Scientits at the Imaging Group of the Centre for Applied Medical Research (CIMA) of the University of Navarra have been working with the archaeologist Mariluz Mangado in a pioneering project with 3,000 year-old mummified animals.

Undertaken with latest generation devices at the CIMA and the University Hospital of Navarre, the study has revealed new data on Egyptian civilisation, their beliefs and their vast knowledge of medicine, zoology and veterinary science.
These findings were the result of the examination of two fish of the Tilapia niloticus species, two cats, a falcon, a feline head, a crocodile and a mormyrid fish; all from museums in Spain and personal collections. The mummies are dated between 715 B.C. and the 1st century A.D.

By studying the images it became clear that that the embalmers placed animals in their most natural position. The fish, for example, look as if they were swimming, the crocodile as if it were crawling, the cats are sitting down… all of which shows a similarity with their respective hieroglyphic representations. The postures of the mummified animals are the same as those depicted in writing and painting. In this way, mummies are part of Egyptian art.

At the same time, more than a dozen amulets (used to ask the gods for protection) were found. It have been observed that they were used frequently with animals; something which had not been totally confirmed until now.

Multidisciplinary work

The multidisciplinary project, carried out between April 2009 and February 2010, involved radiologists, imaging technicians, archaeologists, veterinary scientists, etc. The analysis involved visualising the interior of the mummies using two devices equipped with state-of-the-art technology: a CAT (computerised axial tomography), ceded by the University Hospital of Navarre for the larger-sized items; and a Micro TC from CIMA, which is a high-resolution CAT used for research into cancer therapies and other diseases that affect human health.