King Tutankhamun 'died from a broken leg and malaria' | World news. Egypt's most famous pharaoh, King Tutankhamun, was a frail boy who suffered from a cleft palate and club foot, according to a study published today that shows he died of complications from a broken leg exacerbated by malaria and his parents were most likely brother and sister. Two years of DNA testing and CT scans on Tutankhamun's 3,300-year-old mummy and 15 others are helping end many of the myths surrounding the boy king. While a comparatively minor ruler, he has captivated the public since the 1922 discovery of his tomb, which was filled with a stunning array of jewels and artefacts, including a golden funeral mask. The study, which will be published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, provides the firmest family tree yet for Tutankhamun.
The tests pointed to Pharaoh Akhenaten, who tried to revolutionise ancient Egyptian religion to worship one god, as Tutankhamun's father. They also highlighted the role genetics play in some diseases. Debar Blocks. Cross Cultural Burial Rituals. I stumbled upon this list of 10 ‘extraordinary’ burial ceremonies that I want to pass onto you. Since we’re a anthropology focused community, it is very possible that you’ve heard of most of these rituals. I knew of several of them, but learned some new things as well.
The following are ones I found particularly noteworthy: Air Sacrifice – Mongolia The lama, the spiritual leader of the community is, “the only one allowed to touch the corpse, and a white silk veil is placed over the face. The naked body is flanked by men on the right side of the yurt while women are placed on the left. Clearly, there’s a theme to the ones I found interesting. Some of the commenters in the original post added some more interesting burial practices not mentioned, such as the Hanging Coffins in the Philipines. Being Iranian, Zoroastrian culture is pretty deeply engrained. The Tower of Silence is composed of three areas, one for men, women, and children respectively. Like this: Like Loading...
Neanderthals may have feasted on meat and two veg diet | Science. Scientists have upgraded their opinion of Neanderthal cuisine after spotting traces of cooked food on the fossilised teeth of our long-extinct cousins. The researchers found remnants of date palms, seeds and legumes – which include peas and beans – on the teeth of three Neanderthals uncovered in caves in Iraq and Belgium. Among the scraps of food embedded in the plaque on the Neanderthals' teeth were particles of starch from barley and water lilies that showed tell-tale signs of having been cooked. The Ice Age leftovers are believed to be the first direct evidence that the Neanderthal diet included cooked plants as well as meat obtained by hunting wild animals. Dolores Piperno, who led the study at the archaeobiology laboratory at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, said the work showed Neanderthals were more sophisticated diners than many academics gave them credit for.
Piperno's team was given permission to study the remains of three Neanderthal skeletons. Anthropologie. Archeology.