Papers by Gabriela Jungová Vrtalová
Das Mittelalter, 2024
Archaeological and anthropological examples provide a wide range of insights about death during c... more Archaeological and anthropological examples provide a wide range of insights about death during childbirth and the subsequent puerperium. Women and children who died during this liminal phase were given special treatment in burial customs, due to reasons ranging from special care to protective measures to influence their postmortem fate. This study covers examples from the High Middle Ages to the nineteenth century, from Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.
The most significant findings are double burials of a woman and a foetus, often interpreted as mother–infant pairs. Based on the position of the child, it is possible to determine whether the child went through birth or remained in the womb at the time of burial. Other archaeological sources include special grave goods (e.g. scissors) and burial containers. The deposition of so-called placenta pots in domestic cellars testifies to magical ideas surrounding the birth topic.
The fifteenth excavation season of the Archaeological Expedition to Wad Ben Naga focused on the a... more The fifteenth excavation season of the Archaeological Expedition to Wad Ben Naga focused on the archaeological exploration of the Palace of Queen Amanishakheto (WBN 100) and rescue excavation of a kom located in the exclave of the archaeological site west of the railway (WBN 1000 and WBN C220).
Annals of the Náprstek Museum, 2020
During the sixteenth-eighteenth excavation seasons, cemetery WBN C260 at the archaeological site ... more During the sixteenth-eighteenth excavation seasons, cemetery WBN C260 at the archaeological site of Wad Ben naga (Sudan) yielded the remains of fourteen individuals , both adult and non-adult. The burials, tentatively dated as post-Meroitic/ Christian, were oriented to the north or northwest , with scarce grave goods, simple substructures, and no identified superstructures. Anthropological analysis revealed non-specific signs of stress including porotic hyperostosis and cribra orbitalia, linear enamel hypoplasia, and endocranial lesions known as serpens endocrania symmetrica.
Annals of the Náprstek Museum, 2020
Petr Skalník is a renowned Czech social anthropologist and Africanist. During his studies in the ... more Petr Skalník is a renowned Czech social anthropologist and Africanist. During his studies in the former Soviet Union, he visited Tuva where he assembled a collection of material culture that represents various everyday occupations of cattle herders, as well as ritual and leisure activities. After more than 50 years of its acquisition, the collection, now curated by the Náprstek Museum in Prague, is finally published including a summary of circumstances under which Skalník worked.
This paper reports conclusions from an anthropological analysis of a mummy bundle from the Azapa ... more This paper reports conclusions from an anthropological analysis of a mummy bundle from the Azapa Valley in northern Chile. The mummy was acquired by Dr. Václav Šolc in 1966–1967. The bundle was examined with the use of computed tomography (CT) and the results were compared to unpublished findings from 2009. The remains are that of an infant that died of unknown causes. The possible presence of Harris lines suggests that the individual suffered from stress during their life. The mummification process was in all probability spontaneous. KEY WORDS: Chile – South American mummies – CT
The paper presents results of CT and external examination of seven ancient Egyptian mummified iso... more The paper presents results of CT and external examination of seven ancient Egyptian mummified isolated human heads from the collections of the National Museum – Náprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures. It is the first preliminary outcome regarding isolated parts of mummies from a multidisciplinary project that aims to map all ancient Egyptian mummified material in public collections of the Czech Republic. The heads are well preserved and exhibit a variety of mummification techniques and materials.
The aim of the paper is to give a comprehensive overview of the ancienit Egyptian adult mummies a... more The aim of the paper is to give a comprehensive overview of the ancienit Egyptian adult mummies and their respective coffins (when preserved) in the collections of the Naprstek Museum, Prague. Collecting ancient Egyptian antiquities in general, and mummies in particular, has a long history in the Czech lands. The history of scientific interest in the topic reaches back to the mid-19th century. In the 1970s the first multidisciplinary research under the direction of Eugen Strouhal was carried out. Since 2009, a team of specialists from the Naprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures and the Diagnostic Centre Mediscan has carried out the second interdisciplinary research project on Egyptian mummies primarily kept in the collections of the National Museum – Naprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures, where there are 10 mummified human bodies of adult individuals. The present paper precedes a planned monograph on the given topic.
Books by Gabriela Jungová Vrtalová
Atlas of Egyptian Mummies in the Czech Collections II: Non-Adult Mummies, 2022
Ancient Egyptian mummies and their funerary equipment are an invaluable source of information not... more Ancient Egyptian mummies and their funerary equipment are an invaluable source of information not only on the Egyptians’ perception of death, but more importantly on their lives – diseases and traumas they suffered from, activities they carried out, their family relations, and more. The present volume, second in the series of Atlas of Egyptian Mummies in the Czech Collections, is dedicated to mummies and funerary containers of non-adults aged 15 and younger. Two complete mummies, twelve isolated parts from ten individuals, and six funerary containers were introduced in a detailed catalogue, along with their respective provenances, and brief excursions into the health and disease of ancient Egyptian children, and their funerary treatment. The studied material came from the collections of two divisions of the National Museum in Prague, namely the Náprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures, and the Natural History Museum. The mummies were examined using non-invasive methods, and the results were compared to those published in the past. Examination by non-invasive methods, especially computed tomography, brought to light several findings including one possible case of traumatic death, and one possible case of rickets.
