Mummy of Grottarossa
The mummy of Grottarossa is the mummy of an eight-year-old Roman girl, dated to the middle of the 2nd century AD.
It is kept in a room in the basement of the Palazzo Massimo alle Terme in Rome, in a temperature and humidity controlled cabinet that is illuminated with subdued and filtered light to ensure its preservation.
discovery
The mummy is known as the "Mummy of Grottarossa" because it was found on February 5, 1964 in Grottarossa (north of Rome) belonging to the Ager Romanus on the thirteenth kilometer of Via Cassia , later in the "Via dei Martiri de La Storta" . The sarcophagus with the mummy initially remained undiscovered during excavation work on a construction site and was thrown from an excavator onto a dump truck together with the excavated material and taken to a nearby landfill. Even when unloading, the damaged sarcophagus made of white marble was not noticed. Since it was the last trip to the landfill that day, no further material was raised. When the driver went to his truck parked at the landfill the next morning to start work, he finally noticed the richly decorated sarcophagus and the human body inside and turned the authorities on.
meaning
The Grottarossa mummy is only the second mummy from Roman times ever to be found in Rome. The first mummy of a girl of about twelve to thirteen was discovered in a cave on the Via Appia as early as 1485 and initially exhibited in the Conservator's Palace. At the request of Pope Innocent VIII , who feared that the mummy might be venerated as a relic , it was finally buried in a secret location at the gates of the Porta Pinciana . Since the Romans did not develop a tradition in the mummification of bodies, the mummy of Grottarossa was unique for a long time. Only in May 2000 were two more mummified bodies from the south of Rome near Grottaferrata , the Roman Tusculum , in a previously unknown grave Found 1st century AD.
description
The Roman girl was probably originally from northern or central Italy. The body was mummified without removing the brain and viscera (which could still be determined by computed tomography examinations) and using linen bandages impregnated with scented and resinous substances (a practice widespread in Egypt and used in Rome has rarely been proven).
From the analyzes performed, it appears that the girl had multiple infections and suffered from nutritional deficiencies, but it was bilateral pulmonary fibrosis that caused her death. Despite the malnutrition, the girl did not belong to a poor family, but was part of a Roman family who allegedly converted to the cult of the Egyptian goddess Isis . The cult of Isis had spread throughout the Roman Empire in the first and second centuries. The family was probably wealthy and affluent. The child's body was wrapped in a fine Chinese silk tunic and adorned with a necklace made of gold and sapphires, as well as two earrings made of gold thread and a ring with a gold bezel, on which a representation of the goddess Victoria was engraved. A part of the ring wrapped with wire was used to reduce its diameter. In addition to the mummy, an ivory doll with articulated arms and legs was also found. Articulated ivory dolls have also been found in other grave furnishings of young women. This includes the doll of the Crepereia Tryphaena , which was found during the excavations of the Palace of Justice in Rome and kept in the Antiquarium. The burial equipment was completed by some red amber glasses, small amulets and a tiny female bust, also made of amber.
The surrounding sarcophagus made of white marble with angular masks was decorated with deer hunting scenes, which were inspired by the episode of Aeneas and Dido described in the fourth book of the Aeneid .
literature
- A. Ascenzi et al .: The roman mummy of Grottarossa . In: Konrad Spindler et al. (Ed.): Human Mummies: A global survey of their status and the techniques of conservation . Springer Verlag, Vienna 1996, ISBN 978-3-7091-7352-7 .
- Ugo Scamuzzi, Studio sulla mummia di bambina cosiddetta “mummia di Grottarossa” rinvenuta a Roma sulla Via Cassia, il 5-2-1964 (German: Study of the mummy of a little girl called “Mummy of Grottarossa”, found in Rome on the Via Cassia, 5-2-1964 ), excerpt from the Rivista di studi classici , 12th year 12, volume 3, 1964.
Web links
- "Mummia di Grottarossa" - on the website of the Sopritendenza Speciala per i beni archeologici di Roma ( Memento of September 8, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
Individual evidence
- ↑ This is the date given in the brochure of the Soprintendenza speciale per i beni archeologici di Roma (references in external links). The explanatory texts inside the museum point to the period of the second half of the 2nd century AD.
- ↑ a b c La bambina che ha ispirato SMATCH ( Memento from April 15, 2013 in the web archive archive.today )
- ↑ La mummia di Grottarossa era finita tra i rifiuti. (PDF) In: archivio.unita.news. February 8, 1964, accessed August 19, 2020 (Italian).
- ^ A. Ascenzi et al .: The roman mummy of Grottarossa p. 205.
- ↑ Andrea Cionci: L'ombra d'oro del giovane Carvilio, la Mummia di Roma. In: lastampa.it. June 19, 2019, accessed August 19, 2020 (Italian).
- ↑ Franco Arietti: Una scoperta eccezionale archeologica l'Ipogeo delle Ghirlande. In: osservatoriocollialbani.it. Retrieved August 19, 2020 (Italian).
- ↑ a b Mummia di Grottarossa ( Memento from November 27, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ See Alberto Tagliaferri, Guide rionali di Roma - Rione XXII Prati, pp. 57-60, Rome, Fratelli Palombi Editori, 1994. ISSN 0393-2710