How Did Takabuti Die?

How did Takabuti die? Although initial studies revealed no definitive cause of death, recent analysis has provided intriguing new data: the presence of a penetrating injury in the back of the left upper rib cage that had been sealed with a pack of resin mixed with granular material. There is no evidence of wound-healing, so this is the most likely cause of death. New research attempts to identify the weapons/instruments involved and concludes the Takabuti was murdered. Imaging analysis has also provided information about the mummification procedure. At the time of Takabuti’s death, it was customary to remove the brain by means of a metal hook inserted up the nose. However, in this instance, the brain was extracted more unusually via the foramen magnum at the base of the skull, and exceptionally, the neck area was then filled in with a compact mass of resin. Mummies of this period are frequently filled with a mixture of mud, sawdust, aromatic resins and aromatic substances such as cinnamon. The original investigators of Takabuti found that the body was filled with a mixture of powders: in the current project, the main component in abdominal samples obtained from the mummy was sawdust.