Kha and Merit:multidetector computed tomography and 3D reconstructions of two mummies from the Egyptian Museum of Turin

Abstract

The Mummies of the architect, Kha, (Suppl.8431) and his wife, Merit, (Suppl. 8471) belong to the XVIII Dynasty of ancient Egypt. They were discovered at Deir el- Medina, during the Italian Archaeological Mission directed by E. Schiaparelli (1903- 1906). Recently they underwent diagnostic investigation with helical CT at the Molinette hospital in Turin in order to verify the state of preservation of the bodies and to increase our knowledge of the funerary objects inside the bandages. A whole body helical CT acquisition with a multidetector CT unit was performed. Thin slices (2.5 mm thickness, 1.25 mm reconstruction interval), followed by multiplanar and 3D reconstructions were obtained. CT allowed a careful evaluation of body conditions, stature, age, embalming technique, pathological findings (some of which not revealed by previous conventional X-ray studies), and it allowed confirming and evaluating the presence of foreign bodiesjewels in particular. Once more CT, especially supported by new post-processing techniques, confirmed its fundamental role in the non-invasive study of mummies.