0:00:11 > 0:00:19In 1871, three Egyptian brothers, Mohammed, Ahmed and Hussein El Rasul
0:00:19 > 0:00:23were scrambling up a steep cliff path in the Western Desert
0:00:23 > 0:00:28when they came across a secret that had remained hidden for 3,000 years.
0:00:32 > 0:00:36Several boulders had shifted to reveal a narrow cleft
0:00:36 > 0:00:39in the base of the rocks.
0:00:42 > 0:00:47Clambering inside, they discovered a shaft 12 metres deep.
0:00:49 > 0:00:54But at the bottom, a tiny man-made passageway.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57The brothers crawled into the blackness
0:00:57 > 0:01:00and uncovered something they would never forget.
0:01:10 > 0:01:13Dozens of mummified bodies.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17One of them was discovered to be a high priestess
0:01:17 > 0:01:20and daughter of a pharaoh.
0:01:20 > 0:01:22Her name was Maatkare.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28But Maatkare was not buried alone.
0:01:30 > 0:01:33At her feet was an infant-sized bundle.
0:01:33 > 0:01:39For over 100 years, it was presumed Maatkare had died in childbirth,
0:01:39 > 0:01:41her baby buried with her.
0:01:41 > 0:01:44But modern medical techniques revealed the bundle to be
0:01:44 > 0:01:47something very different.
0:01:49 > 0:01:50We had always thought it was a child
0:01:50 > 0:01:56but the X-ray showed that in fact it contains a green monkey, a vervet.
0:01:56 > 0:01:58And not her baby at all.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00This monkey was found with Maatkare,
0:02:00 > 0:02:03sort of cradled against her body,
0:02:03 > 0:02:06so I think it must have been a beloved pet.
0:02:08 > 0:02:10The brothers' discovery was yet another episode
0:02:10 > 0:02:14in centuries of interest in Egyptian mummies.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17Both human and animal.
0:02:19 > 0:02:2319th-century collectors removed thousands of them
0:02:23 > 0:02:26and many have ended up in museums across the world.
0:02:28 > 0:02:33Now, experts are applying 21st-century science and technology
0:02:33 > 0:02:36to look inside these animal mummies.
0:02:36 > 0:02:40Revealing fascinating new details about religion and belief
0:02:40 > 0:02:42in ancient Egypt.
0:02:43 > 0:02:47These mummies give an insight into understanding
0:02:47 > 0:02:51the relationship between human beings and animals.
0:02:51 > 0:02:56Animals were magical creatures who could in fact speak to the gods.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59And new techniques are helping archaeologists to expose
0:02:59 > 0:03:05the shocking reality at the heart of this ancient ritual.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38In the dead of night,
0:03:38 > 0:03:42at the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital,
0:03:42 > 0:03:45medical experts are at work.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48Not on the living, but on the ancient dead.
0:03:50 > 0:03:54Radiographers and Egyptologists working here are collecting
0:03:54 > 0:03:57information on hundreds of animal mummies.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02The biggest survey of its kind in history.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12The team are using the latest medical imaging technology
0:04:12 > 0:04:15when it is not needed for human patients
0:04:15 > 0:04:18so they can see inside the mummies without damaging them.
0:04:20 > 0:04:24First on the X-ray table is a small bundle
0:04:24 > 0:04:27that is usually on display at Manchester Museum.
0:04:29 > 0:04:35It was made in southern Egypt between 664 and 332 BC.
0:04:40 > 0:04:45Next, a CT scanner takes hundreds of X-ray images, or slices,
0:04:45 > 0:04:48from 360 degrees around the mummy.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55These images are combined to create a three-dimensional model.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59It brings up nice definition of the wrappings, doesn't it?
0:04:59 > 0:05:00- The CT.- Yeah.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04And before your very eyes...
0:05:05 > 0:05:09- Oh!- There we are.- A little rodent.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11Who's got very, very prominent incisors.
0:05:11 > 0:05:14And then he has got a space until you reach the molars.
0:05:14 > 0:05:19- It couldn't be a shrew, could he?- Possibly.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22To be able to look at the inside of something that was wrapped
0:05:22 > 0:05:27possibly 2,500 years ago in the deserts of ancient Egypt,
0:05:27 > 0:05:29is absolutely astounding.
0:05:29 > 0:05:32It never, ever fails to amaze me, what we find
0:05:32 > 0:05:35when we have scanning sessions at the hospital.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38There is always something that is a little bit surprising.
0:05:38 > 0:05:40And that is what makes every mummy different.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53Egyptologists have long been fascinated by the bizarre practice
0:05:53 > 0:05:55of animal mummification.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02During the 19th and 20th centuries,
0:06:02 > 0:06:04hundreds of such mummies were unwrapped,
0:06:04 > 0:06:09including at least two for a 1970s BBC documentary.
0:06:11 > 0:06:15The wrappings contained dozens of creatures, including cats,
0:06:15 > 0:06:18crocodiles, hawks and wading birds,
0:06:18 > 0:06:21snakes, shrews and even fish.
0:06:21 > 0:06:25But unwrapping the mummies in this way completely destroyed them
0:06:25 > 0:06:28and much of the information they contained was lost.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34Every mummy is unique.
0:06:34 > 0:06:38And it is impossible to know what's in it until it has been scanned.
0:06:38 > 0:06:42This mummified rodent has been made in two parts.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46So we have got the main mummy bundle here and then on its back
0:06:46 > 0:06:50we have got the secondary package which is sort of fixed to the top.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52So if we scroll through, we should see if there is anything...
0:06:52 > 0:06:55- Is there anything in it? - No, it just goes...
0:06:55 > 0:06:56HE GROANS
0:06:57 > 0:06:59It could be constructed just of linen.
0:07:01 > 0:07:06But why would you put an empty linen bundle onto a mummy of a tiny shrew?
0:07:08 > 0:07:11Because we did think that would contain something.
0:07:11 > 0:07:15Basically looking for anything that could be grain, which is
0:07:15 > 0:07:19what it is always been presumed that the little package contained,
0:07:19 > 0:07:24a food offering for the rodent in the afterlife.
0:07:24 > 0:07:25Um...
0:07:25 > 0:07:29But we certainly can't see anything on this scan.
0:07:30 > 0:07:33With or without grain, the backpack was there
0:07:33 > 0:07:37to help this little animal's journey into the afterlife.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46The ancient Egyptians believed that animals, like humans,
0:07:46 > 0:07:49had a soul that survived death.
0:07:50 > 0:07:55Professor Joann Fletcher is an expert on ancient Egyptian beliefs.
0:07:55 > 0:07:58It is quite clear that for the ancient Egyptians,
0:07:58 > 0:08:01death was simply a transition into another world
0:08:01 > 0:08:02that replicated life on Earth.
0:08:02 > 0:08:07For instance, the bases of some coffins have maps of the afterlife,
0:08:07 > 0:08:10so the deceased would know just where to go
0:08:10 > 0:08:12to find their way through into the next world.
