Forty Centuries Of Failed Mummies

The specific success with NUE001’s tooth, after so many failed attempts on mummies and other preserved remains, raises an important question about the nature of preservation and what we can and cannot expect from ancient Egyptian genetics going forward.

Egyptian mummification is one of the most celebrated achievements of ancient funerary practice.

The artificial mummification that became standard for elite Egyptians from the Old Kingdom onward — involving the removal of internal organs, treatment with natron salt, wrapping in linen, and storage in elaborate coffins and burial chambers — preserved the physical form of bodies with extraordinary fidelity.

Mummies have provided decades of biological and medical research: studies of disease patterns, diet, physiological characteristics, and developmental biology in ancient Egyptian populations.