CT-Scanning Analysis of the Inner Structure of Ancient Egyptian Mummy
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TALLOGRAPHIC METHODS IN HUMANITARIAN SCIENCES
CT-Scanning Analysis of the Inner Structure of Ancient Egyptian Mummy E. B. Yatsishinaa,*, S. V. Vasilyevb, O. A. Vasilievac, R. M. Galeevb, O. P. Dyuzhevac, and M. V. Kovalchuka,d a National
Research Centre “Kurchatov Institute,” Moscow, 123182 Russia Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 119991 Russia c Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow, 119019 Russia d Shubnikov Institute of Crystallography, Federal Scientific Research Centre “Crystallography and Photonics,” Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 119333 Russia *e-mail: [email protected] b
Received June 3, 2020; revised June 29, 2020; accepted June 29, 2020
Abstract—A detailed analysis of the inner structure and specific features of mummification and decoration of ancient Egyptian mummy from the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, inventory no. I,1а 1240, has been performed by X-ray computed tomography. The mummy origin and dating are refined using the complementary method of comparative historical study. DOI: 10.1134/S1063774520060401
INTRODUCTION The discovery of the unique properties of X-rays in the end of the XIX century made it possible to investigate objects keeping them intact; penetrate deep into the sample bulk; and see individual details, defects, and other nuances, inaccessible for previously applied methods. This discovery led to a revolution in many fields of science. X-rays have become an universal tool for studying the properties of matter, and the development of X-ray methods has played an immense role in the making up materials science and formation of the modern science on the whole [1, 2]. The unique properties of X-rays began to be actively used not only in physics and chemistry but also in biology and medicine; thereafter, they became urgent in humanitarian sciences [3]. Currently, X-ray computed tomography (CT) is one of the most urgent methods in the study of cultural heritage objects. It is based on the reconstruction of a 3D image of the object inner structure as a result of the analysis of a set of 2D X-ray photographs (projections) recorded during rotation. As compared with other noninvasive methods of study, the CT potential, both qualitative and quantitative, is much higher. An example is magnetic resonance tomography: it has successfully been applied in a number of studies, but in the case of dehydrogenated tissues the level of magnetic resonance signal is below the sensitivity threshold [4, 5]. Another important advantage of CT is the possibility of combining it with
3D simulation methods for subsequent modeling of the objects under study. These CT features have found all-round application not only in medicine but also in archaeology, scientific restoration, paleoanthropology, etc. [6]. One of the cultural heritage sites for which CT analysis is fairly informative is ancient Egyptian mummies. Mummies are a unique historical source. Their comprehensive study within an interdisciplinary approach, with application of natural-science and
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