In Press: Preparations of the Royal Mummies

Cairo, 17 Dec 2020

One thousand nights and night, was the time needed to prepare the mummies of 22 great Kings of Egypt to move to their new residency at the National Egyptian Civilization Museum (NEMC). I had the great honor to be a member of this team. I did the CT scans of all the 22 mummies that guided the process of conservation and preparation of the bodies of the great Kings of Egypt

ألف ليلة وليلة ، كان الوقت اللازم لإعداد مومياوات 22 ملكًا للانتقال إلى مقر إقامتهم الجديد في متحف الحضارة. كان لي الشرف الكبير أن أكون في حضرة اعظم ملوك مصر عضوًا في ا الفريق الفني الذي اعد المومياوات. حبث قمت بإجراء فحوصات التصوير المقطعي المحوسب لجميع المومياوات الـ 22 مما قاد عملية حفظ وإعداد جثامين ملوك مصر العظماء

In media

https://www.dostor.org/3297644

Beauty secrets of Seti I's mummy

National Geographic (Sept 2020)

In my studies, I discovered the secret behind the beauty of the mummy of Seti I. The CT scans showed that the embalmers placed 'fillers' underneath the skin of the mummy's face around the nose-mouth, cheeks, and in the temporal region. A process similar to modern plastic procedures and also in the same regions targeted nowadays!

Interviewed by Bettany Hughes

Seti I 1290–1279 BC (19th Dynasty)

3D CT image of the head of Seti I shows the fillers the embalmers placed underneath the skin to look live

Unknown Royal Mummies

Japanese NHK July 2020

In March 2020, the Japanese TV channel documented the event of CT scanning of two royal mummies of unsettled identities: Unknown Woman A (The Screaming Woman) possibly Princess Meritamun daughter of Seqenenre The Brave (17th Dynasty) and

Unknown Woman D possibly Queen Twosret (19th Dynasty)

Unknown Woman A mummy (Meritamun) The Screaming Woman Mummy

Discussing the Mummy of the Screaming Woman

CT scanning the Mummy of the Screaming Woman

Meritamun died from heart attack while sleeping 3500 years ago

Head tilted to the right, flexed knees, and crossed legs

The Screaming Woman's brain was not removed during mummification

Unknown Woman D could be Queen Tawsret 1191 BC

Sahar Saleem preparing Unknown Woman D Mummy for CT scan

Sahar Saleem CT scanning Unknown Woman D Mummy. The Japanese TV documented the event

Discussing the CT scan findings of Unknown Woman D mummy

Kingdom Of The Mummies

National Geographic May 2020

After the discovery of the Saqqara mummification workshop and the associated tombs in July 2018, the National Geographic TV network has accelerated the preparation of a project to produce a series of four documentary films about it. I had the honor to be part of the team. Where I radiated mummies inside a beer 30 meters underground. With a lot of challenges as well as a CT scan of the discovered pots.

Over the course of sixty days, National Geographic cameras followed us to convey a realistic picture of the excavation work: How do we plan and deal with the discovery before, during and after its completion, how do we document it and collect data, how do the branches of the natural and human sciences collaborate to analyze this data to arrive at a coherent and explaining knowledge of the Egyptian civilization, with what technologies we use In our search for knowledge, and other things that can be pursued in these four documentaries.

The documentary was translated to 43 languages and showed globally in 142 countries.

Interview with Barnum Museum CT-USA

December 8th, 2019

Since 1894, Barnem Museum in Connecticut, USA, has acquired a 4,000-year-old mummy from Luxor, placed in a coffin bearing the name "Pa-Ib", a priest from Luxor. But that interpretation changed after the CT scan of the mummy where the results of diagnostic imaging showed that the mummy is for a woman!I was invited by Barnem Museum on December 8th, 2019 to give a public lecture on the results of mummy examinations and evidences on age, sex, health and disease as well as diet and physical activity, which may indicate her potential social status and profission. I visualized the life style of the woman who lived thousands of years ago based on the results of forensic and radiological examinations of her body. I demonestrated the findings in the context of ancient Egyptian culture. In particular, a women in ancient Egypt was valued since the moment of her birth. The family welcomed her as a child, pampered her and taught her. A woman could hold professions as "Pesishet' who was a professor in the Faculty of Medicine more than 4000 years ago. A woman in ancient Egypt had the freedom to choose a husband and also the full financial responsibility without a male guardian. These rights were not common in other civilizations.#

منذ عام 1894 اقتنى متحف بارنم في كونكيتت الولايات المتحدة مومياءا من الأقصر عمرها ٤ الاف عاما موضوعة في تابوت عليه اسم "Pa-Ib" ، كاهن من الأقصر. ولكن هذا التفسير تغيرعندما طلب منى المتحف عام ٢٠١٩، دراسة المومياء و فحص الأشعة المقطعية. حيث أظهرت نتاءج التصوير التشخيصي ان المومياء لامرأة!و تمت دعوتي و ترتيب زيارة لمتحف بارنم في امريكا في ٨ ديسمبر ٢٠١٩ لألقاء محاضرة عامة عن نتاءج فحوصات المومياء و تحليلي للأدلة من الأشعة عن العمر والجنس والصحة و المرض للسيدة التي عاشت على ارض مصر منذ الاف السنين و كذلك النظام الغذائي والنشاط البدني و التي تشير إلى الحالة الاجتماعية والوظيفة المحتملة لها.فصورت شخصية و حياة المرأة بناءً على نتائج فحوصات الطب الشرعي والإشعاعي لجسدها و وضعت عرضي التوضيحي بالأدلة في سياق الثقافة المصرية القديمة. وعلى وجه الخصوص ابرزت مكانة المرأة في مصر القديمة منذ لحظة ولادتها و ترحيب اسرتها بها وتعليمها و تقلدها اعلى المناصب مثل "بسيشت" التي كانت استاذة في كلية الطب و كذلك حرية المرأة في اختيارالزوج و الذمة المالية المستفلة بدون وصي رجـل. و هو ما لم يكن متعارف عليه في الحضارات الأخرى.

