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The pagan origins of three Catholic practices
A few traditions in the Roman Catholic Church can be traced back to pagan cults, rites, and deities.
20 February, 2020
Photo by Josh Applegate / Unsplash
- The Catholic rite of Holy Communion parallels pre-Christian Greco-Roman and Egyptian rituals that involved eating the body and blood of a god.
- A number of Catholic holidays and myths, such as Christmas, Easter, and Mardi Gras, graph onto the timeline of pre-Christian fertility festivals.
- The Catholic practice of praying to saints has been called "de-facto idolatry" and even a relic of goddess worship.
<p>By the fourth century, the Christian Church had established itself as the official faith of the Roman Empire through a successful grassroots campaign to dominate, and almost exterminate, paganism. But did it? </p><p>In reality, the early Church had to merge itself with pagan practices and beliefs in order to blend into Roman society. In the rites and symbols of the Roman Catholic Church, we can find surviving, though rebranded, pre-Christian myths, deities, festivals, and rituals. Here are three Catholic practices that can be traced back to ancient pagan religions and cults.</p>
Transubstantiation
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMjc4MDMzOS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxMTg5MTM2NH0.rpSOYmtmT3s5HJTxX2MHmg9uiq5v_cQsvM4e4JSE6bc/img.jpg?width=1245&coordinates=0%2C445%2C0%2C445&height=700" id="10194" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="b4dba99f0925a7867132356f63cfed37" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />Photo by Debby Hudson / Unsplash
<p>One of the more fascinating elements of Catholicism is the ritual cannibalistic consumption of their "demigod" known as Holy Communion or Eucharist. During Catholic mass, <a href="https://www.uscatholic.org/articles/201706/where-do-hosts-come-31037" target="_blank">bread</a> and wine are transformed into the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ, who is considered the son of God, in a rite called "transubstantiation." This isn't a symbolic transformation. <a href="http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p2s2c1a3.htm" target="_blank">A core teaching</a> of the Catholic faith is the belief in literal transubstantiation. Practitioners eat the body and blood of Christ to become one with God.</p><p>Similar rituals were practiced in the underground "mystery religions" of the Greco-Roman world. In a few of those occult religions, celebrants shared a communal meal in which they symbolically feasted on the flesh and got drunk on the blood of their god. For example, <a href="https://www.ancient.eu/Mithraic_Mysteries/" target="_blank">the Mithraic Mysteries</a>, or Mithraism, was a mystery cult practiced in the Roman Empire in 300 BC in which followers worshipped the Indo-Iranian deity Mithram, the god of friendship, contract, and order. Mirroring the Catholic Eucharistic rite, the idea of transubstantiation was a characteristic of Mithraic sacraments that included cake and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haoma" target="_blank">Haoma drink</a>. But the ritual probably wasn't original to Mithraism either. In Egypt around 3100 BC, priests would consecrate cakes which were to become the flesh of the god Osiris and eaten.</p>Holy Days and Carnivals
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMjc4MDM0Ni9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyNjIwNDU1N30.wU_6PRocoZKY63msF-07RuVgfAbQmNpJqk9AunwpMs4/img.jpg?width=1245&coordinates=0%2C202%2C0%2C202&height=700" id="d13d6" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="e82e5ad02156aa156fd726274050fb66" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />Photo by Lívia Chauar / Unsplash
