Three Head Coffin For Freaky Friday...!

When talking about mummies and such, you don't often hear about a mystery like this one from Listverse. At least, I never do.

The Triple-Mystery Head

Photo credit: Ancient Origins

When archaeologists opened a tomb in 1915, they encountered a grisly sight. Perched on top of a coffin was a decapitated head. The tomb belonged to a 4,000-year-old couple, a governor called Djehutynakht and his wife, who had been buried in the Egyptian necropolis of Deir el-Bersha. It became the FBI’s oldest case after Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts contacted the agency.

Nobody knew whose head it was. Despite the agency’s misgivings, they managed to extract genetic material from a tooth in 2016—a first from such an old Egyptian mummy. DNA proved that the head was male and thus belonged to Djehutynakht.

But two more mysteries remain. Somebody expertly performed a coronoidectomy with a precision not thought possible. All the chewing muscles, cheekbones, and jaw hinge were removed without marring the face. Though it’s uncertain, it might have been done during a mummification ritual known as the “Opening of the Mouth Ceremony.”

The DNA also showed that the governor had Eurasian ancestry. It was such a surprise that FBI scientists feared that they would not be believed. However, in 2017, the same thing was found by researchers independent of the agency and with different Egyptian mummies.

This whole thing kinda creeps me out, ya know? Imagine calling the FBI to help identify a mummy. The museum must have been desperate, that's for sure.

Coffee out on the patio if that's OK.