Secret of Mummies
National Geographic
© Davide Monteleone
Davide Monteleone photographed a story on the Institute for Mummy Studies in Bolzano, one of the world’s leading centres for the scientific analysis of ancient human remains. The assignment follows researchers as they use DNA sequencing, microbiology, CT scans, and biomolecular analysis to extract new information from mummies, preserved organs, and ancient paleofeces, including material connected to Otzi the Iceman and Iron Age miners from Hallstatt. The work reveals how today’s scientific imaging and genetic tools are transforming mummies from archaeological curiosities into highly complex archives of diet, disease, migration, and everyday life.
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