What’s so special about Tutankhamun?

In life, Tutankhamun was a minor pharaoh, overshadowed by his mother Nefertiti and his pyramid-building ancestors. His fame today is because his tomb had survived nearly 2500 years without being robbed or ruined, leaving all of his magnificent grave goods intact.

A passport for a mummy

The mummy of king Ramesses II was issued an Egyptian passport. The passport listed his occupation as “King (deceased)”. The mummy was received at Le Bourget airport outside Paris, with the full military honours to befit a king.

Frankenstein mummies

Scientists have discovered two ‘Frankenstein’ mummies in Scotland. The 3,000-year-old mummified bodies, one of a male and one of a female, are actually made from the remains of six different people, according to DNA tests.

The Romans mummies

By 30 BCE, Egypt was under the control of the Roman Empire — but mummification carried on! Rather than elaborate gold masks, the faces of the dead were painted onto boards placed over the mummies. Known as Fayum portraits, these are very rare artworks and highly treasured.

Baby dinosaur fossil resembles modern birds

A66 million-year-old complete baby dinosaur fossil called ‘Baby Yingliang’, discovered in China, shows ‘remarkable similarities’ to modern birds, scientists said.

The fossil is of a theropod dinosaur, just a few days before it would have hatched, and seen inside a six-inch elongated eggshell. The fossil is named after the southern Chinese museum where it was found.

A study on the fossil published in iScience said the head shows a striking similarity to newly hatched bird heads, and the head is tucked beneath the right wing. Fossils of dinosaur embryos are very rare, found at only about half a dozen sites. Baby Yingliang would have been roughly 10 inches when hatched and might have grown to an adult length of six feet.

Published in Dawn, Young World, January 15th, 2022