<p>The survival of ancient communities was intimately dependent upon the fertility of the land, so their religious symbolism and festivals reflected this fundamental bond between humans and the cycles of nature. A number of Catholic holidays and myths parallel the timeline and adopt the symbols of pre-Christian fertility festivals. In Catholicism, Jesus Christ is thought to have been born on December 25, Christmas Day. In pre-Christian Roman religions, the Winter Solstice was a core sacred event that took place on December 25 at the time of the Julian calendar. The best known custom was the Roman festival of Saturnalia, which was celebrated similar to Christmas with drinking, fires, gift-giving, and tree worship. </p><p>Similarly, the Catholic Fat Tuesday, otherwise known as Mardi Gras, is rooted in the pre-Christian Roman celebration of Lupercalia. A February holiday honoring the Roman god of fertility, its customs involved feasting, drinking, and "carnal behavior." Today, the same can be said of Mardi Gras, when Catholics (as well as non-Catholics) eat festival foods and party before abstaining for 40 days during Lent. </p><p>When it comes to Easter, celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox, the symbolic story of the death of a god (or sun/son) and springtime rebirth is a tale as old as time. The spring equinox was recognized by <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2010/apr/03/easter-pagan-symbolism" target="_blank">various pagan cults</a> as a festival marking the resurrection of light triumphing over darkness and the fresh fecundity of the land. One such festival was Eostre, which celebrated a northern goddess of the same name. Her symbol was the prolific hare representing fertility.</p><p>Speaking of goddesses...</p>Goddess Worship: The Virgin Mary and Saint Brigid
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMjc4MDMzNi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxNDAwMzY2OX0.XxCP-VNBsWx9O7sir9wIMJcUVsiFkvaRfa_GgyuIFJA/img.jpg?width=1245&coordinates=0%2C572%2C0%2C3339&height=700" id="e519b" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a5969e079ce629e1171f8650ea3346a8" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />Photo by Grant Whitty / Unsplash
<p>Though theoretically monotheistic, the Catholic practice of praying to saints has been called "de-facto idolatry" and even a relic of goddess worship. Rebranded pagan goddesses can be found in the Catholic Church today in forms of Saint Brigid and the Virgin Mary. </p><p>Mary, the Virgin Mother of Christ, is arguably the most important Catholic icon save for the Holy Trinity. She's likely the amalgamation of pre-Christian mother goddesses from antiquity whose ranks include Artemis, Demeter, Diana, Hera, Isis, and Venus. The cult of the Egyptian goddess Isis may have had a particularly strong influence on Christian myth. While historical records can not substantiate this entirely, there is <a href="http://www.columbia.edu/~sf2220/Thing/web-content/Pages/meg2.html" target="_blank">physical evidence</a> of statues of Isis cradling Horus that were converted and reused as the Virgin Mary holding Jesus. </p><p>Brigid, the beloved Celtic goddess associated with fertility and healing, is perhaps the clearest example of the survival of an early goddess into Catholicism. Practitioners, <a href="https://twitter.com/PresidentIRL/status/1223182697142607872" target="_blank">particularly in Ireland</a>, pay tribute to <a href="https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=453" target="_blank">Saint Brigid of Ireland</a> who shares many of the early goddess's attributes. Her feast day on the first of February falls around the same time as the pagan celebration of Imbolc.</p><p>The appropriation of these pagan practices and symbols by the Catholic Church shows how, as social interests change and new institutions are established, religious myths and practices are not so easily exterminated. Today, millions of Catholics eating the body and blood of their god, bowing their heads to feminine idols and celebrating natural cycles on the Liturgical Calendar are still worshiping in the ways of the ancient pagans.</p>
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A mummy murder has been solved after 2,600 years
Researchers confirmed that the mummy known as Takabuti died from a stab wound to the back.
29 January, 2020
Ulster Museum
- The mummy Takabuti has inspired a great deal of speculation since it was first unwrapped in 1835.
- Takabuti died when she was between 20 and 30, leading researchers to wonder about her cause of death.
- New techniques have enabled researchers to determine that Takabuti died from a stab wound to the back, among other interesting findings.
