Lifelike "Wet Mummy" Found During Roadbuilding...

To start, I used the search function and didn't see this anywhere and mods if this is in the wrong forum please feel free to move it to the appropriate one.


Lifelike "Wet Mummy" Found During Roadbuilding...

With eyebrows, hair, and skin still intact after more than 600 years, a remarkably preserved Chinese "wet mummy" remains bundled in her quilt after centuries in a flooded coffin.

Removed from her wooden casket on March 1, the body had been found in a tomb accidentally uncovered by roadbuilders near the city of Taizhou.

"Wet mummies survive so well because of the anaerobic conditions of their burials," said archaeologist Victor Mair. That is, water unusually void of oxygen inhibits bacteria that would normally break down a body.

Unlike ancient Egyptian mummies, the corpse—likely from the Ming dynasty (1368 to 1644)—was probably preserved only accidentally, said Mair, of the University of Pennsylvania.

"I don't know of any evidence that Chinese ever intentionally mummified their deceased," he said. "Whoever happened to encounter the right environment might become a preserved corpse."

"Wet Mummy" Face;

Staff members from China's Taizhou Museum carefully raise the mummy—one of three found during a road expansion—from her wooden coffin on March 1.

The fully dressed, 5-foot-long (1.5-meter-long) body was buried with luxury items, including a jade ring, a silver hairpin, and more than 20 pieces of Ming-dynasty clothing.

The lack of identifying insignia such as a phoenix or dragon, though, suggests the wet mummy wasn't royal, said Timothy Brook, a historian at the University of British Columbia's Institute of Asian Research.

"Her headgear is sort of ordinary," Brook said. "There's nothing that sets her apart from anyone else. ... She was probably just a well-off person."

Red Glove Service;

A worker from the Taizhou Museum cleans the Chinese wet mummy's large jade ring on March 3.

Jade was associated with longevity in ancient China. But in this case, the jade ring was "probably a sign of her wealth instead of a sign of any concern about the afterlife," Brook said.

You Can't Take It With You?;

A museum worker removes the female mummy's cap on March 3, revealing hair held in place by a still bright silver hairpin—a fairly standard example of the type worn by Ming-dynasty women, Brook said.

Neither Brook nor the University of Pennsylvania's Mair know why the wet mummy's head appears dyed purple beneath her cap, though Mair speculates it may have to do with natural minerals in the water.

The woman's age at death is unknown, but her unlined face suggests she was fairly young.

"She's certainly an adult," Brook said. "She's not an old woman."

Good Hair Day;

The newfound mummy rests on a plastic sheet after being removed from her flooded coffin on March 1.

In ancient China, it was believed that the newly dead would appear before supernatural judges.

"If you were found to be morally worthy," Brook explained, "you would be sent off for reincarnation—as a deity if you were fantastic, as a human being if you were good, as an animal if you were less good, and as a bug or a worm if you'd been really bad."

Water Bed;

Submerged in the brownish liquid that likely preserved it, the Ming dynasty-era mummy lies in her wooden coffin prior to her removal on March 1.

The University of Pennsylvania's Mair thinks the liquid is oxygen-poor water that leaked into the coffin and not any type of special preservation fluid.

Watery Grave;

On March 1 a crowd of Chinese archaeologists, reporters, and onlookers stand at the roadwork site where the Ming dynasty-era body was found.

During the Ming dynasty, preservation after death was thought to "reflect your purity" in life, Brook explained.

Had this woman's family known her body would be preserved for more than 600 years, they would have been extremely proud, he added.

Highway To Heaven;

A so-called exorcism coin adorns the chest of the newfound Chinese "wet mummy."

"My guess would be that the coin was placed on the body as a kind of charm against malevolent influences," Brook said.

Still unknown is whether the woman was buried with any written documents or inscribed pottery—a common practice in Ming-dynasty China.

"If you were a person of any importance, you had someone write a [remembrance] or a brief biography," Brook said, "and that biography would often be posted at the burial site and a copy buried with you as well, to identify who you are" in the afterlife.

Exorcism Coin;




Source

What a fascinating find!!!!! Thank you so much for sharing this with us!

Wow, the mysteries of our past never cease to amaze me

Thank you for posting this. What an incredible connection to the past. I would love to know more about her.

S&F

Dude....

Thanks for finding and posting this! Absolutely amazing...

Wondering...was she the only "wet mummy" or were the other two wet also?

S&F

I love threads like this.Excellent material and well put together.Made me sign in just to comment.

About the water not being oxidized enough makes me wonder about the elevation of the terrain compared to sea level

Anyways well deserved stars and flags

Great stuff, I am fascinated and always have been with these types of reports.
Did anyone else feel a tug at their heart looking at these great photographs?
S&F
Regards, Iwinder

reply to post by WeBrooklyn


There was only one of the three mummies found in water.

I noticed when searching for more pictures of the burried Budha statues, that pictures of this mummy was among the pictures of the statues, are they somehow connected, or found in the same area

I will try and see if i can find that page again.

Great thread S+F.

reply to post by Mianeye


They were both in the same section but were each found at different sites (not connected)...The Buddhas were found in Handan, China and the mummies were found in Taizhou, China.

reply to post by Ericthenewbie
I see, i can't seem to find that page anyway.

Thank you

Originally posted by Mianeye
reply to post by Ericthenewbie

 

I see, i can't seem to find that page anyway.

Thank you

This is amazing! Great find so well preserved!

Also I hope it is ok to add the link to the Buddha's

news.nationalgeographic.com...#/china-buddhas-found-head-earth_50929_600x45 0.jpg

This was really neat. She was so well perserved it looked like she was just sleeping with some mud on her. It would be so cool if they do find something that someone had writte about her. Thanks for posting this. werid how usally bodies just decompose but,given the right things it can stay intact!

Thank you for posting this thread..This mummy is absolutely fascinating id love to know more about who she is and view all her jewelry she was buried with ..peace,sugarcookie1

reply to post by SarnholeOntarable


It's difficult to determine the exact sea level where the mummies were found because Taizhou is a mountainous region beside the sea.

For those that were interested, I was able to find another source with a few additional pictures;

www.asiaambassador.com...

Why do people think that if a body is XXX old then it is okay to dig it up and poke it around. If we went out to the local graveyard and started "archeological digs" on recently buried bodies, a jail cell would be our lab. But if it's an "ancient" body, or even from the American Civil War, get you pickaxes and collecting jars ready, boys, and dig in. These ghouls should just leave this poor woman alone with her stuff.

I'll give someone 5 bucks if they take a swig of that mummy water. Any takers??


Cool story OP, thanks! S&F

Originally posted by iamhobo
I'll give someone 5 bucks if they take a swig of that mummy water. Any takers??


Cool story OP, thanks! S&F

Man Im feeling seedy as, really not that good tonight..

I must now destroy you and your entire family for that thought in my head,, lol

May as well have asked someone to eat a bowl of bread soaked in robitussen cough medicine.

gah crap just made it worse

reply to post by Night Star


well done . awesome find enjoyed reading this very much thankyou