0:08:14 > 0:08:17Whether human or animal, by mummifying a body,
0:08:17 > 0:08:20the ancient Egyptians believed they were providing the soul
0:08:20 > 0:08:24with a physical vessel for its journey to the afterlife.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28Mummification is very important for animals,
0:08:28 > 0:08:31just as it is for humans, because that is the act
0:08:31 > 0:08:32which makes sure
0:08:32 > 0:08:36that they can make it from this life to the next and live for ever.
0:08:36 > 0:08:37Nice and gentle.
0:08:39 > 0:08:41There we go.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43Oh... That's lovely.
0:08:44 > 0:08:48Back at the hospital, the team are scanning a crocodile mummy.
0:08:48 > 0:08:50He is a lovely one, I like him.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53He has a very unnatural shape, though, because he is quite short.
0:08:53 > 0:08:55- Yes. - Do the scan now.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57And in we go.
0:09:00 > 0:09:04Continuing the Victorian obsession of mummy-collecting,
0:09:04 > 0:09:08this specimen found its way into the Manchester Museum
0:09:08 > 0:09:12via German collector Maximilian Robinow,
0:09:12 > 0:09:14who visited Egypt in 1896.
0:09:14 > 0:09:19Its exact contents have remained a secret for thousands of years.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21Until now.
0:09:21 > 0:09:25- Well!- Ooh.- Didn't expect that, did we?- No.
0:09:25 > 0:09:29So we had what looked like a complete crocodile mummy bundle,
0:09:29 > 0:09:32so we were expecting one crocodile.
0:09:32 > 0:09:36And we have got four skulls in a line.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40It is picking something up here.
0:09:41 > 0:09:43- Oh, what's...- And there.
0:09:44 > 0:09:47- What's that?- So there is something else in there as well.
0:09:48 > 0:09:53- Ooh! There we go!- There you go, there is little crocodile.- Oh, wow!
0:09:53 > 0:09:55Oh, look, complete, a complete crocodile.
0:09:55 > 0:10:00- A complete crocodile and just look. - There is one there.- Oh, wow.
0:10:00 > 0:10:05- So that is one, two, three... - So how many in total do you think?
0:10:05 > 0:10:08- Four skulls and four babies?- Yes, four skulls and four baby crocs.
0:10:08 > 0:10:10So eight all in one.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12But the question is,
0:10:12 > 0:10:14why on earth would you have eight individual crocodiles
0:10:14 > 0:10:18represented in one quite small mummy?
0:10:18 > 0:10:19Each mummy should have one animal.
0:10:19 > 0:10:22They have got crocodile mummies
0:10:22 > 0:10:26- where they have buried babies with an adult one, haven't they?- Oh.
0:10:26 > 0:10:30But, I mean, these are not adult sized, are they?
0:10:30 > 0:10:34They are quite small. And there's hatchling ones.
0:10:34 > 0:10:35That is interesting.
0:10:37 > 0:10:39The scan reveals more.
0:10:39 > 0:10:43There is evidence of tricks of the embalmer's trade.
0:10:43 > 0:10:45Oh...
0:10:46 > 0:10:50- So they have used a stick or reed... - It is like a stick, oh...
0:10:50 > 0:10:51..to create the shape.
0:10:51 > 0:10:54Of course, you have not got the complete skeleton to provide
0:10:54 > 0:10:57shape and rigidity and obviously a great amount of time and effort
0:10:57 > 0:11:00has gone into producing what looks like a complete crocodile...
0:11:00 > 0:11:04- Yeah, the package. - ..from bits and pieces, essentially.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09Whoever mummified these eight crocodiles did so with considerable
0:11:09 > 0:11:14care and attention to ensure their souls made it to the afterlife.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23And we know that for very important animals,
0:11:23 > 0:11:26like Maatkare's monkey, the process of mummification
0:11:26 > 0:11:30could be as involved and complex as it was for humans.
0:11:32 > 0:11:36These ancient techniques are being studied by Dr Stephen Buckley
0:11:36 > 0:11:41at the University of York with hands-on experimental archaeology.
0:11:42 > 0:11:45What the experimental archaeology does is,
0:11:45 > 0:11:47it allows you to get your hands dirty
0:11:47 > 0:11:51and in that way allows a far better understanding of the processes,
0:11:51 > 0:11:54the methods, the materials they must have used.
0:11:56 > 0:11:58Like all the animals he uses,
0:11:58 > 0:12:02the piglet Stephen is mummifying today died of natural causes.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07Every animal the ancient Egyptians mummified was treated
0:12:07 > 0:12:11with the utmost respect and the embalmer's first job was
0:12:11 > 0:12:15to remove the internal organs to stop the body from decaying.
0:12:20 > 0:12:22Here I have the stomach.
0:12:24 > 0:12:26That is the liver.
0:12:28 > 0:12:30And I have...
0:12:30 > 0:12:31one of the lungs.
0:12:33 > 0:12:38In very special cases, the embalmers even placed the internal organs
0:12:38 > 0:12:42in their own sacred jars to be buried alongside the animal.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46Just feeling the heart.
0:12:46 > 0:12:49The idea certainly was to try to leave the heart in
0:12:49 > 0:12:51because it was the seat of the soul.
0:12:51 > 0:12:54And so the heart was important to leave in
0:12:54 > 0:12:58so that it would be there for Judgment Day, really.
0:12:58 > 0:13:02So seen as a vital organ in the context of the afterlife.
0:13:04 > 0:13:07With the internal organs removed,
0:13:07 > 0:13:09the cavity could be sterilised with alcohol.
0:13:14 > 0:13:19Embalming was a highly, highly technical and skilled practice
0:13:19 > 0:13:23and there were groups of people who were specialised in it.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26So it was not something that, "Oh, I will do it myself,"
0:13:26 > 0:13:28and then take it off and give it to the god.
0:13:28 > 0:13:30You had to go to the temple
0:13:30 > 0:13:33and someone else would do the whole thing for you.
0:13:34 > 0:13:38The embalmers then filled the cavity with linen bags containing
0:13:38 > 0:13:43rare spices such as cinnamon and myrrh.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46Myrrh came from possibly Somalia,
0:13:46 > 0:13:48possibly the other side of the Red Sea as well, Yemen.
0:13:48 > 0:13:51An expensive ingredient.
0:13:51 > 0:13:55And also cinnamon of course coming from India, coming some distance.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58And all these ingredients have antibacterial components.
0:13:58 > 0:14:03So not only did these packages retain the original shape,
0:14:03 > 0:14:05but they also protect it.
0:14:07 > 0:14:09With the body packed out,
0:14:09 > 0:14:13the embalmers could begin the ritual of covering it with a special resin.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19The recipes are for these sacred resins remained a mystery
0:14:19 > 0:14:22for thousands of years
0:14:22 > 0:14:25but Stephen has been able to isolate the exact ingredients.
0:14:26 > 0:14:32This recipe is made up of sesame oil, pine resin and beeswax.
0:14:33 > 0:14:37The mixture sets so that it would seal the body
0:14:37 > 0:14:39and so...
0:14:41 > 0:14:46provide a complete protective barrier to insects that might want to get in.
0:14:46 > 0:14:48But also killed bacteria.
0:14:50 > 0:14:56The key to successful mummification was to dry out the body completely.
0:14:56 > 0:15:01So the embalmers used a naturally occurring salt called natron
0:15:01 > 0:15:06mined from two hidden locations in the north and south of Egypt.
