Mummies

See mummies as you never have before in this rare, close-up look at mummies from the two places in the world with the longest and most interesting mummification traditions: ancient Egypt and ancient Peru. 

Comprised entirely of objects from The Field’s own collection, the exhibition includes 14 mummies, exquisitely painted coffins, stone sarcophagus fragments, ceramics, mummified animals, and mummy masks. Using non-invasive CT scanning, DNA analysis, and other cutting-edge technologies, Field Museum scientists pare back thousands of years and reveal the people behind gilded coffins and carefully wrapped bundles. Scans of the intricately wrapped “Gilded Lady” mummy of ancient Egypt reveal small details that show us what she looked like.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.