This blog has been out of use for nearly a year, so I am officially moving all new comments to twitter and my personal website: www.anneeaustin.com. Please go their for more information!

Manchester Museum 3D objects

Museum gives you feel for items you can't touch

Digitized Dead Sea Scrolls

http://www.deadseascrolls.org.il/explore-the-archive

The Dead sea scrolls are now digitally available and can be browsed by provenance, language, and content. Or just do a quick search! The images were scanned with infrared as well to show palimpsests and delineate ink from the papyrus more clearly. You can view and comment as well!

Ramesses III throat slit?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-207552640

Recent CT scans suggest Ramesses III throat was slit in an attempt on his life. News of the coup has been known for some time from the Turin legal papyrus (above) which suggests that Ramesses' wife and son acted together with palace officials including a palace magician to murder the king (see a translation here: http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/texts/judicial_turin_papyrus.htm). As punishment, the papyrus indicates that some of the members of the coup were forced to commit suicide.

CT scans on a mummy which  COULD have been Ramesses III's attempted successor, Pentawere, (based on DNA evidence) show "unusual marks" at the neck:

The authors argue that the body was poorly mummified and found in a "ritually impure" goatskin, though textile analysts like Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood have argued that this interpretation of goatskin's impurity was yet another rumor spread by Herodotus (see Ancient Textile Industry of Amarna, 2001). While interpretation of this mummy still seems preliminary as unusual marks on the neck could have been from the mummification process, disease, or many other origins, this conspiracy is one of the most interesting brief periods in Egyptian history and it's great to see how texts and human remains are being used together to unfold more about this fascinating episode!

Koshik the talking elephant!

Moving aside from my usual interests in archaeology, I would like to present Koshik, the talking elephant (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-20142858)! Koshik has taught himself to place his own trunk inside his mouth to do an impression of the human voice. Listen to the video where Koshik says the word Good in Korean, "Choah." Listen to his trainer saying it and get Koshik's repetitions! Very impressive! My plan is to learn Korean from Koshik, and then test it out on my Korean speaking friends...

Mummify Seneb in ten minutes or less: A great tool for educators

The Oriental Institute has created a great online tool to help kids and adults learn about the process of mummification at http://oi.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/ED/mummy.html.  I have used this in multiple classes, and students of all ages have found it fun and informative.  The website asks you to help Anubis mummify Seneb, a recently deceased Egyptian man. Spend ten minutes of your day on this mummification guide to learn about mummification and have fun in the process!

You can unroll the world's first medical text right now!

Move over Gray's Anatomy! The National Library of Medicine "Turning the pages" project brings REAL ancient documents to the tips of your fingers, including Egypt's Edwin Smith surgical papyrus. I am currently translating this text, and can tell you that it offers a fascinating insight into the mind of its scribe. The papyrus is constructed of nearly 50 medical texts, with an examination, diagnosis, and treatment when possible for each. What makes this text especially interesting is the fact that its author also includes glosses to help explain the medical terminology (clearly, doctor jargon is an ancient process).  For instance, the texture of the brain is described as being like ripples of molten copper. How romantic.

So take a look below and unroll the papyrus! When you are ready, click the text button to learn about what each case says! If you can't see the papyrus below, click here: http://archive.nlm.nih.gov/proj/ttp/v2/books/#!/edwin_smith_surgical_papyrus/