Archaeologists have made a shocking discovery after re-examining a mummified teenage mother who died in childbirth more than 1,500 years ago.
A team from George Washington University performed CT scans on the body, revealing a baby's head stuck in her birth canal and another fetus stuck in her chest cavity.
The woman, who was no more than 17 years old, was buried with the headless child, leading experts to believe that she was pregnant with twins without her knowledge.
The team speculates that the older twin was breech and died due to decapitation of the fetus, while the younger twin separated from the uterus and migrated to its rib area.
Archaeologists have found the head of a baby inside the pelvis of a mummified woman who died during childbirth in ancient Egypt. The team believes the baby was upside down and was accidentally decapitated
The woman's remains were discovered in 1908 in the Bagwat cemetery in the Egyptian Kharga Oasis located in the Western Desert.
The Kharga Oasis was first settled about 50,000 years ago and played a crucial role in the economy and military of ancient Egypt.
The woman is believed to have been between 14 and 17 years old at the time of death, and was buried with her arms at her sides and her feet bound together with rags.
They were also layered with “a large amount of salt,” which has dehydrating properties that dehydrate the entire body.
The researchers used field notes from 1908 during their work, which showed that previous archaeologists had unwrapped the body, removed its arms, torn off the femur, and made an incision in the abdomen.
Scans of the mummy showed another fetus stuck in the chest cavity. A CT scan identified the child within the upper left chest cavity of the mummy, and showed long bones, ribs, neural arches, a skull, and five hand bones.
The woman, who was no more than 17 years old, was buried with the headless child in the grave, leading experts to believe that she was unknowingly pregnant with twins. Pictured are scan images of the body found with the woman
Notes also mention a decapitated child between her legs and covered in layer and layers of salt.
A CT scan identified the child within the upper left chest cavity of the mummy, and showed long bones, ribs, neural arches, a skull, and five hand bones.
While the initial discovery mentioned the first twin, the notes did not include mention of another fetus.
“This embryo has not been discovered before,” the team wrote in the study published this month in the journal. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology.
The team was able to determine the age of death in the babies as between 36 and 40 weeks before birth, proving that they were twins.
The woman, who was no more than 17 years old, was buried with the headless child in the grave, leading experts to believe that she was unknowingly pregnant with twins. Her remains were first discovered in 1908 (pictured)
The original field notes did not mention a cause of death, but using evidence, photographs, and CT scans, researchers concluded that “it was entrapment of the fetal head during the breech position of the fetus.”
The study stated: “The discovery of the fetal head at the entrance to the pelvis conclusively indicates that labor has stopped.”
“It is possible that the breech position of the fetus caused labor to stop.”
The team also noted that this was a rare event – occurring in only 0.14 to 0.14 per 10,000 live births.
It is not yet clear how the second fetus migrates to the chest cavity.
“It is possible that the unknown child was mummified along with other internal organs,” the study says.
“During the mummification process, the diaphragm and connective tissue in that area had dissolved, allowing the unborn fetus to move into the chest cavity.”
The researchers said that this discovery confirms how dangerous childbirth was in ancient Egyptian times.
“Birth in ancient Egypt was considered a religious event, not a medical event. While medicine in ancient Egypt is well documented, pregnancy is not.
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