0:15:06 > 0:15:07What the natron does is,
0:15:07 > 0:15:10is to effectively suck the water out from the body
0:15:10 > 0:15:13but also the alkaline content
0:15:13 > 0:15:17helps inhibit the bacteria and enzymes that cause decay.
0:15:18 > 0:15:22The largest animals were packed in natron for up to 40 days
0:15:22 > 0:15:26before the ceremonial wrapping of linen bandages could begin.
0:15:49 > 0:15:51The final hallowed act
0:15:51 > 0:15:54was to coat the bandages in the sacred resin
0:15:54 > 0:15:56before the animal was finally ready
0:15:56 > 0:16:00to embark on its long journey to the afterlife.
0:16:00 > 0:16:03Ancient Egyptian mummification was actually involved and costly
0:16:03 > 0:16:06because some of these ingredients were coming from quite some distance.
0:16:06 > 0:16:10They clearly went to great effort to mummify some animals
0:16:10 > 0:16:13in a similar way that they did with humans.
0:16:21 > 0:16:25The care, attention and expense lavished on an animal to help it
0:16:25 > 0:16:28on its journey to the afterlife may seem extreme.
0:16:30 > 0:16:34But there was one creature whose treatment overshadowed all others.
0:16:40 > 0:16:42A few kilometres south of Cairo
0:16:42 > 0:16:47is one of the most important sites in ancient Egypt, Saqqara.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01Overlooking the ancient city of Memphis,
0:17:01 > 0:17:05Saqqara was a sacred place 5km square.
0:17:09 > 0:17:11And it was the final resting place
0:17:11 > 0:17:15of the most important animal in ancient Egypt.
0:17:23 > 0:17:28A beast so strong, so powerful, so virile,
0:17:28 > 0:17:32it could symbolise the very moment of creation itself.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37It was called the Apis Bull, an animal venerated
0:17:37 > 0:17:43since the dawn of ancient Egypt, as far back as 3,000 BC.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56Dr Aidan Dodson of Bristol University has been studying
0:17:56 > 0:18:00this bull cult for over 20 years.
0:18:00 > 0:18:04The bull was very much a pampered individual.
0:18:04 > 0:18:08It would be massaged, it would be adorned with flowers.
0:18:08 > 0:18:12Certainly a life far above the farmyard.
0:18:14 > 0:18:18Only one sacred Apis Bull could exist at anyone time.
0:18:18 > 0:18:21And when it came to the end of its natural life,
0:18:21 > 0:18:25it was given the equivalent of a state funeral.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29In many ways, the death of one of these sacred bulls
0:18:29 > 0:18:31was almost like the death of the King.
0:18:33 > 0:18:36After taking over two months to mummify,
0:18:36 > 0:18:40the bull was then interred in its own huge sarcophagus
0:18:40 > 0:18:43alongside the Apis Bulls that had lived before it.
0:18:44 > 0:18:49They are perhaps two metres high, three or four metres long,
0:18:49 > 0:18:51absolutely vast things.
0:18:58 > 0:19:03The burial of a sacred bull like the Apis clearly involved
0:19:03 > 0:19:05a vast amount of human effort.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08The people who were quarrying the tomb, those who were making
0:19:08 > 0:19:12the sarcophagus for it, those who were doing the embalming process...
0:19:12 > 0:19:17There is also going to be all kinds of ceremonial around there,
0:19:17 > 0:19:20there is probably feasting around it as well.
0:19:20 > 0:19:24So there is a huge amount of resource being put into this.
0:19:26 > 0:19:30More than 50 Apis Bulls were buried at Saqqara.
0:19:32 > 0:19:34None of their remains survive
0:19:34 > 0:19:38as they were either stolen or destroyed centuries ago.
0:19:40 > 0:19:44But experts do know an extraordinary amount of care and effort
0:19:44 > 0:19:48went into mummifying and burying every one of these great beasts.
0:19:49 > 0:19:52Making the cult of the Apis Bull one of the greatest examples
0:19:52 > 0:19:56of devotion to animals in human history.
0:20:09 > 0:20:11But these bulls were not the only creatures
0:20:11 > 0:20:14the ancient Egyptians venerated.
0:20:16 > 0:20:20The fertile plains of the Nile valley once teamed with animals
0:20:20 > 0:20:22and the people who live there were fascinated
0:20:22 > 0:20:26by their seemingly superhuman abilities.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36JOANNE FLETCHER: Each type of animal embodying certain powers
0:20:36 > 0:20:39that humans didn't have. So this made them special.
0:20:41 > 0:20:45It almost seemed as if the animals did have these magic qualities.
0:20:45 > 0:20:47Cats, for instance, that can see in the dark.
0:20:47 > 0:20:52What a brilliant skill to have. So they had great respect for animals.
0:20:52 > 0:20:56This is because animals had a supernatural sense
0:20:56 > 0:20:58of how nature worked.
0:20:59 > 0:21:03The ancient Egyptians observed that crocodiles could predict
0:21:03 > 0:21:06the levels of the Nile's yearly flood.
0:21:06 > 0:21:11Crocodiles build their nests just above where the flood will come.
0:21:11 > 0:21:15And they do this long in advance of any of the water rising.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18So, by looking at where the crocodiles had made their nests,
0:21:18 > 0:21:21the Egyptians could help predict the height of the flood.
0:21:23 > 0:21:28These seemingly supernatural powers linked animals to their gods.
0:21:28 > 0:21:32Animals were able to do things simple humans couldn't.
0:21:32 > 0:21:36They would see a falcon, the black outline against the sun,
0:21:36 > 0:21:40flying at great heights which to them appear to almost touch the sun.
0:21:40 > 0:21:45So what better creature to embody, to exemplify the great sun god Ra,
0:21:45 > 0:21:47than this wonderful falcon?
0:21:57 > 0:22:01Baboons are associated with the sun god because in the morning,
0:22:01 > 0:22:05just before sunrise, they turn towards where the sun rises,
0:22:05 > 0:22:08stretch up their arms and make a terrible racket.
0:22:13 > 0:22:17So the Egyptians thought the baboons are singing to the sun
0:22:17 > 0:22:21and helping the sun rise and protecting the sun from his enemies.
0:22:23 > 0:22:27Animals were magical creatures who could in fact speak to the gods.
0:22:29 > 0:22:31Of course, not all of them were sacred,
0:22:31 > 0:22:34otherwise they wouldn't eat them or use them to plough the fields.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38So it is only special animals that were regarded as sacred.
0:22:54 > 0:22:57It was believed one of the creatures that could communicate
0:22:57 > 0:23:02with the gods was also one of the most common birds in ancient Egypt.
0:23:02 > 0:23:04It was called the sacred ibis.
0:23:06 > 0:23:11So we can see that its skeleton is in the central part of the bundle.
0:23:12 > 0:23:15In Manchester, the team are scanning an ibis mummy which,
0:23:15 > 0:23:20it is thought, was buried at a site in Middle Egypt called Abydos.
0:23:21 > 0:23:24This is a mummy bundle, presumed to be that of an Ibis
0:23:24 > 0:23:26from the external appearance.
0:23:28 > 0:23:30- Ah, there we go, you see?- Mm.
