Tens of millions of animal mummies have been unearthed in Egypt to date. Although there are millions of mummified cats, dogs, ibises, and birds of prey, primate mummies are rare and poorly understood.
New analysis of mummified baboons sheds light on the animals’ place in ancient Egypt and reveals that although they were prized as sacred animals, their living conditions were less than ideal.
Researchers analyzed the bones of mummified baboons discovered in the early 1900s at Gabbanat el-Qurud, a necropolis called the Valley of the Monkeys in the southwestern part of Egypt’s Valley of the Kings. The bones represented dozens of individual baboons, from babies to adults, belonging to two species: the hamadryas baboon (Papio hamadryas) and the olive baboon (Papio anubis).
These species were not native to Egypt; They were imported from two regions: “the olive monkey from the south (present-day Sudan) and the hamadryas monkey from the highlands bordering the Red Sea, Sudan, and south from Eritrea, Somalia.” and Ethiopia,” said lead study author Wim Van Neer, professor emeritus at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels. “The exact origins still need to be documented in more detail,” Van Neer said in an email to CNN.
Van Neer added that of all the animals revered by the ancient Egyptians, baboons were the only ones not native to Egypt.
Baboons are thought to have played a role in ancient Egyptian rituals, scientists reported Wednesday in the journal PLOS One. But raising and caring for large wild animals, especially non-native species, is challenging. Researchers discovered that before they died, the baboons were deprived of sunlight and developed bone disorders due to malnutrition. Examination of the skeletal remains revealed signs of rickets; Due to deprivation and metabolic disease, baboons had deformed arms, legs and faces, underdeveloped teeth, osteoarthritis and other pathologies.
These deformations are similar to those seen in the bones of baboons found at two other ancient Egyptian sites (Saqqara and Tuna el-Gebel) dating to about the same period, the authors wrote.
Distinguished Professor of Egyptology at the American University in Cairo, Dr. “This excellently prepared and executed study confirms the results of some previous studies on the health status of baboons in ancient Egypt,” said Salima Ikram. research. “More importantly, it also reveals the fact that different types of baboons were brought to Egypt and bred,” Ikram said in an email to CNN. “It’s fascinating to think that the ancient Egyptians tried to initiate a breeding program for baboons to ensure they were both respected and used in religious rituals.”
a pile of bones
According to the study, 463 mummified primates were discovered at three main Egyptian sites where mummies of Old World monkeys were buried. The baboon bones examined for the new analysis were collected in 1905 and 1906 by archaeologists from the Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle de Lyon (now the Musée des Confluences) in France.
The graves still contained pieces of dried skin with long strands of hair; This showed that the animals were placed there as mummies. According to the study, French archaeologists uncovered 23 skulls, 24 jawbones and more than 200 isolated bones assembled into complete skeletons, regardless of whether all the bones belonged to the same baboon.
Two skeletons were assembled from bones belonging to two different baboons, and one skeleton represented three primates. Of the four properly assembled skeletons, only one had the correct skull. After analyzing the bones one by one, the study authors identified 36 different baboons of all ages; in this group there were more adults than juveniles and slightly more males than females.
The bones also revealed signs of metabolic problems during adolescence, including bowed trunks, misshapen trunk heads and arthritic joints. Two female baboons were suffering from tooth decay. Some skulls had lesions; Two of the primates had short noses, and the other two had noses bent to the left.
The mummies were also centuries older than previously thought. Based on the mummies’ proximity to nearby ceramic artifacts in the tombs, earlier estimates placed them between the first and second centuries at the earliest, and possibly as recently as the seventh century.
But when the study authors examined bone collagen and fibers from a fabric wrapped around an intact baboon mummy, they found that the animals were likely buried between 803 and 520 B.C. Researchers confirmed this time period using a technique called radiocarbon dating, which can determine the age of organic material by measuring the amount of decay in a radioactive carbon isotope.
holy and suffering
Conditions for primates held in captivity may have been even worse than for their remains, researchers report, because bones often do not preserve records of parasites and other types of ailments.
However, it is important to note that the scientists’ findings do not indicate intentional exploitation of baboons. Van Neer said her keepers probably did the best they could to care for the animals, “but it shouldn’t have been easy.”
“Baboons are good climbers and so they were probably kept in buildings or high-walled enclosures to prevent them from escaping. Due to the lack of sunlight, they developed the metabolic disorders we see, primarily rickets. There are no signs of broken bones to suggest the animals were physically mistreated,” he said.
“Unfortunately, Egyptians did not know enough about the care and feeding of baboons,” Ikram added. “While trying to show them respect and care, they have actually created conditions that are detrimental to the health and welfare of animals; the road to hell is paved with good intentions!”
Mindy Weisberger is a science writer and media producer whose work has appeared in Live Science, Scientific American, and How It Works magazines.
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