Mummies, Magic and Medicine in Ancient Egypt

About this book

Combining approaches to ancient Egyptian religious expression, medical practice and the modern scientific study of human and material remains from Egypt and Sudan, this volume celebrates the multidisciplinary career of Professor Rosalie David OBE. The UK's first female Professor in Egyptology, Rosalie David's pioneering work at the University of Manchester on Egyptian mummies, magic and medicine has been of international importance. This volume presents research by a number of leading experts in their fields: recent archaeological fieldwork, new research on Egyptian human remains and unpublished museum objects along with reassessments of ancient Egyptian texts concerned with healing and the study of technology through experimental archaeology. Contributors try to answer some of Egyptology's most enduring questions - How did Tutankhamun die? How were the Pyramids built? How were mummies made? - along with less well-known puzzles. Rather than address these areas separately, the volume adopts the so-called 'Manchester method' instigated by Rosalie David and attempts to integrate perspectives from both traditional Egyptology and scientific analytical techniques. Much of this research has never appeared in print before, particularly that resulting from the Manchester Egyptian Mummy Project, set up in the 1970s. The resulting overview gives a good history of the discipline, illustrating how Egyptology has developed over the last forty years, and how many of the same big questions still remain. This book will be of use to researchers and students of archaeology or related disciplines with an interest in multidisciplinary approaches to understanding life and death in ancient Egypt and Sudan.