About This Book

FACT: Sand in their bread caused serious tooth problems for the ancient Egyptians, peasants, and pharaohs alike.
FACT: Skull surgery was commonly performed by the Inca Indians of Peru.
FACT: A thick soup made of grain and seeds was a typical winter meal in Denmark during the Iron Age.

How can we be so sure of what ancient life was like? Largely because mummies have begun to "talk" to scientists. X-rays allow scientists to study mummies that have never been unwrapped! Scientists can examine the bones of a mummy and figure out the age of death, signs of disease, and fractures that healed. The teeth reveal information about diet and health. Sometimes a mummy offers a surprise. A mummy long thought to be the child of a high priestess turned out to be a baboon!

Generously illustrated with photographs ranging from the gruesome to the starkly beautiful, Tales Mummies Tell is a remarkable account of mummies — intriguing storytellers from the past — and the way scientists unlock their secrets.