<p><br><br></p></div>
<p>2,600 years on and investigators have finally discovered the cause of death of a young elite woman from Thebes: a violent stab wound to her back.</p><p>Takabuti's mummy was first unwrapped in 1835 in Ireland, a period of time when mummies were being traded and trafficked across Europe. According to the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/tutDFWOCQqWlM8jEOwMABg" target="_blank">hieroglyphics</a> adorning Takabuti's mummy case, she had been between 20 and 30 years old, the mistress of a house in Thebes (modern-day Luxor), and her father, called Nespare, had been a priest of the god Amun.</p><p>Although Takabuti has been a subject of study since her mummy was first acquired, scanning techniques only recently became advanced enough to determine that the stab wound near her left shoulder was the cause of her death. Retired orthopedic surgeon Dr. Robert Loynes performed the CT analysis. "The CT scan reveals that Takabuti sustained a severe wound to the back of her upper left chest wall," Loynes said in a <a href="https://www.manchester.ac.uk/discover/news/shocking-truth-behind-takabutis-death-revealed/" target="_blank">statement</a>. "This almost certainly caused her rapid death. However, the CT scan also reveals unusual and rare features of her embalming process."</p><p>In addition to her murder, the researchers identified a variety of other unique features to this particular mummy. </p><p>For one, Takabuti possessed two rare mutations — an extra tooth, which appears in 0.02 percent of the population, and an extra vertebra, which occurs in 2 percent of the population. Importantly, she also still possessed her heart, which previous research had asserted was missing.</p><p>"The significance of confirming Takabuti's heart is present cannot be underestimated," <a href="https://www.manchester.ac.uk/discover/news/shocking-truth-behind-takabutis-death-revealed/" target="_blank">said</a> Dr. Greer Ramsey, the Curator of Archaeology at National Museums Northern Ireland. "In ancient Egypt this organ was removed in the afterlife and weighed to decide whether or not the person had led a good life. If it was too heavy it was eaten by the demon Ammit and your journey to the afterlife would fail." </p><p>Another recently shared discovery is that Takabuti may have been European. DNA tests confirmed that she bore greater similarities to Europeans than modern-day Egyptians. "This indicates European or Caucasian descent," said Egyptologist Rosalie David in an interview with <em><a href="https://www.newsweek.com/young-elite-ancient-egyptian-woman-stabbed-back-violent-knife-attack-2600-years-ago-1484371" target="_blank">Newsweek</a></em>, "but it is not possible to confirm from these findings whether she was born in Egypt, or came there from another area." </p>
Insight into a 2,600-year-old woman
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMjYzNzEzNy9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NTg5NjE3OX0.OJgMph7Sd2jcljUP3SntpWF3STJkL_PBDU9sw5EAWbI/img.jpg?width=980" id="2acec" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="043339a88db5d3b70e3acfe05637283c" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="Takabuti" />Ulster Museum
<p>The new findings have challenged the popular characterization of Takabuti as resting peacefully — now, it's clear that her last moments alive were anything but peaceful.</p><p>"Trawling the historical records about her early days in Belfast it is clear that she caused quite a media sensation in 1835," said bioarcheologist Eileen Murphy in a statement. "She had a poem written about her, a painting was made of her prior to her 'unrolling' and accounts of her unwrapping were carried in newspapers across Ireland." </p><p>Takabuti also appeared to be something of an independent spirit, at least when it came to following fashion trends contemporary to her life. "Research undertaken ten years ago gave us some fascinating insights," continued Murphy, "such as how her auburn hair was deliberately curled and styled. This must have been a very important part of her identity as she spurned the typical shaven-headed style. Looking at all of these facts, we start to get a sense of the petite young woman and not just the mummy." What remains beyond our understanding, however, is why somebody had been driven to murder the young Egyptian mistress.</p>
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Listen: Scientists re-create voice of 3,000-year-old Egyptian mummy
Scientists used CT scanning and 3D-printing technology to re-create the voice of Nesyamun, an ancient Egyptian priest.
24 January, 2020
- Scientists printed a 3D replica of the vocal tract of Nesyamun, an Egyptian priest whose mummified corpse has been on display in the UK for two centuries.
- With the help of an electronic device, the reproduced voice is able to "speak" a vowel noise.
- The team behind the "Voices of the Past" project suggest reproducing ancient voices could make museum experiences more dynamic.