0:23:32 > 0:23:34The sacred ibis bird has been extinct in Egypt
0:23:34 > 0:23:36since the 19th century.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40But similar species can still be found in Africa.
0:23:40 > 0:23:45So there, we can see the complete skeleton there.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49So it has been positioned with the limbs folded in, the wings folded in,
0:23:49 > 0:23:53and then the neck bent all the way back round the top of the spine.
0:23:53 > 0:23:55So it is essentially upside-down?
0:23:57 > 0:24:00Yes, the head is down towards the feet.
0:24:03 > 0:24:072,500 years ago, huge flocks of ibis would migrate
0:24:07 > 0:24:11to the wetlands of the Nile Valley when it flooded.
0:24:11 > 0:24:16The birds are associated with the Egyptian god of wisdom, Thoth,
0:24:16 > 0:24:19because their long beaks evoked the crescent moon.
0:24:25 > 0:24:29Artefacts found buried with sacred ibis birds provide clues
0:24:29 > 0:24:31to why the ancient Egyptians mummified them.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38MAN SPEAKS ANCIENT LANGUAGE
0:24:43 > 0:24:47Written in ancient demotic script, it is thought these scraps
0:24:47 > 0:24:52of papyrus date from between the second and first centuries BC.
0:25:00 > 0:25:03Experts think they were buried to the south of Saqqara,
0:25:03 > 0:25:06at another religious site called Tuna El-Gebel.
0:25:12 > 0:25:16Now the papyri are held in the storerooms of the British Museum.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22Cary Martin is an expert in ancient languages
0:25:22 > 0:25:24and can translate this demotic text.
0:25:26 > 0:25:27It is a plea from a son
0:25:27 > 0:25:29whose father is desperately ill
0:25:29 > 0:25:33and the son is worried that his father is about to die
0:25:33 > 0:25:34and he says to the gods,
0:25:34 > 0:25:39he is praying to the gods. He says, "If my father recovers,
0:25:39 > 0:25:42"if he does not die of the illness that he is currently suffering in,
0:25:42 > 0:25:46"I will make an offering for the burial of the sacred ibis.
0:25:46 > 0:25:51"I will provide money for this and I will provide it on a regular basis.
0:25:51 > 0:25:57"If my father lives, I will help you, I will honour you, O God."
0:25:57 > 0:26:00So he is desperate, his father is dangerously ill.
0:26:00 > 0:26:04He doesn't know what else to do, he is appealing to the gods for help.
0:26:08 > 0:26:11Pleas to the gods like this one would have been placed
0:26:11 > 0:26:13with the animal mummy before burial.
0:26:14 > 0:26:17An animal mummy was more potent than anything else
0:26:17 > 0:26:19to get your message to the God because of course,
0:26:19 > 0:26:22once the animal died and was mummified,
0:26:22 > 0:26:25its spirit immediately moved into the land of the gods.
0:26:25 > 0:26:28So there, it had direct access to the gods
0:26:28 > 0:26:32and could take your request to them and constantly be there,
0:26:32 > 0:26:35saying, "Hello, God, so-and-so wants such-and-such."
0:26:35 > 0:26:39And constantly be there, reminding the god of your request.
0:26:39 > 0:26:43The divine was an integral part of day-to-day life.
0:26:43 > 0:26:50It was totally and completely tied up in their normal existence.
0:26:50 > 0:26:55And the Egyptians must have had so much faith in what this mummy
0:26:55 > 0:26:59would do for them in terms of the gods granting them their wishes.
0:27:01 > 0:27:04The ancient Egyptians were using animal mummies
0:27:04 > 0:27:06as what are termed votive offerings.
0:27:06 > 0:27:10Vessels to carry their pleas to the gods.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13Votive offerings are not just something you see in ancient Egypt.
0:27:13 > 0:27:15This practice continues today
0:27:15 > 0:27:19because votive candles, which are the same as a votive mummy, really,
0:27:19 > 0:27:20are burnt in churches
0:27:20 > 0:27:23and the smoke is supposed to take your prayer to God.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26So you can see how organised religion today
0:27:26 > 0:27:30still uses the same trope that ancient Egyptians did.
0:27:43 > 0:27:47Different animals were mummified to carry pleas to different gods.
0:27:50 > 0:27:52Just how extensive this practice was
0:27:52 > 0:27:56can be revealed at the sacred site of Saqqara.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13A few hundred metres from the catacomb of the Apis Bulls
0:28:13 > 0:28:16are another set of underground tombs.
0:28:20 > 0:28:22Buried by shifting desert sands,
0:28:22 > 0:28:25they were lost for nearly two millennia.
0:28:33 > 0:28:36Professor Paul Nicholson has been excavating
0:28:36 > 0:28:40and mapping the Saqqara site for over 20 years.
0:28:44 > 0:28:47He first entered this tomb in 1995.
0:28:49 > 0:28:52Now he has returned to explain what he found.
0:29:05 > 0:29:09We have masses and masses of dog mummy.
0:29:09 > 0:29:13You can see it piled here to a depth of over one metre.
0:29:13 > 0:29:14Some thousands of them,
0:29:14 > 0:29:20running back 20 or so metres to the end of the burial gallery.
0:29:20 > 0:29:23Originally, we can imagine that most of them
0:29:23 > 0:29:28would have been nicely stacked one on top of the other in layers.
0:29:28 > 0:29:31They would have been well wrapped and soaked in resin.
0:29:31 > 0:29:35But what has now happened is that that resin has broken down,
0:29:35 > 0:29:39the bandages have gone to powder.
0:29:40 > 0:29:42They have been turned over by robbers
0:29:42 > 0:29:46so that we are left with only a few complete examples
0:29:46 > 0:29:48sitting on the surface of the pile.
0:29:50 > 0:29:55And this is only one of over 40 galleries in the catacomb itself.
0:29:57 > 0:29:58Our estimate is that
0:29:58 > 0:30:02there were somewhere between seven and eight million animals
0:30:02 > 0:30:04originally placed in the dog catacomb.
0:30:07 > 0:30:12It is likely the dog catacombs were in use for around 500 years.
0:30:12 > 0:30:15Meaning to 16,000 dogs were mummified
0:30:15 > 0:30:18and buried here every year.
0:30:22 > 0:30:24The dog catacombs are huge.
0:30:26 > 0:30:29The main corridor is around 170 metres long,
0:30:29 > 0:30:33with galleries leading off it every few metres.
0:30:33 > 0:30:39Originally, each gallery was 1.5 metres deep in dog mummies.
0:30:39 > 0:30:43But this catacomb is only one of at least eight
0:30:43 > 0:30:45underground animal tombs at Saqqara,
0:30:45 > 0:30:50filled with up to 15 million animal mummies of different types.
0:30:50 > 0:30:53And Saqqara is not the only site.
0:30:54 > 0:30:5930 more have been found right across Egypt that may have held
0:30:59 > 0:31:02up to 70,000,000 mummified animals.
0:31:10 > 0:31:14Most experts believe the vast majority of these animal mummies
0:31:14 > 0:31:15were votive offerings.
0:31:18 > 0:31:21These millions of votive mummies that we have,
0:31:21 > 0:31:25each one is the prayer of an individual.
