Ancient Lives, new discoveries

In recent years, British Museum curators have collaborated with scientists and medical experts to explore non-invasive imaging techniques and other scientific approaches to further study Egyptian mummies. Piecing together key biographical data and information, it has been possible for the first time to discover more about who these people were in ancient Egyptian society. Mummies draws on cutting-edge research to reveal the actual experience of living and dying in the ancient Nile Valley. Eight significant mummies are explored, each carefully selected to tell a different story, covering a period of over 4000 years. They include a young female temple singer, an unknown man of high status, and a child from the Roman era. Funerary objects are also highlighted for context: for example, non-invasive imaging of the contents of canopic jars; analyses of embalming substances, and identification of wood species and pigment types used in coffins. The majority of the material is drawn from the British Museum''s extensive Egypt and Sudan collections, but the book includes a number of mummies from other museums to physically reunite individuals originally buried together in family or communal tombs. This allows fascinating comparisons to be made. With over 200 specially commissioned photographs, Mummies sets out to shine a new light on the past.

About the author

John H. Taylor is a curator at the British Museum specializing in ancient Egyptian funerary archaeology. He is the author of numerous books including Journey through the Afterlife: Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead; Mummy: the Inside Story; Spells for Eternity and Egyptian Mummies.

Product details

• Authors: Daniel Antoine, Antoine Daniel, John Taylor, John H. Taylor, John H. Antoine Taylor, Taylor John H.
• Assisted by: Benjamin Moreno (Illustration)
• Publisher: British Museum Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 02.06.2014
• EAN: 9780714119120
• ISBN: 978-0-7141-1912-0
• No. of pages: 112
• Dimensions: 230 mm x 250 mm x 10 mm
• Weight: 900 g
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > General, dictionaries; Non-fiction book; Antike, Altes Ägypten, Afrikanische Geschichte, Vorzeit, Frühgeschichte vor Christi Geburt, HISTORY / Ancient / Egypt, HISTORY / Africa / General, Ancient History, African History, Ancient history: to c 500 CE, Ancient Egypt, BCE to c 500 CE, BCE period – Protohistory, African history: pre-colonial period