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"Long
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RETURN TO THE WORLD SCIENCE HOME PAGE Researchers build model of Egyptian mummy's head without unwrapping Posted
Sept.
1,
2004 The team of Italian physicians, anthropologists and forensic scientists imaged the completely wrapped mummy of an artisan named Harwa, which had been on display at the Egyptian Museum in Torino, Italy. Using an imaging technology called multidetector computed tomography, or
MDCT, they created 3D images, which were then reconstructed to create all the features of the mummy's face. A physical plasticine and nylon model was sculpted based on the 3D image. The facial reconstruction revealed Harwa to be 45 years old at the time of his death and was detailed enough to reveal a mole on his left temple. "The only other way to have gotten the information we got from MDCT would have been to unwrap, destroy and otherwise alter the conservation of the bandages and the mummy," said Federico Cesarani, MD, of the Struttura Operativa Complessa di Radiodiagnostica in Asti, Italy, and lead author of the study. CT is a noninvasive imaging method that can provide data such as skull dimensions and dehydrated soft tissue arrangement for 3D reconstructions of the skull and body while preserving the mummy. "MDCT provides thin slices--up to 0.6 mm--in a single-shot acquisition and in a very short time, which permits high-resolution 3D reconstructions," said Dr. Cesarani. He and his colleagues published the research in the September 2004 issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology. According to the author, the technique of facial reconstruction is important for forensics, anthropology and medicine. "Police use it for identifying bodies, anthropologists to learn more about individuals in ancient societies and medicine can learn about the diseases that afflicted ancient peoples," said Dr. Cesarani. For
the
lifelike
Harwa
facial
reconstruction,
the
researchers
avoiding
guessing
at
the
hair,
beard
and
the
color
tones
of
the
skin.
They
were
also
unable
to
determine
just
how
fatty
Harwa's
face
was
when
he
was
alive,
since
fat
does
not
leave
signs
in
the
skull,
as
do
muscle
and
skin.
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