0:31:25 > 0:31:27So they don't just represent a prayer,
0:31:27 > 0:31:31but they represent millions and millions of believers who actually
0:31:31 > 0:31:35went to the temple, made this dedication and believed in that God.
0:31:37 > 0:31:41When animal mummies were given, it was a very formalised system.
0:31:41 > 0:31:45The person who wanted to give the gift would go to the temple,
0:31:45 > 0:31:47talk to a priest and then purchase -
0:31:47 > 0:31:50from the priest, because the temples were not foolish! -
0:31:50 > 0:31:52one kind of animal mummied,
0:31:52 > 0:31:55and then the priest would be in charge of dedicating it formally
0:31:55 > 0:31:59to the god after of course the person had paid the temple.
0:32:01 > 0:32:03Depends on how much one could afford.
0:32:03 > 0:32:06Of course, if you were elite and noble, you could easily go
0:32:06 > 0:32:08and get lots of animal mummies.
0:32:08 > 0:32:11Or else, entire families might club together
0:32:11 > 0:32:16so that one mummy could be dedicated but with the name of lots of people.
0:32:17 > 0:32:23From 500 BC, the demand for animal mummification increased massively.
0:32:23 > 0:32:26More and more people were drawn towards it
0:32:26 > 0:32:29as Egypt's political fortunes changed.
0:32:29 > 0:32:34It seems there was a never-ending series of waves of foreign invasion
0:32:34 > 0:32:37which really threatened their very way of life.
0:32:38 > 0:32:43And so they sought ways in which they could best express themselves as a nation
0:32:43 > 0:32:47and what typified the Egyptians above all other nations
0:32:47 > 0:32:51was their ability to mummify, to preserve their dead.
0:32:51 > 0:32:54The Egyptians turned to their religion,
0:32:54 > 0:32:58turned to animal mummification as a means of demonstrating that
0:32:58 > 0:33:00to all these foreigners that were coming in.
0:33:02 > 0:33:06This was a way for them to find themselves, feel more secure
0:33:06 > 0:33:08and establish their identity.
0:33:08 > 0:33:14MUEZZIN CHANTS
0:33:17 > 0:33:21To account for the millions of animal mummies found at Saqqara,
0:33:21 > 0:33:26experts think that large religious festivals must have been held there,
0:33:26 > 0:33:29attracting pilgrims from across the country.
0:33:29 > 0:33:32Thousands and thousands of people would probably flock there
0:33:32 > 0:33:34for the big celebrations.
0:33:36 > 0:33:38So you would have lots of people there,
0:33:38 > 0:33:43you would have lots of people buying things, selling things, food, drink.
0:33:43 > 0:33:48So it would be densely populated, very lively, noisy, smelly.
0:33:48 > 0:33:51And it would be really a mass festival,
0:33:51 > 0:33:55the same way you have at important shrines nowadays.
0:33:58 > 0:34:01Early writers suggest hundreds of thousands of pilgrims
0:34:01 > 0:34:06were visiting Saqqara, spending huge amounts on votive offerings.
0:34:08 > 0:34:12The personal ritual of offering an animal mummy to a god
0:34:12 > 0:34:14had become big business.
0:34:15 > 0:34:19When one looks at the number of sites where animal mummies
0:34:19 > 0:34:24occur throughout Egypt, you can tell that this was a massive industry.
0:34:24 > 0:34:26Because you had to have people all over the country
0:34:26 > 0:34:29who are rearing different kinds of animals,
0:34:29 > 0:34:31you have to feed them, you have to look after them.
0:34:31 > 0:34:34Then there are people who are going to mummify them.
0:34:34 > 0:34:37So you need all the materials that were used for mummification
0:34:37 > 0:34:39as well as all the personnel.
0:34:41 > 0:34:46People were expending huge amounts of money on bandages and paint,
0:34:46 > 0:34:51plaster, gilding, maybe even glass eyes.
0:34:51 > 0:34:55All kinds of stuff in order to produce these animal mummies.
0:34:55 > 0:34:59And this had a huge impact on the economy of Egypt.
0:35:05 > 0:35:08In using animal mummies to carry their pleas to the gods,
0:35:08 > 0:35:12the Ancient Egyptians transformed the rare and special act
0:35:12 > 0:35:13into a mass industry.
0:35:20 > 0:35:23Latest imaging techniques have given archaeologists
0:35:23 > 0:35:25more insight into why.
0:35:36 > 0:35:40But now, medical and forensic science is also revealing how
0:35:40 > 0:35:43this huge industry actually worked.
0:35:47 > 0:35:52At Swansea University, materials scientist Dr Richard Johnston
0:35:52 > 0:35:57is using the latest industrial technology to study a mummified cat.
0:36:02 > 0:36:04Little is known about its origins
0:36:04 > 0:36:09but the style of its wrappings suggests it died around 600 BC.
0:36:15 > 0:36:20The micro-CT scanner produces images with 100 times
0:36:20 > 0:36:22the resolution of normal CT scans.
0:36:24 > 0:36:28Zoo archaeologist Dr Richard Thomas from the University of Leicester
0:36:28 > 0:36:32can use them to determine how this cat may have lived and died.
0:36:33 > 0:36:36And then if we remove the wrappings completely...
0:36:37 > 0:36:40..so we can just see the bones then.
0:36:40 > 0:36:42Fantastic. It's amazingly clear.
0:36:46 > 0:36:50The scans are so detailed they allow a 3-D printer to create
0:36:50 > 0:36:53an exact replica of the skull.
0:37:06 > 0:37:10For the first time, Richard can actually feel the bones for himself.
0:37:10 > 0:37:14- This is around two and a half times the size of the original skull.- OK.
0:37:14 > 0:37:18It's amazing, the level of detail. It's incredible.
0:37:18 > 0:37:22There may be evidence this cat didn't die naturally.
0:37:22 > 0:37:25One of the things that's strikingly obvious is that
0:37:25 > 0:37:27you've got a real big piece of skull missing.
0:37:29 > 0:37:32- So where on earth did those bits of skull go?- OK.
0:37:32 > 0:37:35If that damage occurred before mummification,
0:37:35 > 0:37:38then we wouldn't expect to find any evidence for those
0:37:38 > 0:37:41bits of skull, they would tended to have fallen away from the skull.
0:37:41 > 0:37:44Can you show me an image that might help see
0:37:44 > 0:37:49- if we've got any parts of that skull actually within the brain case?- Yes.
0:37:49 > 0:37:54If we look at this image, this is a slice or plane through the skull.
0:37:54 > 0:37:57This is a really helpful image in fact, actually.
0:37:57 > 0:38:00You can see where the missing portions of the skull are,
0:38:00 > 0:38:03that have broken away and fallen into the brain casing.
0:38:03 > 0:38:05So what that tells us immediately is that this damage
0:38:05 > 0:38:09must have happened after mummification.
0:38:09 > 0:38:11So clearly this cat mummy has not been well
0:38:11 > 0:38:13treated following mummification.
0:38:13 > 0:38:17But is there anything within this that suggests that we might
0:38:17 > 0:38:20come up with a theory for how it was killed?
