What's so great about a pregnant mummy?

 Apothecary Vessel   (Photo by Bullenwachter)

When Dr. Wojciech Ejsmond of the National Museum in Warsaw discovered that one of his mummy specimens had been pregnant at the time of death, he said, “It’s like finding a treasure trove while you are picking up mushrooms in a forest.”

From an archaeological perspective, this was certainly quite a find.  Yet from a humane perspective, it’s actually quite sad.  This woman had lived a very short life, and her fetus a way shorter one.  Equating such outcomes with a “treasure trove” among forest mushrooms seems insensitive at best.

This mummy had once been someone’s lover.  The parents-to-be may have eagerly awaited their child's arrival.  Hopes and dreams then died along with mother and child.

This was no fungus among us.  This was a living vibrant human being, very much like you and me. 

Resources

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/02/world/europe/egyptian-mummy-pregnant-warsaw.html

Copyright May 3, 2021 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved