Face of 2,000-year-old Egyptian mummy reconstructed

Reports indicate that the Quiron Hospital of Barcelona has reconstructed the face of an Egyptian mummy from 2,000 years ago.

According to a report in the Barcelona Reporter, the presentation of the newly reconstructed face was given by Drs Felix Scales, Xavier Perich and Jordi Clos, president of the Egyptian Museum in Barcelona.

They showed the technological advances used in the facial reconstruction process that so far had not been used for archaeology, and the visible effect on the mummy.

Scales said that the project is quite important because thanks to advances in science, it is now possible to probe the internal structure of a mummy without having to open the shroud.

There is also no need to invade the mummy and destroy the original composition.

"It is very different from analyzing tissue straight out of surgery that one from more than 2,000 years ago," said Scales.

For his part, Perich said that thanks to current methods, CT reconstruction can be made more complete than in other previous processes, with better resolution and detail that will help future research.

'The Lady of Kemet' came to the Egyptian Museum of Barcelona in 1998 and, after a request from Clos Scale, they began investigations.

Firstly, they applied a helical CT scanner for a first morphological and anatomical study that allowed them to appreciate the physical features, and later make a histological study using bones.

After repeated analysis and technological advances, the death of the mummy is still a mystery.

The researchers have determined that she was around fifteen years old when she died.