0:38:20 > 0:38:24- Well, can we have another look? That might give us some useful clues.- OK.
0:38:25 > 0:38:29- Erm, so, can have a look at the teeth?- Yeah.
0:38:29 > 0:38:33So, the first thing that I can tell is that this cat has a full
0:38:33 > 0:38:38adult set of teeth. So this cat must have been older than six months.
0:38:38 > 0:38:41And if we take a really close look at the mandible...
0:38:41 > 0:38:47we can see that there's no signs of gum disease, there's no tooth loss.
0:38:47 > 0:38:50This happened during the course of the life of this animal,
0:38:50 > 0:38:53which is the kind of thing we would expect if it was a very old cat.
0:38:53 > 0:38:54So, what else can we see?
0:38:54 > 0:38:56Here you've got the vertebrae of the neck
0:38:56 > 0:38:58and you see how tightly packed and close together they are,
0:38:58 > 0:39:00whereas in between these two vertebrae,
0:39:00 > 0:39:02you've got this separation -
0:39:02 > 0:39:06there's this kind of big gap that shouldn't be there, effectively.
0:39:06 > 0:39:08In all mammals, the atlas
0:39:08 > 0:39:12and axis are the top two vertebrae of the neck.
0:39:12 > 0:39:15In a cat this size, they should only be a few millimetres apart.
0:39:17 > 0:39:22Now, one possibility is that that kind of displacement
0:39:22 > 0:39:27of the cervical vertebrae can occur through strangulation
0:39:27 > 0:39:29or the breaking of the neck of an animal.
0:39:29 > 0:39:33That would be a fairly instantaneous cause of death
0:39:33 > 0:39:36and the strongest possible clue we have
0:39:36 > 0:39:38- to how this animal may have died.- OK.
0:39:45 > 0:39:48But this cat isn't the only animal mummy which shows
0:39:48 > 0:39:51signs of being deliberately killed.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58So, this is the upper part of the skull and actually,
0:39:58 > 0:39:59there looks to be a defect there.
0:39:59 > 0:40:02Can you see on the skull, on the top of the skull?
0:40:02 > 0:40:05So there is a bit of bone actually missing there.
0:40:05 > 0:40:09The Manchester team are grappling with their largest mummy,
0:40:09 > 0:40:12- a Nile crocodile. - Get ready to catch him.
0:40:12 > 0:40:16- He's actually quite heavy. - It's all that resin, I think.
0:40:16 > 0:40:19Just move him back in there now. That's it. Nice and slowly.
0:40:21 > 0:40:23Make sure he doesn't come a cropper.
0:40:25 > 0:40:26That's brilliant, okey doke.
0:40:26 > 0:40:28At nearly two metres long,
0:40:28 > 0:40:32the team estimate it must have been around five years old when it died.
0:40:34 > 0:40:37The fracture pattern to the crocodile's skull suggests
0:40:37 > 0:40:40this was a fatal blow delivered before it was mummified.
0:40:42 > 0:40:44But the scans reveal more.
0:40:44 > 0:40:46Something has happened here.
0:40:47 > 0:40:51The ancient embalmer who mummified this crocodile didn't use
0:40:51 > 0:40:53the most thorough techniques.
0:40:54 > 0:40:55So, can we scroll through?
0:40:58 > 0:41:02So, these little opacities here are most probably gastroliths
0:41:02 > 0:41:07which crocodiles swallow. So they ingest food in big chunks,
0:41:07 > 0:41:11often whole, and then they use stones which they have ingested
0:41:11 > 0:41:14to break up the food.
0:41:14 > 0:41:17But of course, that does prove that it's still got its internal organs,
0:41:17 > 0:41:20- because they are still in the abdomen.- They've not been...
0:41:20 > 0:41:21It's not been eviscerated.
0:41:23 > 0:41:27The reason that votive animal mummies are probably not as carefully
0:41:27 > 0:41:31made as other kinds of animal mummies is because they were mass produced.
0:41:31 > 0:41:34Because when you had pilgrims come, you need thousands
0:41:34 > 0:41:36and thousands of these things
0:41:36 > 0:41:39and so if you want to have a quick production line,
0:41:39 > 0:41:42you can't expend the same amount of time, effort,
0:41:42 > 0:41:47energy and quality of materials as you would for a pet or a human being.
0:41:50 > 0:41:54These less sophisticated mummification techniques enabled
0:41:54 > 0:41:58the embalmers to produce animal mummies more quickly and cheaply.
0:42:03 > 0:42:07But that couldn't solve the most serious problem they faced -
0:42:07 > 0:42:11how to ensure they had a steady supply of animals to meet
0:42:11 > 0:42:13the demand of visiting pilgrims.
0:42:32 > 0:42:38Lost for over 2,000 years, this ibis bird catacomb at Saqqara
0:42:38 > 0:42:42was rediscovered by archaeologists in the 1960s.
0:42:42 > 0:42:44THEY SPEAK OWN LANGUAGE
0:42:45 > 0:42:47It's been sealed for 20 years.
0:42:49 > 0:42:53Now, molecular biologist Sally Wasef is going to re-enter the tomb.
0:43:16 > 0:43:20Over two million mummified ibis birds are buried in this catacomb.
0:43:22 > 0:43:25Sally is hoping to understand how they were supplied
0:43:25 > 0:43:28for mummification by comparing samples of their DNA.
0:43:30 > 0:43:35The DNA is usually not in a very good condition because inside a catacomb,
0:43:35 > 0:43:37it's really hot and humid
0:43:37 > 0:43:41and that helps degradation to be faster for the DNA.
0:43:41 > 0:43:45But Ancient Egyptians helped us by mummifying the birds which
0:43:45 > 0:43:48slowed the degradation process,
0:43:48 > 0:43:50so it helped to preserve some of the DNA.
0:43:52 > 0:43:56Unlike the mummy collectors of the 19th century, Sally works
0:43:56 > 0:44:00to strict rules on which bones she can take away as samples.
0:44:01 > 0:44:06Such a mummy, I'm not allowed to open it or take samples from
0:44:06 > 0:44:10because it's fully wrapped and inside the jar.
0:44:10 > 0:44:14So I usually sample from those broken stuff
0:44:14 > 0:44:17where you can see the bones loose,
0:44:17 > 0:44:19and such a bone is nice.
0:44:19 > 0:44:22Still have the skin intact,
0:44:22 > 0:44:26the feathers and everything which give me more indications
0:44:26 > 0:44:30that most likely I'll be ending up with good DNA quality from this bone.
0:44:33 > 0:44:37Back in the lab, Sally will be able to reconstruct the DNA of this
0:44:37 > 0:44:41mummified bird from the fragment still contained in its bones.
0:44:44 > 0:44:47She can then compare it to other birds in the catacomb
0:44:47 > 0:44:50to determine how closely they were related to each other.
0:44:52 > 0:44:56Once we have that DNA picture completed, what we do
0:44:56 > 0:45:00is that we look at how those are different from each other.
0:45:00 > 0:45:02Are they close together?
0:45:02 > 0:45:07If we find a lot of similarity between a large number of birds,
0:45:07 > 0:45:11we can say, "OK, those birds were raised together,
0:45:11 > 0:45:15"they were farmed," or if you have too many variations,
0:45:15 > 0:45:19actually they are caught from the wild or migrating from outside Egypt.
