Scientists discover an abnormally large brain in an ancient Egyptian mummy

“Eyes from a thousand years ago watch the people of the present”

Scientists have reconstructed the face of the ancient Egyptian mummy of a 14-year-old teenager who suffered from a rare disease 2,300 years ago. A young member of the elite of ancient Egypt had an abnormally large brain.

Photo: fieldmuseum.org

For the first time in 2,300 years, the face of an ancient Egyptian mummy with an abnormally large brain has been reconstructed. According to the Daily Mail, the mummy belonged to the ancient Egyptian elite, and the boy was only 14 years old when he unfortunately died.

Minirdis — that was the teenager's name — was the scion of a clergyman's family and before his death he was supposed to inherit the position of his father, Inaros, a priest of the Egyptian god of fertility Min. But he died at around the age of 14, and his mummified remains were buried in the Akhmim cemetery in Upper Egypt, where they were found in 1925.

Now scientists trying to reconstruct his face have diagnosed the teenager with a rare condition. disease.

Cicero Moraes, lead author of the upcoming study, says that Minirdis had megalencephaly, a disorder characterized by an abnormally large brain.

He notes: “Something bothered me about the structure, and when looking at cranial volume values, we were impressed by its size. I noticed that the coffin seemed to be intended for a person older than the mummy, but despite this, the head occupied almost the entire length of it. Consequently, the death mask was turned, otherwise it would have been impossible to close the coffin.»

He continued: «A skull can be considered megalencephalic if the head circumference is greater than 2.5 standard deviations for the age and sex of the individual. In this case, the head circumference and brain volume are three standard deviations higher.»

The similarities to Minirdis were reconstructed using a digitized model of his skull, to which soft tissue was added, and the process was guided by data from living people, including the appropriate age group.

In addition, the structure of the donor's skull and skin was virtually recreated and then deformed until it matched Minirdis's size, revealing his true face.

Brazilian graphics expert Moraes spoke about the appearance of the ancient Egyptian teenager: » This is a young and innocent face. The eyes of a thousand years ago watch the people of the present, who are looking for answers about their past.»

The names of the mummy and his father became known thanks to the inscription on the coffin, writes the Daily Mail.

< p>Cicero said that the teenager apparently led a happy life. He said: «It is clear that his life was potentially full of material and spiritual abundance, since his father was part of the religious elite.»

Despite his diagnosis, however, the ancient Egyptian boy's cause of death remains mysterious. Megalencephaly can be benign, but it can also cause developmental delays, mental retardation, seizures and even paralysis.

Today, Minirdis' remains are in the collection of Chicago's Field Museum, notes the Daily Mail.