed during the mummification process, unlike most of the kings of the modern kingdom such as Tutankhamun and Ramses II and others, where the brain was removed and embalming materials and resins were placed inside the skull.
The accurate three-dimensional radiographs in the study revealed the presence of 30 amulet inside the mummy and between its coils, as well as the presence of a belt under the back of the king's mummy consisting of 34 gold beads.
The study carried out by the pure Egyptian team also revealed the precise technique of the ancient Egyptians in making the mummy's funeral mask and placing precious stones on it.
The study revealed, for the first time, the secrets of the treatment of royal mummies by the priests of the 21st dynasty to re-burial them in the two royal caches in the Valley of the Kings and Deir el-Bahari.
The study proved the great care given by the priests of the 21st Dynasty in re-burying the mummy of King Amenhotep I, preserving the golden ornaments, and placing many amulets inside the mummy, which restores confidence in the goodwill of the project to rebury the royal mummies to preserve them, contrary to the allegations raised that the goal was to steal the ornaments. Valuables from the mummies of ancient kings for re-use of the kings of the 21st dynasty.
It is worth mentioning that Dr. Hawass and Dr. Saleem used CT scans to examine forty royal mummies from the New Kingdom in the Royal Mummies Project of the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities, which started in 2005 and continues until now.
One of the important results of this project is the disclosure of the secrets of the killing of King Ramses III in the conspiracy of the harem and the killing of King Seqenen Ra in the Battle of Egypt’s Silk from the Hyksos invaders, which indicates that modern archeology in the hands of Egyptian experts can rewrite history.
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