Waldhausen mummies

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Three naturally mummified corpses from the 17th century in the collegiate church of Waldhausen in Upper Austria are known as Waldhausen mummies . The mummies named with the letters A to C have been on view in the church crypt since September 2020.

Mummy A consists of a torso from the waist up. The face of the skull, which was badly damaged by violence, was destroyed by maggots . In addition to ears and larynx , the fingers and fingernails are also well preserved . Based on the length of the upper arm and forearm, it is assumed that the male deceased was around 178 cm tall.

Mummy B consists of a trunk with legs. All toes are preserved on the feet, as well as a nail and the structure of the skin. In the chest you can see the right and left lungs . The fabric itself is discolored black. The head has not been preserved and the tissue in the pelvic area is partially skeletonized. The height of the dead is estimated at 170 cm.

Mummy C is the best preserved of the three corpses. However, the skull is loosely enclosed and it has not yet been proven that the skull actually belongs to the rest. Hands, fingers, fingernails and feet are well preserved. The left foot shows a hammer toe . The most likely obese deceased was about 169 cm tall.

Remnants of textiles were found on all three mummies - u. a. a well-preserved hat - which suggests that they are high-ranking personalities, perhaps provosts . Investigations have also shown that the dead never lay underground and have similarly high triglyceride levels as the Luftg'selchte pastor in St. Thomas on the bladder stone .

literature

  • Gert Baumgart, Hagen Schaub: The Eternal Body. Mummies in Austrian collections and tombs . Verlag der Ärzte, Vienna 2003, ISBN 3-901488-37-5 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Upper Austria: researched mummies from Waldhausen Abbey. In: kathpress. Retrieved August 24, 2020 .