Submitted by veigapaula on Wed, 11/18/2009 - 22:13
Spending time at the KNH Centre, Manchester, UK, studying Biomedical and Forensic Techniques for Egyptology with Professor Rosalie David, gave me a different perspective on how and why we should care for ancient human remains. Besides the usual curiosity people have everywhere for ‘mummies’ and the fascination for Egyptian tombs and mysteries, there is a real aspect to what they can give us in return.
A brief deconstruction: from the time of death of a human to the finding of human remains, all forensic techniques apply, but common sense has recently turned into professional behaviour and techniques, allied to ethics when dealing with human bodies.
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We can conclude that ethics and technology may go hand in hand to achieve a perfect preservation of our past, both as cultural artefacts remaining from vanished important cultures but also as a reliable source of information for human evolution, and the evolution of diseases.
This chapel from the mastaba (tomb) of Akhethotep was where priests and family of the deceased would have come to offer food and drink to his spirit, and recite texts that would assist him in the afterlife. It is made of limestone, decorated with bas reliefs and texts; original polychrome decoration is visible in some places. While Akhethotep's body was buried in a subterranean vault at the end of a shaft, the chapel stood above ground and was easily accessible. The west wall is carved with a false door, which served as a symbolic passageway between the land of the living and that of the dead. On the entrance passage wall, we see Akhethotep himself supervising the provisioning of the tomb; his son is shown offering incense to his statues, and sacrifices are made. The funerary meal is shown - Akhethotep sits in front of the food offerings, dancers entertain, and animals are slaughtered; we also see his estates, with scenes of boating which allude both to his journeys in real life, and to his voyage on the waters of the dead.
Spending time at the KNH Centre, Manchester, UK, studying Biomedical and Forensic Techniques for Egyptology with Professor Rosalie David, gave me a different perspective on how and why we should care for ancient human remains. Besides the usual curiosity people have everywhere for ‘mummies’ and the fascination for Egyptian tombs and mysteries, there is a real aspect to what they can give us in return.