<p><br></p></div>
<p>Scientists have reproduced the voice of an ancient Egyptian priest by creating a 3D-printed replica of his mummified vocal tract.</p><p>An international and interdisciplinary team, led by David Howard, a professor of electronic engineering at Royal Holloway, used computed tomography (CT) scanning technology to measure the dimensions of the vocal tract of Nesyamun, a mummy that's spent about two centuries on display at Leeds City Museum in the United Kingdom. </p><p>The team then used those measurements to 3D-print an artificial vocal tract, through which they produced sounds using a peculiar electronic device called the Vocal Tract Organ. (You can check it out <a href="https://youtu.be/pUryWk-s9Ig" target="_blank">here</a>.)</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"The Vocal Tract Organ, a first in its own right, provided the inspiration for doing this," Howard told <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUryWk-s9Ig" target="_blank"><em>CNET</em></a>. </p><p>Nesyamun, whose priestly duties included chanting and singing the daily liturgy, can once again "speak" — at least, in the form of a vowel noise that sounds something like a cross between the English pronunciation of the vowels in "bed" and "bad."</p>
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="5f1337a403dd2636b1b81207c9e8f648"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/94KBXL4D3p4?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Of course, the new "voice" of Nesyamun is an approximation, and given the lack of actual recordings of his voice, and the degeneration of his body over millennia, it's impossible to know just how accurate it is. But the researchers suggested that their "Voice from the Past" project offers a chance for people to "engage with the past in completely new and innovative ways."</p>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMjYwNDIzMS9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NDA2MTQ5OH0.sNAamCw1a70ynZafRcdmWHpgEN-jW6yULPu6zgGqIDc/img.png?width=980" id="664a9" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="c7366f82a61f16d0d3b2989d803fb3ce" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
Howard et al.
<p style="margin-left: 20px;">"While this approach has wide implications for heritage management/museum display, its relevance conforms exactly to the ancient Egyptians' fundamental belief that 'to speak the name of the dead is to make them live again'," they wrote in a <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-56316-y#Fig3" target="_blank">paper</a> published in Nature Scientific Reports. "Given Nesyamun's stated desire to have his voice heard in the afterlife in order to live forever, the fulfilment of his beliefs through the synthesis of his vocal function allows us to make direct contact with ancient Egypt by listening to a sound from a vocal tract that has not been heard for over 3000 years, preserved through mummification and now restored through this new technique."</p>Connecting modern people with history
<p>It's not the first time scientists have "re-created" an ancient human's voice. In 2016, for example, Italian researchers used software to <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/hear-recreated-voice-otzi-iceman-180960570/" target="_blank">reconstruct the voice of Ötzi,</a> an iceman who was discovered in 1991 and is thought to have died more than 5,000 years ago. But the "Voices of the Past" project is different, the researchers note, because Nesyamun's mummified corpse is especially well preserved.</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"It was particularly suited, given its age and preservation [of its soft tissues], which is unusual," Howard told <em><a href="https://www.livescience.com/amp/ancient-egypt-mummy-voice-reconstructed.html" target="_blank">Live Science</a>.</em></p><p>As to whether Nesyamun's reconstructed voice will ever be able to speak complete sentences, Howard told <em><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Weird/wireStory/ancient-voice-scientists-recreate-sound-egyptian-mummy-68482015" target="_blank">The Associated Press</a>, </em>that it's "something that is being worked on, so it will be possible one day."</p><p>John Schofield, an archaeologist at the University of York, said that reproducing voices from history can make museum experiences "more multidimensional."</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"There is nothing more personal than someone's voice," he told <em>The Associated Press.</em> "So we think that hearing a voice from so long ago will be an unforgettable experience, making heritage places like Karnak, Nesyamun's temple, come alive."</p>
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Why Nikola Tesla was obsessed with the Egyptian pyramids
The inventor Nikola Tesla's esoteric beliefs included unusual theories about the Egyptian pyramids.
