The mummy of Ankhekhonsu underwent a CT scan at a hospital in Italy as part of a research project to find out more about ancient Egypt.

The mummy is an ancient priest that was transported from Bergamo’s Civic Archaeological Museum to the Policlinico hospital in Milan.

The director of the Project Sabina Malgora said, “The mummies are practically a biological museum, they are like a time capsule.”

The aim is to shed light on Ankhekhonsu life and the ancient Egyptian burial customs, which were the norm 3,000 years ago and find out what materials were used to mummify the corpse.

Malgora said, “Studying ancient diseases and wounds is important for modern medical research... we can study the cancer or the arteriosclerosis of the past and this can be useful for modern research.”