0:45:22 > 0:45:24Sally's research is ongoing.
0:45:26 > 0:45:29But so far, results have suggested there is a low genetic
0:45:29 > 0:45:32variance between the mummified ibis birds at Saqqara.
0:45:34 > 0:45:39If proven, it's evidence the birds were being farmed to satisfy
0:45:39 > 0:45:42the increasing demand for animal mummies.
0:45:48 > 0:45:52700 metres away in Saqqara's dog catacomb,
0:45:52 > 0:45:56the remains of eight million dog mummies suggest a mass breeding
0:45:56 > 0:46:01programme for dogs as well as ibis birds must have been in place.
0:46:04 > 0:46:08Professor Ikram has been studying the piles of bones.
0:46:08 > 0:46:12She has found more evidence of how this animal production line
0:46:12 > 0:46:13could have worked.
0:46:15 > 0:46:19One of the things we found is that there are really diverse ages
0:46:19 > 0:46:21and you can tell this from the jawbones,
0:46:21 > 0:46:24because you get these, sort of, teeny-weeny little jaws
0:46:24 > 0:46:28and then you have huge things. And then they would have taken
0:46:28 > 0:46:32the puppies away when they were, well, very young,
0:46:32 > 0:46:35either drowned them or just removed them
0:46:35 > 0:46:38from their mother's care so they would have died quite quickly
0:46:38 > 0:46:39and could have been mummified.
0:46:39 > 0:46:42And then, of course, their mothers would have whelped again
0:46:42 > 0:46:45and so you would have forced the breeding to, instead of once
0:46:45 > 0:46:48or twice a year, to twice or three times a year, which kept this
0:46:48 > 0:46:52puppy farm going and gave us the eight million dogs that we have here.
0:46:54 > 0:46:56Now these bones can reveal more.
0:46:57 > 0:47:00There is evidence of how the dogs at Saqqara were treated.
0:47:02 > 0:47:04We have evidence for a lot of sick animals,
0:47:04 > 0:47:08for example something like this where there are holes.
0:47:10 > 0:47:13You can see where the bone has grown over,
0:47:13 > 0:47:16so this has been a diseased animal that would have been limping
0:47:16 > 0:47:20on its foreleg and it died when it was quite young.
0:47:22 > 0:47:26Here's another one which has some sort of horrible growth
0:47:26 > 0:47:28coming out from an infection.
0:47:28 > 0:47:32Often you see this kind of extreme disease on zoo animals,
0:47:32 > 0:47:36where they have been kept in confined spaces, so this is why
0:47:36 > 0:47:40we think that quite possibly the dogs were kept in enclosures,
0:47:40 > 0:47:43they weren't always allowed to move freely if they got infected
0:47:43 > 0:47:45because the people who were looking after them
0:47:45 > 0:47:47knew that they'd be dead soon enough.
0:47:47 > 0:47:49They didn't really bother to take care of them.
0:47:51 > 0:47:54It's very likely that many of the dogs that ultimately
0:47:54 > 0:47:58find their way into the dog catacomb would have been bred
0:47:58 > 0:48:00in and around ancient Memphis,
0:48:00 > 0:48:05probably in a series of puppy farms breeding perhaps
0:48:05 > 0:48:08dozens of animals at a time for mummification.
0:48:10 > 0:48:15The whole question of the killing of animals is quite a difficult one,
0:48:15 > 0:48:20quite an emotive one for us from a 21st century perspective.
0:48:20 > 0:48:23However, what we have to bear in mind is that what
0:48:23 > 0:48:28they were doing was providing for the eternity of that animal,
0:48:28 > 0:48:33providing a suitable burial for a representative of a God.
0:48:33 > 0:48:35So what they were doing was a sacred act.
0:48:37 > 0:48:40By the end of the fifth century BC,
0:48:40 > 0:48:43these private rituals had grown into a national obsession.
0:48:45 > 0:48:49Animals were being bred, killed and mummified at sites right across
0:48:49 > 0:48:55the country, employing thousands of workers and generating huge profits.
0:49:03 > 0:49:06And then, 200 years later,
0:49:06 > 0:49:10another huge political upheaval shook Ancient Egypt -
0:49:10 > 0:49:13the ruling Persians were replaced by Greeks
0:49:13 > 0:49:17who poured money into animal cults.
0:49:17 > 0:49:21It became a massive, massive growth industry, even more than before.
0:49:21 > 0:49:25They were spending the equivalent of millions today on maintaining cults
0:49:25 > 0:49:30that were for the Egyptians crucial to the continuation of this culture.
0:49:32 > 0:49:35Animal mummification had become a tool of state control.
0:49:37 > 0:49:39Religion is a very unifying force
0:49:39 > 0:49:42and politically... It's every politician's dream.
0:49:42 > 0:49:47If you have got this idea of mass control over millions of people
0:49:47 > 0:49:51through a form of religion you ultimately fund and sustain,
0:49:51 > 0:49:54it's brilliant, because you have control of those people.
0:50:00 > 0:50:04Dozens of new temples were built, encouraging more and more
0:50:04 > 0:50:08pilgrims to visit sites like Saqqara and purchase animal mummies.
0:50:11 > 0:50:15But cracks were beginning to appear in the burgeoning industry.
0:50:15 > 0:50:18It seems the embalmers had problems keeping up with the demand.
0:50:21 > 0:50:26- There's the tissue paper. Oh! - Aw, that's cute.- Lovely.
0:50:26 > 0:50:28- He's got a nice face. - Nice face, nice ears.
0:50:28 > 0:50:30- Shall we move him in, then?- OK.
0:50:33 > 0:50:36It's thought this beautiful cat mummy was buried at a site
0:50:36 > 0:50:38called Beni Hasan in Middle Egypt.
0:50:40 > 0:50:44But this mummy is not all it seems to be.
0:50:44 > 0:50:47It's got the nice modelled face with a little roll of linen
0:50:47 > 0:50:49for the nose and then two eyes.
0:50:52 > 0:50:55It's very cylindrical, it's quite typical of a cat mummy.
0:50:56 > 0:50:58Have a look what's inside.
0:50:59 > 0:51:01What's inside?
0:51:01 > 0:51:03- Oh.- Mmm.
0:51:03 > 0:51:08- Oh.- Not an awful lot, is the answer to that.- Oh, yeah.
0:51:08 > 0:51:11- Would you say that's bone? - It's got the density of bone.
0:51:11 > 0:51:15- Would you agree?- There's not limbs or anything like that.
0:51:15 > 0:51:19You can't see long bits of, you know, limbs or anything like that.
0:51:19 > 0:51:24- Oh, vertebrae.- That's about the most substantial, isn't it, really?
0:51:24 > 0:51:28Certainly not the complete cat skeleton we were imagining
0:51:28 > 0:51:29we would see.
0:51:29 > 0:51:34What you see on the outside is not always what you see on the inside.
0:51:34 > 0:51:37If they are skeletal remains, they are in that area there.
0:51:37 > 0:51:41So they've made a kind of core, if you like, from bits
0:51:41 > 0:51:44and pieces that were lying around and then they've made it quite
0:51:44 > 0:51:48- deliberately elongated and made into a much bigger bundle.- Artificially.