15 December, 2019
Mstyslav Chernov/Wikimedia
- Nikola Tesla had numerous unusual obsessions.
- One of his beliefs was that the Great Pyramids of Egypt were giant transmitters of energy.
- He built Tesla Towers according to laws inspired by studying the Pyramids.
<p><br></p></div>
<p>Nikola Tesla died somewhat unappreciated but his fame and the myth around him has continued to grow tremendously into our times. He is now perceived as the ultimate mad scientist, the one who essentially <a href="https://bigthink.com/paul-ratner/10-nikola-teslas-most-amazing-predictions" target="_self">invented our times,</a> credited with key ideas leading to smartphones, wi-fi, AC electrical supply system, and more. </p><p>Besides ideas that Tesla implemented and patented, he also had many other interests in different fields of research, some quite esoteric. One of the most unusual was his preoccupation with Egyptian pyramids, one of humanity's most mysterious and magnificent constructions. </p><p>Tesla believed they served a higher purpose and was investigating them throughout his life. What did he find so alluring about the pyramids? He wondered if they weren't giant transmitters of energy – a thought that coincided with his investigation into how to send energy wirelessly.</p>
<p> In 1905, Tesla filed a patent in the U.S. titled "The art of transmitting electrical energy through the natural medium," outlining designs for a series of generators around the world which would tap the <em>ionosphere</em> for energy collections. He saw planet Earth itself, with its two poles, as a giant electrical generator of limitless energy. His triangle-shaped design became known as <em>Tesla's electromagnetic pyramid.</em> </p>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMjE2NTUwNi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxNTYxNDA4NX0.ut0LyTPptopAiDehHqfAFNbNcref6IGu8Eb7BH4_7gU/img.jpg?width=980" id="2ee38" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="da3b2b22c797550e68f8f670fc6994c1" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
Tesla sitting in his Colorado Springs laboratory
1899
<blockquote> "The day science begins to study non-physical phenomena, it will make more progress in one decade than in all the previous centuries of its existence," said Tesla.</blockquote>
<p>It wasn't just the shape of the Egyptian pyramids but their location that created their power, according to Tesla. He built a tower facility known as the <em>Tesla Experimental Station </em>in Colorado Springs and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wardenclyffe_Tower" target="_blank">Wardenclyffe Tower</a> or Tesla Tower on the East Coast that sought to take advantage of the Earth's energy field. The locations were chosen according to the laws of where the Pyramids of Giza were built, related to the relationship between the elliptical orbit of the planet and the equator. The design was intended for wireless transmission of energy. </p>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMjE2NTUwMy9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0ODk3MTY2OX0.nQtAOHh5eydTZy7lsQe0jPq2wpwHiBJ1q1sZSHAszgs/img.jpg?width=980" id="425aa" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="0a969896021332914acdffbfb6a81b2d" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
Wardenclyffe Tower. 1904.
<p> Were the Great Pyramids essentially ancient Tesla Towers? How the Pyramids were made:</p>
How the Pyramids Were Built (Pyramid Science Part 2!)
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="5c5b14cfb22ea75776afff26cb5ae397"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/52V9jmrgSbI?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Another aspect of Tesla's thinking reportedly related to <em>numerology</em>. Tesla was, by many accounts, an unusual individual, with obsessive qualities. One such obsession were the numbers <strong>"3,6,9"</strong>, which he believed were the key to the universe. He would drive around buildings 3 times before going in or stay in hotels with numbers divisible by 3. He made other choices in sets of 3. Some believe Tesla's obsession with these numbers connected to his preference for pyramidal shapes and the belief that there was some fundamental mathematical law and ratios that are part of a <em>universal math language.</em> As we don't know precisely how the pyramids were built and why, they are looked at by some as creations that may be either generating energy or be serving as deliberately installed messengers or even code from an ancient civilization. </p><p>It's easy to get into "ancient aliens" type of theories by extending such thinking. If you're up for such an approach, check out this video:</p>
Nikola Tesla - Limitless Energy & the Pyramids of Egypt
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="ca761572a4865a1d13a285886abe188a"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ft1waA3p2_w?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
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Ancient Egyptian sarcophagus to be opened on live TV this weekend
The artifact will be opened on Sunday, for the first time in millennia, at an undisclosed location in Egypt.
