This past Saturday as part of programming for 1stfans at the Brooklyn Museum, I gave a presentation on the animal mummy research the Conservation Department is doing with the Museum’s Egyptian Curator Ed Bleiberg. The presentation was fun and interactive and gave members a chance to see some animal mummies up close and personal ^[1]. The event was recorded and the video posted for 1stfans member who could not attend. Joining 1stfans ^[2] is easy and inexpensive.

The Brooklyn Museum has a collection of approximately 60 animal mummies, many of which have never been completely cataloged. Pictured above is a young crocodile currently on display in the 3rd floor Egyptian Galleries. The purpose of the project is to photograph, and thoroughly examine the animals to get a better idea as to what the museum has in the collection. The examination includes determining how the mummy is made, identify materials including the resins used in mummification, taking x-rays, working with a veterinary radiologist on animal identification, and assessing the overall condition of the object.

Please look for more posts as the research continues.

Lisa