Posted on 07/16/2007 7:19:32 PM PDT by blam
Contact: Aeron Haworth
aeron.haworth@manchester.ac.uk
44-771-788-1563
University of Manchester
Manchester University helps with pharaoh DNA analysis
Preliminary results support positive identification of Egyptian queen
Preliminary results from DNA tests carried out on a mummy believed to be Queen Hatshepsut is expected to support the claim by Egyptian authorities that the remains are indeed those of Egypt’s most powerful female ruler.
Egyptologists in Cairo announced last month that a tooth found in a wooden box associated with Hatshepsut exactly fitted the jaw socket and broken root of the unidentified mummy.
Now, Dr Angelique Corthals, a biomedical Egyptologist at The University of Manchester, says that DNA tests she helped carry out with colleagues at the National Research Centre in Cairo have promising preliminary results suggesting the identity of the queen.
Dr Corthals, who is based at Manchester’s KNH Centre for Biomedical Egyptology, advised and trained a team led by Dr Yehia Gad in Egypt in techniques of extracting DNA samples from the mummified remains of the mystery female.
The group then compared the DNA samples with those taken from Hatshepsut’s royal relatives – her grandmother Ahmose Nefertari, the matriarch of 18th dynasty royalty, and her father Thutmose I.
“The difficulty in carrying out DNA testing on the royal mummies resides in the many times the remains have been handled as well as the chemical processes of mummification,” said Dr Corthals.
“Ironically, the chemicals that preserve the appearance of the mummies actually damage their DNA but the team was able to extract small amounts of genetic information from the areas of the mummies least affected by contamination.
“When the DNA of the mystery mummy was compared with that of Hatshepsut’s ancestors, we were able to scientifically confirm that the remains were those of the 18th dynasty queen.”
Hatshepsut, meaning ‘Foremost of Noble Ladies’, was Egypt’s greatest female ruler, having greater power than even Cleopatra. The fifth pharaoh of the 18th dynasty, her reign in the 15th century BC was longer than any other female ruler of an indigenous dynasty
Most of the 18th dynasty royal mummies were moved away from their original tombs in the Valley of the Kings by the priests of the 21st dynasty fearing desecration and tomb robberies.
The cache was discovered in the 1870s by the Razzul brothers and, in 1881, all 40 mummies were moved to Cairo. However, Hatshepsut’s remains appeared to be missing and it was feared the mummy was lost, having been moved by her stepson Thutmose III, who – on succession – tried to destroy every trace of her reign.
However, in 1903, a British archaeologist, Howard Carter, excavated what became known as tomb KV60 and discovered two mummies – one in a coffin inscribed for a royal nurse, the other stretched out on the floor.
In June, Dr Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, held a news conference in Cairo to announce that this second mummy was that of the lost queen, pointing to the tooth as evidence.
The preliminary DNA evidence – to be included in a Discovery Channel documentary being broadcast in the United States this Sunday – suggests that the mummy is indeed the great queen Hatshepsut.
The team is now planning to carry out more tests on the 40 remaining royal mummies, including that of Tutankhamun, in order to resolve the many questions surrounding the genealogy of the 18th and 19th dynasties.
Further DNA testing is expected to help resolve such mysteries as the identity of the mummy of Tuthmosis I: Is it really the mummy of the mighty warrior-king of the 18th dynasty or just the remains of a nobleman" And were the two foetuses found in Tutankhamun’s tomb really the children of the young pharaoh?
Anyone care to speculate on the haplogroup?
I've been fascinated by the story of Hatshepsut and The Temple of Deir el Bahari since I was in high school.
I had an ancient history teacher who was very passionate about Ancient Egypt....I guess it rubbed off.
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on or off the
"Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list or GGG weekly digest
-- Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)
Comparison of the mtDNA of that mummy arm (actually, two of them) with the supposed Nefertiti mummy in KV35 could pile on some inconvenient facts to further crap on Joanne Fletcher’s “borrowed” ideas.
Line drawing copy from a relief of Queen Hatshepsut's expedition to the Land of Punt.
Departure from Punt.
Queen Hatshepsut temple
This expedition is an indicator of her leadership and skill in motivating and governing the Egyptian society of her time to high achievement. The story of Hatshepsut's expedition to punt is recorded for posterity in the Egyptian art on the wall of her memorial temple.