0:51:48 > 0:51:50It's been very decoratively wrapped
0:51:50 > 0:51:52and then given this wonderful modelled face.
0:51:55 > 0:51:59In fact, these incomplete or partial animal mummies have been
0:51:59 > 0:52:02a common feature of Lidija's study,
0:52:02 > 0:52:04their contents hidden from pilgrims
0:52:04 > 0:52:07and museum curators for thousands of years.
0:52:08 > 0:52:11We found that in about two thirds of the cases,
0:52:11 > 0:52:15we have got some animal skeletal material, but then
0:52:15 > 0:52:19only in about half of those do we have a complete animal skeleton.
0:52:19 > 0:52:22So somewhere between a third and a half of all the mummies
0:52:22 > 0:52:24we have looked at have a complete animal inside.
0:52:26 > 0:52:30Most 19th and 20th century Egyptologists thought this
0:52:30 > 0:52:34was evidence the embalmers, either struggling to keep up with
0:52:34 > 0:52:37the demand for animals or just keen to make some easy cash,
0:52:37 > 0:52:39were swindling pilgrims by selling them
0:52:39 > 0:52:42fake mummies without their knowledge.
0:52:44 > 0:52:46But by analysing the wrappings and resin
0:52:46 > 0:52:49used in the mummification process,
0:52:49 > 0:52:53scientists like Stephen Buckley are challenging this assumption.
0:52:53 > 0:52:57What's interesting is that we are seeing a recipe...
0:52:57 > 0:53:00Different recipes for different animals.
0:53:00 > 0:53:03We found with cat mummies, for example,
0:53:03 > 0:53:05pistachio resin from the north-east Mediterranean.
0:53:07 > 0:53:11And yet, the crocodile mummy, we found sandarac,
0:53:11 > 0:53:15a resin from north-west Africa from the Atlas Mountains.
0:53:15 > 0:53:18The molecular fingerprint, if you like, is showing us that they
0:53:18 > 0:53:23were using exotic, expensive ingredients from far and wide,
0:53:23 > 0:53:25so quite a lot of care and expense.
0:53:27 > 0:53:31Crucially, Stephen has found traces of expensive resins not only
0:53:31 > 0:53:35on the complete animal mummies but on the partial ones as well.
0:53:36 > 0:53:39With these so-called fakes,
0:53:39 > 0:53:44the embalming agents, where they're using costly imported ingredients,
0:53:44 > 0:53:49the recipes are the same as those used on those mummies
0:53:49 > 0:53:52where the full animal is there.
0:53:52 > 0:53:54So the fake mummies are actually,
0:53:54 > 0:53:57as far as the embalming agents were concerned, treated with
0:53:57 > 0:54:00the same amount of effort and care and expense,
0:54:00 > 0:54:04and it seems to be that with that, whether it was just a bone or
0:54:04 > 0:54:07the real animal, as long as the recipe was there,
0:54:07 > 0:54:11as long as it looked right, that was good enough for the gods.
0:54:13 > 0:54:16It's scientific proof of the embalmer's intentions.
0:54:16 > 0:54:20To the Ancient Egyptians, even the tiniest fragment of bone
0:54:20 > 0:54:25must have been deemed sacred and worthy of mummification.
0:54:25 > 0:54:29You've got to remember these things were presumably made to be sold,
0:54:29 > 0:54:33sold to pilgrims, so you want your product to be attractive
0:54:33 > 0:54:36and maybe it's sufficient to have the sweepings from the workshop.
0:54:36 > 0:54:40That's got enough magical, religious power
0:54:40 > 0:54:43to satisfy your plea to the gods.
0:54:43 > 0:54:47It's suitable for the goddess Bastet, presumably, the cat goddess,
0:54:47 > 0:54:50and that's, you know, the job's a good 'un.
0:54:59 > 0:55:03700 years after high priestess Maatkare had been buried
0:55:03 > 0:55:08with her pet monkey, Ancient Egyptian animal mummification had
0:55:08 > 0:55:14grown from a few elite to pets and sacred animals into a vast religious
0:55:14 > 0:55:19cult and an industry ingrained in the fabric of society
0:55:19 > 0:55:22where animals were not only killed to be mummified
0:55:22 > 0:55:26but were intensively bred in their millions to satisfy
0:55:26 > 0:55:29a national obsession with animal mummification.
0:55:31 > 0:55:34These mummies give one an insight,
0:55:34 > 0:55:39a way into understanding Egyptian history - the culture, the religion,
0:55:39 > 0:55:43the technology and the way people might have felt,
0:55:43 > 0:55:45believed and thought -
0:55:45 > 0:55:49and also the relationship between human beings and animals,
0:55:49 > 0:55:53so it really is an astonishing way in to understanding
0:55:53 > 0:55:57a vast number of things about the Ancient Egyptians.
0:56:00 > 0:56:04But the ritual of animal mummification wasn't to last.
0:56:12 > 0:56:17In 380 AD, the Romans, who had conquered Egypt nearly four
0:56:17 > 0:56:21centuries before, officially converted to Christianity -
0:56:21 > 0:56:24a new religion that fiercely opposed all forms
0:56:24 > 0:56:27of mummification and animal cults.
0:56:29 > 0:56:32All Egyptian temples were closed down.
0:56:32 > 0:56:37Not only did this prevent worship continuing, but each temple
0:56:37 > 0:56:41functioned as a kind of town hall for every settlement throughout Egypt.
0:56:41 > 0:56:42So by closing the temple,
0:56:42 > 0:56:45you not only put an end to the pagan practices of worship,
0:56:45 > 0:56:48but also the transmission of ideas,
0:56:48 > 0:56:51the mummification of humans and animals.
0:56:53 > 0:56:56The demise of animal mummification didn't only signal
0:56:56 > 0:57:01the end of its religion, but the entire Egyptian civilisation.
0:57:03 > 0:57:06The early Christians did everything they could to distance themselves
0:57:06 > 0:57:09from these pagan practices and that's when you see a great divide.
0:57:09 > 0:57:13And of course, we in the modern West have gone with the Christian notions,
0:57:13 > 0:57:15the Ancient Egyptians are left over there,
0:57:15 > 0:57:20and that's why today we see their practices, their beliefs as quite
0:57:20 > 0:57:23strange, different to ours, and they can be quite difficult to understand.
0:57:23 > 0:57:25And I think this is nowhere better exemplified
0:57:25 > 0:57:28than in their practice of animal mummification.
0:57:34 > 0:57:38The great era of Ancient Egypt had ended.
0:57:39 > 0:57:42The immense pyramids and imposing temples
0:57:42 > 0:57:46would stand for thousands more years,
0:57:46 > 0:57:49but the rituals of animal mummification
0:57:49 > 0:57:50became a distant memory.
0:57:52 > 0:57:55The desert sands gradually covered the catacombs
0:57:55 > 0:57:57and locked away their secrets.
0:57:58 > 0:58:02Now, modern scientific techniques are allowing these sacred
0:58:02 > 0:58:05animals finally to tell their story.
0:58:07 > 0:58:11One last message carried from the afterlife.