“So Horrible”: Virtual Autopsy Reveals Ancient Egyptian Mummy’s Heart-Wrenching Secret

 staggering image of an ancient Egyptian mummy has been gaining traction online. It shows a woman who appears to have died in extreme anguish, now frozen forever with an expression of pain and desperation fixed on her face, one that has puzzled scientists for years.

How can a mummy, a cadaver subjected to a complex and careful embalming procedure, somehow come alive and twist itself into such a horrific grimace?

Experts believe to have finally arrived at an answer after subjecting the mummy to a “virtual dissection.” Using CT scans to analyze the ingredients utilized in the ancient ritual, they were able to discredit past theories and consider an even scarier thesis:

The woman died experiencing excruciating pain.

Scientists put an end to the mystery of the “screaming mummy.” New research concludes she may have died in anguishImage credits: Sahar Saleem

According to their findings, published in the journal Frontiers in Medicine, the cadaver corresponds to a 48-year-old female who had lost some teeth and suffered from a mild case of arthritis of the spine.

Previous theories surrounding the mummy believed its facial expression to have been the result of poor embalming practices. The premise stated that properly done embalming procedures in ancient Egypt often involved the removal of all internal organs save for the heart, but this had not occurred with this specific woman.

Another element believed to have been missing from her procedure was the customary tying of the head in order to avoid a postmortem jaw drop, a normal consequence of face muscles loosening after death.

“In ancient Egypt, the embalmers took care of the dead body so it would look beautiful for the afterlife. That’s why they were keen to close the mouth of the dead by tying the jaw to the head to prevent the normal postmortem jaw drop,” said Cairo University Radiology Professor Sahar Saleem.