Egyptian mummies and coffins in Czech collections have been studied and described quite thoroughl... more Egyptian mummies and coffins in Czech collections have been studied and described quite thoroughly in the past. An ambitious research project from the 1970s resulted in two key publications summarizing the contemporary knowledge of all mummies and coffins kept in the collections of the former Czechoslovakia. Three decades later, Eugen Strouhal, one of the most respected authorities in the field of (not only) mummy studies, initiated a new project that would revise the data from the previous research with the use of current technologies. This new project was commenced in 2009 by the National Museum Náprstek Museum – Náprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures in Prague, with the aim of collecting and publishing all accessible information on the studied material using up-to-date technologies and with regard to the advancement in the fields of Egyptology and anthropology. The research was carried out in cooperation with Affidea, Czech Republic, and other institutions that keep Egyptian mummies and coffins in their collections namely, these are State castle Buchlov, State chateau Kynžvart and the Hrdlička Museum of Man, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague.
The present publication is the first one from the series Atlas of Egyptian Mummies in Czech Collections, and brings the results of investigation of complete adult human mummies. An overview of coffins for adults, whether associated with any of the mummies or not, is also included. The studied material comprises of 19 complete adult human mummies and 20 coffins. Even though the collections were not assembled systematically, they well document the development in mummification techniques and procedures, as well as all major characteristic styles of coffins in the second half of the pharaonic era. The set is not only representative in terms of chronology, but also in terms of geographical origin of mummies and coffins. All parts of Egypt, including lesser known sites are represented.
Thanks to the advances in imaging technologies, only non-invasive methods of investigation could be used, without compromising on the quality or amount of obtained information. The research project brought new data that were previously unknown, as well as helped shed a new light on some issues that remained unresolved in the past. However, with some points of discussion being solved, others have opened.
The study of the coffins enabled a more precise dating of the mummies. In the majority of cases it was possible to ascribe the coffins, and through them also mummies, to specific sites of pharaonic Egypt.
Wad Ben Naga by Gabriela Jungová Vrtalová
PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE FIFTEENTH EXCAVATION SEASON OF THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPEDITION TO WAD BEN NAGA
The fifteenth excavation season of the Archaeological Expedition to Wad Ben Naga focused on the a... more The fifteenth excavation season of the Archaeological Expedition to Wad Ben Naga focused on the archaeological exploration of the Palace of Queen Amanishakheto (WBN 100) and rescue excavation of a kom located in the exclave of the archaeological site west of the railway (WBN 1000 and WBN C220).
The seventeenth excavation season of the Archaeological Expedition to Wad Ben Naga focused on the... more The seventeenth excavation season of the Archaeological Expedition to Wad Ben Naga focused on the continued exploration of the so-called Isis Temple (WBN 300), the Palace of Queen Amanishakheto (WBN 100), and cemetery WBN C260.
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Papers by Gabriela Jungová Vrtalová
The most significant findings are double burials of a woman and a foetus, often interpreted as mother–infant pairs. Based on the position of the child, it is possible to determine whether the child went through birth or remained in the womb at the time of burial. Other archaeological sources include special grave goods (e.g. scissors) and burial containers. The deposition of so-called placenta pots in domestic cellars testifies to magical ideas surrounding the birth topic.
Books by Gabriela Jungová Vrtalová
The present publication is the first one from the series Atlas of Egyptian Mummies in Czech Collections, and brings the results of investigation of complete adult human mummies. An overview of coffins for adults, whether associated with any of the mummies or not, is also included. The studied material comprises of 19 complete adult human mummies and 20 coffins. Even though the collections were not assembled systematically, they well document the development in mummification techniques and procedures, as well as all major characteristic styles of coffins in the second half of the pharaonic era. The set is not only representative in terms of chronology, but also in terms of geographical origin of mummies and coffins. All parts of Egypt, including lesser known sites are represented.
Thanks to the advances in imaging technologies, only non-invasive methods of investigation could be used, without compromising on the quality or amount of obtained information. The research project brought new data that were previously unknown, as well as helped shed a new light on some issues that remained unresolved in the past. However, with some points of discussion being solved, others have opened.
The study of the coffins enabled a more precise dating of the mummies. In the majority of cases it was possible to ascribe the coffins, and through them also mummies, to specific sites of pharaonic Egypt.
Wad Ben Naga by Gabriela Jungová Vrtalová
The most significant findings are double burials of a woman and a foetus, often interpreted as mother–infant pairs. Based on the position of the child, it is possible to determine whether the child went through birth or remained in the womb at the time of burial. Other archaeological sources include special grave goods (e.g. scissors) and burial containers. The deposition of so-called placenta pots in domestic cellars testifies to magical ideas surrounding the birth topic.
The present publication is the first one from the series Atlas of Egyptian Mummies in Czech Collections, and brings the results of investigation of complete adult human mummies. An overview of coffins for adults, whether associated with any of the mummies or not, is also included. The studied material comprises of 19 complete adult human mummies and 20 coffins. Even though the collections were not assembled systematically, they well document the development in mummification techniques and procedures, as well as all major characteristic styles of coffins in the second half of the pharaonic era. The set is not only representative in terms of chronology, but also in terms of geographical origin of mummies and coffins. All parts of Egypt, including lesser known sites are represented.
Thanks to the advances in imaging technologies, only non-invasive methods of investigation could be used, without compromising on the quality or amount of obtained information. The research project brought new data that were previously unknown, as well as helped shed a new light on some issues that remained unresolved in the past. However, with some points of discussion being solved, others have opened.
The study of the coffins enabled a more precise dating of the mummies. In the majority of cases it was possible to ascribe the coffins, and through them also mummies, to specific sites of pharaonic Egypt.