One of the most chilling mummies discovered by humanity from ancient Egyptian tombs has recently undergone a special examination.
A research team led by archaeologist Lidija McKnight from the University of Manchester (UK) conducted an examination of a horrifying mummy using modern techniques, allowing them to explore its interior without damaging the specimen.
This peculiar mummy, larger than a human mummy, represents the period when the embalming techniques of ancient Egyptians reached their peak.
2005.335 is one of the scariest artifacts left by ancient Egyptians: The mummy of a crocodile – (Photo AI: Anh Thư).
The mysterious mummy coded 2005.335 is currently housed in the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (UK) and has been identified as a 2.2-meter-long crocodile.
Researchers found no documents explaining where this terrifying crocodile came from or how it ended up in the museum, only that it could be up to 3,000 years old.
In this study, Dr. McKnight and her colleagues employed modern 3D imaging technology to examine the crocodile to shed light on its final hours and the circumstances of its death.
Mummy 2005.335 during examination, showing a 3D image of part of the digestive tract – (Photo: BIRMINGHAM MUSEUM).
“The study has revealed astonishing details about the life and treatment of this creature after death,” Dr. McKnight told Newsweek.
Scans revealed the presence of a fish, attached to a copper hook, which the crocodile appeared to have swallowed whole, with its skeleton nearly intact.
According to researchers, swallowing the hook could have caused the crocodile’s death.
Other details found in the digestive tract – such as a significant number of small stones known as gastroliths concentrated in the upper gastrointestinal tract – suggest the creature died before the fish could reach its stomach.
Crocodiles typically swallow such small stones to aid digestion.
The brief interval between the moment the fish was swallowed and the crocodile’s death indicates that ancient Egyptians may have used baited hooks to catch this reptile for the purpose of mummification from the outset, rather than mummifying it only after it died.
In this scenario, the crocodile would have been mummified as an offering in some ritual.
It is also possible that the crocodile’s death was an unintended incident while these ancient Egyptians were fishing. According to this hypothesis, it was mummified out of reverence.
In fact, ancient Egyptians worshipped this large reptile as a representation of Sobek, the lord of the Nile.
As a top predator, crocodiles were respected for the threat they posed, and their symbolism was believed to ward off danger and protect sacred places from negative influences.
Regardless of the reason for its mummification, 2005.335 remains a symbol of ancient beliefs as well as remarkable embalming techniques. The crocodile retains a high degree of integrity despite having been stripped of its white wrapping and having endured 3,000 years of history.
Mummies of other crocodiles and numerous animals such as cats and eagles have been found in Egyptian ruins, but 2005.335 remains a unique specimen due to its excellent preservation.
However, its origins remain a mystery.
