Removed from the coffin after a thousand years of rest, the Egyptian woman surprised scientists with her hair still black and smooth.
Scientists from the Kurchatov Institute in Moscow – Russia have just lifted the mystery of the eternal hair of an Egyptian noble woman who died 3,000 years ago. Thoroughly mummified, her body was intact. But surprisingly, her carefully styled silky black hair remained intact.
The coffin of the noble woman – photo: Kurchatov Institute
The analysis shows that this eternal hair stream could still be full of life for several more millennia if she is still in her grave.
Not only was the body carefully marinated according to the famous Egyptian recipe, the woman was also applied a special hair conditioner before wrapping the bandage.
The curls were cut and analyzed – photo: Kurchatov Institute
The curl is still full of life after 3,000 years in the grave – photo: Kurchatov Institute
Remaining traces indicate the presence of tallow, castor oil, beeswax, turpentine and a drop of fragrant pistachio oil. This magical mixture makes beautiful hair springs almost invulnerable to the effects of time. It also helps her neatly combed fashion-forward hairstyle stay in place.
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The rest of the body is marinated in the Egyptian tradition: removing the organs, desiccating with a salt mixture, and wrapping in a cloth soaked with a plant extract, oil, and resin. In the body of the woman with eternal hair, scientists believe that the embalmer used sesame oil, phenolic acids from aromatic plants, polysaccharides also of plant origin, and the resin of a tree. coniferous.
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To be able to analyze the origin of the two solutions to preserve the hair and the body, which has degraded over several thousand years, the researchers recorded the infrared spectrum of the solution, then treated it with a solvent before bringing it to life. analysis.
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In addition to the woman mentioned above, two other mummies of which at least one belonged to a man also received similar hair care. The way they were buried shows that they were ancient nobles. The findings have just been published in the scientific journal Analytical Chemistry.
Src: kenhthoisu.net
