This is a shocking image from ancient Egypt, the mummy of a woman with her mouth wide open as if screaming in pain, discovered during a 1935 archaeological expedition at Deir el-Bahari near Luxor.
Scientists have finally found an explanation for the “Screaming Woman” mummy after performing a “virtual dissection” of CT scans. They suspect that the woman may have died in agony and suffered from a rare condition called cadaveric spasm, which causes muscle stiffness at the moment of death.
Examination revealed that the woman was about 48 years old when she died, had mild arthritis in her spine and was missing some teeth, said Cairo University radiology professor Sahar Saleem, who led the study. The research was published Friday in the journal Frontiers in Medicine.
Saleem added that the woman's body was well-preserved, embalmed some 3,500 years ago during ancient Egypt's lavish New Kingdom period, using expensive imported ingredients such as juniper oil and frankincense resin.
For the ancient Egyptians, preserving the body after death was considered essential to ensuring a decent life in the afterlife. Normally, during the mummification process, the internal organs, except the heart, would be removed, but this was not done in the case of the woman.
“In ancient Egypt, embalmers would care for the bodies of the deceased to ensure a beautiful appearance in the afterlife. To prevent the jaw from falling off after death, they would tie the jaw to the head,” explains Saleem.
“However, the quality of the embalming materials suggests that the mummification process was not done carelessly and that the embalmers were not negligent in covering her mouth. Rather, they carried out the preservation well and provided expensive burial clothes—two precious rings made of gold and silver and a long-haired wig made of date palm fiber,” Saleem added.
“This finding opens up another possible explanation for the wide-open mouth—that the woman may have died screaming in pain, and her facial muscles contracted to maintain this position at the time of death due to cadaveric convulsions,” Saleem said.
Saleem explains that cadaveric convulsions, a still poorly understood condition, occur after severe physical or emotional suffering, in which the muscles stiffen immediately after death.
When asked whether the woman might have been embalmed while still alive, Saleem added, “I don't believe this is possible.”
Saleem could not confirm the woman's cause of death, saying, “We often cannot determine the cause of death of a mummy unless there is CT evidence of fatal trauma.” Saleem cited evidence of fatal head injuries, a slit neck, and heart disease in three royal mummies as examples.
The “Screaming Woman” was discovered at the site of the ancient city of Thebes during excavations of the tomb of a high official named Senmut, who was an architect, supervisor of royal works, and lover of Queen Hatshepsut, who ruled from 1479-1458 BC.
The mummy was found in a wooden coffin in a burial chamber beneath the Senmut family tomb. Her identity is unknown, but her jewelry—gold and silver rings with scarab beetles, a symbol of resurrection, made of jasper—indicates her socioeconomic status.
“He was most likely a close family member who would be buried and share the family's eternal resting place,” Saleem said. (ah/ft)
