A sarcophagus (illustration).
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Pixabay / Denis Doukhan
Pharaoh Séqénenrê Taa II died in combat.
In any case, this is what Egyptian scientists were able to determine after having X-rayed his mummy, more than 3,600 years old.
Their study was published this Wednesday in the journal
Frontiers of Medicine.
Nicknamed "the Courageous", this pharaoh reigned over Egypt nearly 1,600 years before our era, during the 17th dynasty (-1625 to -1549).
He notably led the Egyptian troops against the Asian invaders Hyksos, the first foreigners to have conquered the Nile Delta.
الأشعة المقطعية تكشف أسرار وفاة الملك سقنن رع تاعا الثاني.
قُتل أثناء محاربة غزاة مصر
CT scans of mummy of King Seqenenre-Taa-II revealed the circumstances of his death.
He was killed while fighting Egypt's invaders pic.twitter.com/5l8Q1ZAa2m
- Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (@TourismandAntiq) February 17, 2021
Killed during an "execution ceremony"
For decades, researchers have tried to determine the circumstances of the death of this king whose mummy - discovered at the end of the 19th century and kept in Cairo - bears visible marks of wounds on his face.
Relying in particular on three-dimensional images, the new study led by archaeologist Zahi Hawass and professor of radiology at Cairo University Sahar Salim, suggests that the pharaoh was killed by his opponents during a " execution ceremony ”.
He would have been taken prisoner on the battlefield, said a statement from the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities.
Analysis of weapons (ax, spear and daggers) that belonged to the Hyksos indicated their "compatibility with the wounds" of the mummy and new bruises, until then hidden by the work of the embalmers, were discovered.
Moreover, thanks to the careful study of the pharaoh's skeleton, Egyptian scientists estimated that he "was 40 years old at the time of his death".
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