Imaging technology shows tattoo with name of The Archangel Michael
on remains of young Egyptian woman from 700 A.D.
By Gene J. Koprowski

Scientists at leading Catholic universities in the U.S. are calling the discovery of a mummy of an Egyptian woman from 700 A.D., with a tattoo of the name of the Biblical Archangel, Michael, on her thigh a "remarkable" discovery. The archeological find, announced by researchers at the British Museum, over the weekend, was made during a research project using advanced medical scans, including Computed Tomography (CT) images, of Egyptian mummies at a number of U.K. hospitals, after hours, during a period of several months last year.

"The British Museum find is remarkable," Villanova University Biology Professor Michael Zimmerman, and noted expert on the forensics of mummies, tells Foxnews.com.
The discovery of the new facts about the mummy, and seven others, are being revealed in advance of a forthcoming exhibition at the British Museum, entitled, "Ancient Lives: New Discoveries," which is scheduled to run from May 22 to November 30, 2014, and may be the biggest such exhibition of Egyptian artifacts since the King Tut exhibit of decades ago.
John Taylor, lead curator of the ancient Egypt and Sudan department at the British Museum, in London, told a local newspaper at the weekend that the exhibition is designed to tell the story of the lives of eight people from antiquity, portraying them as full human beings, rather than archeological objects.

Using sophisticated medical imaging, usually reserved to study strokes, or heart attacks, the research team discovered that these eight ancient individuals, whose remains had been with the museum for some time already, had many of the same traits that modern man does, including dental problems, high cholesterol levels, and tattoos.

CT scans are usually used by physicians to generate 3D images of patients' organs, bones and tissue. The technology uses X-ray technology, and recombines the images in 3D format.

Researchers point out that even regular Egyptians - not just the royals - were mummified, and the exhibition in London portrays one mummy that is 5,500 years old and dates back to 3,500 BC, as well as the tatooed female aged between 20 and 35, who lived and died about 1,300 years ago.

The female mummy, the remains of which were found less than a decade ago, was so well preserved that archaeologists could nearly discern the tattoo on her skin on the inner thigh of her right leg, unaided by technology. But medical infra-red technology helped them see it clearly, and what a sight it was.