The Golden Boy – The 15 Year Old With Secrets

_{The ‘Golden boy’ digitally unwrapped, stepwise. Image credit: SN Saleem}

For over a hundred years a small body has laid waiting since it  was found in 1916 in a Late Ptolemaic cemetery (c.332-30 BC) in Edfu. It has now revealed its many secrets. This is the story of  the Golden Boy, who was around 15 years old when he died.  

His remains spent many years in the Cairo museum’s warehouses, until finally, a group of researchers led by Dr. Sahar Saleem analyzed it, to find out who it was, and what secrets it held. During their investigations they scanned the mummy using CT, and the results were surprising. They found that the boy had 49 amulets, some of which were made of gold and semi-precious stones.

At the time of the boy’s discovery in 1916, the mummy was adorned with garlands and had a gold funeral mask, this is where he got his nickname “The Golden Boy” from. We now know from the study of this mummy, that he was a child who lived about 2,300 years ago, he was 128cm tall, and died when he was around 14-15 years old. His age was determined by some of his bones were still yet to fuse and some of his teeth were still yet to erupt. 

_{The ‘Golden boy’ digitally unwrapped, stepwise. Image credit: SN Saleem}

He was in very good health and there were no signs of malnutrition or cavities. The fact that he had good dental health and the superb work of his preservation indicates he belonged to a high social class. However, the cause of death remains unknown, experts are considering several possibilities, such as an infection or disease. It was also noted that his viscera had been extracted during the mummification process.

For the ancient Egyptians, death was not the end, for life to continue after death they mummified the deceased. To protect the person on their way to the afterlife, Mummies were given amulets, to protect the deceased. They were to help them pass all the tests and challenges of  the underworld, the most important being the trial of Osiris. 

One of the amulets found was that of Khepri (he was one of the three forms of the sun), who took the form of a dung beetle and was associated with the resurrection of the dead and along with this eternal life and rebirth. Beetles were commonly used amulets in mummies. The ancient Egyptians observed that dung beetles walked by displacing balls of excrement or mud. The pushing of the dung balls reminded them of the sun. In their mind, every morning, the sun rises as if it is being pushed by something, as it comes back to life in the land of the living. This is why beetles were related to the resurrection of the dead, since they were related to the sun.  Kepri was the god of the morning, Ra was the god of noon, and Atum was the god of sunset. 

Another amulet found on the mummy was “two fingers” amulet. This one is often found on the lower torso of the mummy, in the case of the Golden Boy, it was found next to his penis. It is thought that this amulet was used to protect the body from the incisions of the embalmers. He was also found with a gold tongue to unsure that his speech was pure and honest before the gods.

The Egyptian Museum has now decided to move the mummy out of storage to the main exhibition hall under the nickname ‘Golden boy’. In his new location, visitors can admire the mummy next to the CT images and a 3D printed version of the heart scarab amulet. This will enable visitors to get as close as possible to the glories of ancient Egyptian civilization and an individual.