https://hdl.handle.net/11134/60002:4135

The link to the interview with Sahar Saleem at Barnum Museum-CT-USA on December 8th, 2019

Mummy of Barnum Museum

3D CT image of the head of Barnum Museum Mummy

Reconstruction of the face of the mummy of Barnum Museum

Who wants to be a Paleo-radiologist? My plenary lecture at Chicago (IL) USA

Dec 3rd, 2019

Ever wondered what it's like to work as a paleoradiologist? Hundreds of RSNA 2019 delegates found out on Tuesday, when a leading expert in imaging of ancient Egyptian mummies and other antiquities played a central role in a plenary session about the achievements of the country's radiologists at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) in Chicago (IL)-USA. A conference attended by 60 thousands radiologists, radiographers, and others affiliated with medical imaging.

"I wanted to show the attendees what it is like to be a paleoradiologist and what they can do if they choose to be one," Dr. Sahar Saleem, a professor of neuroradiology in Cairo who also specializes in CT mummy imaging, told AuntMinnie.com. "I am excavating and doing the scans inside the tombs and underground, and also supporting the museum's conservation plan, indexing, and research."

The huge variety of a paleoradiologist's work is underlined by her recent projects.

During 2019, Saleem has performed scans 30 meters underground, inside the shaft of the Saqqara Satie complex, an ancient burial ground that includes many pyramids, and examined the royal mummies of the New Kingdom. In addition, she has produced CT scans of canopic jars used by the ancient Egyptians during the mummification process to store and preserve the viscera of their owner for the afterlife, evaluated three mummies discovered recently inside their wooden coffins in a cache at Al-Asasif cemetery on Luxor's west bank, and studied a mummy housed at the Barnum Museum in Bridgeport, CT.

She also serves as a committee member for the Ministry of Antiquities, which designs the exhibitions at Egypt's museums, and helps to educate radiologists and the public about paleoradiology. She is now head of the Egyptian School of Radiology, a nonprofit educational organization for radiologists, radiographers, and other healthcare workers.

Saleem started working with mummies in 2004, when she was doing a fellowship in neuroradiology in London, Ontario, Canada, and a fellowship in radiology education at the University of Western Ontario.

"On my first day at the hospital, an ancient Egyptian mummy was on the CT table," she recalled. "I was determined to be able to work on it, so I joined the very active paleopathology and mummy research group at the university and received very good practical experience on ancient skeletons and mummies."

For the full interview:

https://www.auntminnie.com/index.aspx?sec=rca&sub=rsna_2019&pag=dis&ItemID=127515

Documentaries and media

Nat Geo explorer for
Queens of Egypt Exhibition-2019:

National Geographic Museum-Washington-DC- USA

from 15 June-15 Sept 2019

Documentary videos for Nat Geo explorers: Sahar Saleem, with: Jay Silverstein, Maria Nilsson

https://www.nationalgeographic.org/events/exhibition/queens-egypt/

During the interview at National Geographic Museum-Washington (DC) on Dec 2ns, 2018 with my hosts: Kathryn Keane, Fred Hiebert. The interview started at 10 Am till 2 Pm. It actually continued later to 2 Pm while having lunch!

At National Geographic Museum-Washington (DC)

Display of Videos at the exhibition of 'Queens of Ancient Egypt'

Display of videos at the exhibition of 'Queens of ancient Egypt'

A 'Thank you Sahar' video specially produced for me from Nat Geo including a tour at 'Queens of Egypt' Exhibition.

'Thank you Sahar'. A note in Hieroglyphic letters from Nat Geo (Aug 11, 2019)

'Harem Conspiracy'

National Geographic Podcast-July 2019

Listen to Podcast.

Click Here!

Read the whole podcast

Click here

GWIN: Maybe you've heard the phrase, "dead men tell no tales." But whoever came up with that clearly hasn't met Dr. Sahar Saleem.

SAHAR SALEEM (PALEORADIOLOGIST): I spend maybe more time with the mummies than with my family, but just don't tell them.

GWIN: Sahar's a paleo radiologist living in Cairo. She x-rays and CT scans fragile, ancient artifacts.

SALEEM: I love my mummy patients. The mummy patient sometimes is better than the human because they don't move.

...... Read more?! Click here!

with Ruth Michaelson, Nat Geo's audio tech.

Wednesday 15th of May 2019 was set for recording the interview for National Geographic podcast.

The appointment was set at 5. 15 pm till 6: 30 pm just at Ramadan breakfast.

Nat Gio audio tech was Ruth Michaelson. She created audio studio by hanging a thick blanket at the opened closet. Yes, I sat inside the closet on a chair. Ruth was sitting on the ground inside the closet holding the mic while I was being interviewed by Peter Gewin from National Geographic station in Washington-DC.

It was extremely hot inside there as we have to switch the AC off and I was fasting for about 16 hours!

But it was great fun! and we did it!