1,300 year-old mummy and her intimate tattoo

Wrapped in bandages and caricatured as figures of terror in Hollywood movies, Egypt’s mummies have long captivated and bewildered scientists and children alike.

Eight have been – scientifically speaking – stripped bare revealing secrets taken to the grave thousands of years ago.

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One of the mummies, whose remains were found just seven years ago, was so well preserved that archaeologists could almost make out the tattoo on her skin on the inner thigh of her right leg with the naked eye. Infra-red technology helped define it more clearly.

The woman, aged between 20 and 35, had been buried wrapped in a linen and woollen cloth and her remains had mummified in the dry heat. The tattoo has been deciphered by curators and spells out in ancient Greek – M-I-X-A-H-A, or Michael.

The owner of the tattoo was a woman who died in about AD 700 and lived in a Christian community on the banks of the Nile.

The tattoo represents the symbol of the Archangel Michael, who features in both the Old and New Testaments. The symbol has previously been found in ancient churches and on stone tablets, but never before in the form of a tattoo.

“You can see her tattoo really clearly using infra red reflectography,” said Dr Antoine, “The tattoo on her right inner thigh represents a monogram that spells Michael in ancient Greek.

“She is the first evidence of a tattoo from this period. This is a very rare find.”

um, no.

Jesus said “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”

Matthew 5:17

The old testament is very clear on this subject. Tattoos are no more allowed than adultery.

It's rather simple actually. If Jesus didn't specifically change or modify the law. Then the law still stands.

In many cases Jesus actually strengthened the law, by for example saying in the case of adultery that to even “looks” at a woman in a lustful manner has already committed adultery.

Peoples failure to follow the law in it's entirety does not change the law. The law is the law, and the law is there mostly for our benefit.

Do you really think God cares what we eat? or how what we eat is prepared for cooking? of course not! but in the ancient world they didn't have the USDA approved label that food had been prepared properly to not make people sick.

How does it benefit God if we take a day off of work each week? (I know, some would argue that if we use that day off to glorify him then it has some direct impact on him) But I would argue that the Sabbath was made for us. Our maker made us to sleep every night as to rest every 7th day. To do otherwise is only hurting ourselves, those who never take a day off, or who rest all the time, get ill and die early.

Heck, one could even argue that the old testament admonition for men to not shave is important. Men shouldn't emasculate themselves and act like women. Basically God didn't think it was a good thing for men to act like metrosexuals.

I could go on and on.

Go back, re-read Leviticus, and make sure you want to take that logical route...

“You shall not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard.” (Lev. 19:27)

If you shave or cut your hair, you are in violation and could be stoned to death for your sin.

Well, as you all should be aware, I have delved in a little studies of a historical nature, did a little museum curating of my own back in college and am quite keenly aware of the complexities of the ancient Egyptian culture. It's a little known fact that the Nile was the Rt. 66 of ancient Egypt and their culture spawned the original traveling bands of gypsies which later evolved into the motorcycle gangs of today. It is quite evidently clear that this young lady was a member of this hard-nosed rogue society by the correct interpretation of the tattoo on this unfortunate young trollop’s inner thigh. It actually sayss… ‘If the stink don’t kill you, my husband, Michael, will.’

You are correct, I was referring to the incident in Chapter 10 with the sheet and the unclean animals that most interpret to mean God had forever lifted the dietary restrictions on his followers.

“Do not call anything impure that God has made clean”

now... like many things in the bible this can be interpreted in many ways. But the most commonly accepted interpretation is what I deffer to.

Now, it just so happens that I don’t care for most of the banned foods anyway. So I am good either way (with the exception of bacon)

yum.... bacon...

And if I am wrong about bacon... well... at least Jesus forgives us when we fall short :)

“It is quite evidently clear that this young lady was a member of this hard-nosed rogue society by the correct interpretation of the tattoo on this unfortunate young trollop’s...”

More likely since she lived following the Muslim conquest of Egypt, that her tattoo is of Saint Michael and that she died in her mid-20s she was killed by Muslims and, rather than a trollop, she is a martyr.

now... like many things in the bible this can be interpreted in many ways. But the most commonly accepted interpretation is what I deffer to.

So you're saying that you think that episode was about food?

Funny... I thought it was about Peter accepting Gentiles into the church.

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