Then would the English call her quite a punter?
thanks, related:
Burial complex of Mentuhotep II
The History of the Ancient Egyptians | May 2002 | Ian Bolton
Posted on 07/27/2004 2:56:40 PM EDT by SunkenCiv
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1179621/posts
Puntastic!
Speos Artemidos (Grotto of Artemis)About 2 miles southwest of Beni Hassan is the Cave of Artemis, which was hewn out of rock. It is located in the Batn el-Baqara wadi and is dedicated to the lion-goddess Pakhet (she who scratches), otherwise known as Artemis. There are scenes of offerings to various gods, but the most interesting thing here is an inscription over the entrance which states that Hatshepsut (18th Dynasty) has rid Egypt of the Hyksos. Actually, she did not.
by Jimmy Dunn
| (after William Petty) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Significant Events | Yrs from death of Thutmose I | Regnal Year of Thutmose II | Regnal Year of Hatshepsut | Regnal Year of Thutmose III |
| Thutmose II assumes the throne | 1 | 1 | ||
| 2 | 2 | |||
| Mortuary temple inscriptions | 3 | 3 | ||
| 4 | 4 | |||
| Thutmose II dies, Thutmose III assumes the throne | 5 | 5 | 1 | |
| Dedication inscription at Semma | 6 | 2 | ||
| Hatshepsut assumes full titulary Senenmut's tomb started |
7 | 7 | 3 | |
| Donation stele of Senenmut | 8 | 8 | 4 | |
| Punt expedition, Sinai Stela, Useramen appointed vizier, counting from the accession of Thutmose III ceases | 9 | 9 | 5 | |
| 10 | 10 | |||
| 11 | 11 | |||
| 12 | 12 | |||
| Menkheperre & Hatshepsut depicted together | 13 | 13 | 13 | |
| 14 | 14 | |||
| Hatshepsut's obelisks begun | 15 | 15 | 15 | |
| First actual joint dating | 16 | 16 | 16 | |
|
||||
found these topic links in a file called “Hatshepsut tooth evidence”:
Hatshepsut mummy found
Egyptian State News Service | Friday, March 24, 2006 | unattributed
Posted on 03/26/2006 11:43:05 PM EST by SunkenCiv
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1603736/posts
Mummy of Egyptian queen Hatshepsut may have been found
(in a humble tomb in the Valley of the Kings)
Reuters on Yahoo | 6/25/07 | Jonathan Wright
Posted on 06/25/2007 11:05:18 PM EDT by NormsRevenge
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1856274/posts
Egyptologists Think They Have Hatshepsut’s Mummy
ABC News | 6-26-2007 | Jonathan Wright
Posted on 06/26/2007 5:41:36 PM EDT by blam
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1856722/posts
Theban Mapping Project (Valley of the Kings etc)
Theban Mapping Project | 1980s to present | Kent Weeks et al
Posted on 01/13/2005 11:03:55 PM EST by SunkenCiv
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1320504/posts
http://www.thebanmappingproject.com/sites/browse_tomb_874.html
“An inscription on one coffin bore the name and title, royal nurse, In. In has been thought by some to be Sit-Ra, called In, royal nurse of Hatshepsut. The mummy is now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. The other, still unidentified mummy remained in situ. Thomas suggested it might be the mummy of Hatshepsut, relocated by Thutmes III.” [discovered in 1903 by Howard Carter who removed some mummified geese; excavated in 1906 by Edward Russell Ayrton, who removed the mummy of Sit-Ra; in 1989-1990 Donald P. Ryan built a wooden box to hold one mummy]
I always thought those ancient Pharoahs wore really neat hats & hep suits.
(Now that was really a coffin corner punt)
http://www.ancientegyptmagazine.com/
http://www.ancientegyptmagazine.com/rosalie_david.htm
“Consultant Editor Professor Rosalie David OBE has achieved world renown for her pioneering work in investigating mummies using non-destructive techniques. She is Director of the KNH Centre for Biological and Forensic Studies in Egyptology at The University of Manchester... Prof David was the former Keeper of Egyptology at the Manchester Museum, and is Director of the International Mummy Database and Director of the Schistosomiasis Investigation Project. Her research work into this disease, a scourge in the ancient as well as the modern world, was recognised recently with a prestigious award from the Anglo-French Medical Society. Prof David is the author of numerous books and articles on mummies and the religious practices of the ancient Egyptians, a presenter of TV and radio programmes, and an extremely popular lecturer all over the world.”
Whew. But not a touchback.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.