05 April, 2019
Egyptian mummy. (Photo Andrea Izzotti/Shutterstock)
- The show is called Expedition Unknown: Egypt Live and it airs Sunday, April 7, at 8 p.m. E.T.
- The undisclosed site is reported to have produced multiple ancient artifacts.
- It might be little more than a media spectacle, but some say that's not a problem as long as it gets people interested in the preservation of ancient artifacts.
</li></ul>
<p>A team of archaeologists and other specialists in Egypt plan to open a sarcophagus containing a 3,000-year-old mummy on Sunday as part of a live Discovery Channel special called "<a href="https://www.discovery.com/tv-shows/expedition-unknown/" target="_blank">Expedition Unknown</a>: Egypt Live".</p><p>The show will follow host Josh Gates, Egyptologist Zahi Hawass and secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities of Egypt, Mostafa Waziri, as they explore the tunnels and inner chambers of an excavation site outside the the city of Minya. What should you expect?</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Kind of the beauty of this is, I don't know, and I think that's the fun of it," Gates told <a href="https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2019/04/01/expedition-unknown-egypt-live" target="_blank">NPR's</a> <em>Here & Now</em>. "We know that there are a lot of mummies that are down there."</p><p>Discovery said in a statement that the team had previously discovered a "mysterious limestone sarcophagus found buried deep within the complex," and that "the identity of the mummy inside has been a mystery for 3,000 years... Possibly until now."</p><p>The ancient Egyptians, who maintained dynasties from roughly 3,100 BCE to 30 BCE, had very particular beliefs about the soul's ongoing connection to the body after death.</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"[They] really believed they needed to be connected to their mortal world, and so along with being mummified themselves, they would often take with them a lot of personal objects from their life down into their tombs," Gates told NPR. "I think we do have a real expectation that we're going to be finding some really interesting relics and artifacts down there."</p>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xOTM0MjQzMi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyNjI4NzkzMX0.aM4yk2Mo8pkY4plQcxtZMWUjLN0aFu6hlCV17AGLmGc/img.jpg?width=980" id="75578" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="dd9803c329f71aba974acee11c689db3" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
An archaeologist brushes a newly-discovered mummy laid inside a sarcophagus, part of a collection found in burial chambers dating to the Ptolemaic era (323-30 BC) at the necropolis of Tuna el-Gebel in Egypt's southern Minya province, about 340 kilometres south of the capital Cairo, on February 2, 2019. Photo credit: MOHAMED EL-SHAHED / GETTY
<p>The exact location of the excavation site, which is reported to have produced multiple recent discoveries, has not been revealed due to concerns of looters — a problem that has plagued the region for millennia. For example, the tomb of King <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tutankhamen" target="_blank">Tutankhamen</a> had been looted at least twice before it was opened in 1923 amid worldwide press coverage.</p><p>Gates said exploring the ancient tombs should be done with respect.</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"I do think that the responsible thing to do in cases like this is to investigate and preserve and conserve the history of these places. But I do think you have to approach it with real reverence," he told NPR. "I think we can't forget that Egyptians did have a strong belief that their tombs needed to be protected, in a sense, and we are outsiders to that tomb."</p><p>So, does opening the sarcophagus really warrant a two-hour TV special? It depends how you look at it.</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"It's a media spectacle in the end — but it could make people love antiquities and is a good promotional opportunity for tourism, if done right," an Egyptian archeologist, who asked to remain anonymous, told <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/20190404-thousands-year-old-egypt-sarcophagus-be-opened-live-tv" target="_blank">AFP news agency</a>.</p>
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