History
The KNH Centre for Biomedical Egyptology is the first specifically designated research centre for the investigation of Egyptian mummies in the world. It was officially opened in 2003 by His Royal Highness, the Earl of Wessex.
The Centre plays host to a multidisciplinary team of researchers and students experienced in many different areas of science, medicine and Egyptology. The department is designed to bring together the many facets of Egyptological research, forming a major resource for this discipline. The KNH Centre was designated a Centre for Excellence in 2004 by the University of Manchester.
Rather than being a totally new venture the KNH Centre represents the culmination of 32 years of research in this field at Manchester under the guidance of Prof. Rosalie David OBE. In fact the University of Manchester's involvement in this field can be traced back nearly a century to 1907 when Dr Margaret Murray undertook one of the earliest scientific unwrappings and dissections of 2 Middle Kingdom mummies known as the Two Brothers.
This work was taken up again in 1972 with the development of the Manchester Mummy Project and the creation of the mummy team. Although originally confined to the 17 mummies housed at the Manchester Museum, the project quickly expanded as other museums and institutions volunteered their mummies for scientific examination.
Although a relatively new field, the application of scientific methods to Egyptology is providing a great deal of new information about the Ancient Egyptian people as well as supporting and, in some cases disproving, established theories. A wide range of scientific methods are employed to provide the greatest amount of information possible. All examinations are as minimally invasive as possible because mummies are a finite resource and must be preserved for future generations. Sampling is never carried out if the information required is obtainable in another way or if the taking of a sample will affect the conservation, stability or aesthetic appearance of a mummy.