mummies

The Terrifying Body Worlds Mummy Heads of 19C Italy

Maureen O'Connor · 02/21/12 06:18PM

A group of forensic anthropologists have completed a meticulous analysis of a set of real human anatomy displays from 19C Italy. Using CT scans and other chemical analysis, the group determined that, some 200 years ago, anatomist Giovan Battista Rini "petrified" the corpses with a mercury and other heavy metals. He injected some tinctures and used others as baths. The eyes are fake. Basically, Rini was modern medicine's first "Body Worlds" guy.

Graverobber Kept 29 Mummified Women 'As Life-Sized Dolls'

Maureen O'Connor · 11/07/11 01:52PM

Historian and "well-respected specialist in cemeteries" Anatoly Moskvin stands accused of robbing at dozens of graves in the Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod. His goal, according to Russian authorities: "Decorat[ing] his home with 29 mummified female bodies… dressed as life-sized dolls."

Terminally Ill Man Mummified For New Reality Show

Seth Abramovitch · 10/16/11 09:26PM

Reality TV has certainly dabbled in ancient embalming practices before — Paula Abdul immediately springs to mind — but never, to my knowledge, has it been taken quite to these extremes. A terminally ill man with a longheld fascination for Egyptian burial rites donated his body to a documentary series about mummification on Britain's Channel 4.

Woman Drove Around With Corpse For Close to a Year

Maureen O'Connor · 10/22/10 04:15PM

A police officer ticketed an illegally parked car and peeked inside. There sat a mummified female human. Apparently the owner's friend died while sitting there and the owner "continued to dress the body and drive around with it."

Is Tokyo's Oldest Man Actually a Mummy?

Adrian Chen · 07/29/10 06:08PM

We love any news story that includes "mummified skeletal remains." So this story about Tokyo's oldest man is a real treat. Turns out that he's been dead for 30 years, during which time he became a mummy.