Bid to sell two rare mummies backfires
(A.A.P. 02/09/2000; Sunshine Coast Sunday p.14. 03/09/2000)
JORDAN: Two well-preserved mummies thousands of years old have been discovered by
Jordanian treasure hunters near the Dead Sea. However, they only came into the hands of
archaeologists when their finders tried to sell them and were arrested, the press reported
in Amman yesterday.
Experts say that both of the mummies are female, one of whom died aged about 16 and the
other
around 26. They estimate them to be about 3700 years old, General Abdullah Khreishan, head
of the Karak Province police told Al-Dustour Daily. "Preliminary examination of the
two mummies has shown that substances taken from the Dead Sea were used to mummify the
bodies," other archaeologists said. The Dead Sea region is famous for its high
salinity, which would have prevented the bodies from decomposing.
Khreishan said the police had caught the mummy thieves after a tip-off, when they were
trying to sell their finds for more than $US 100, 000 ($A174, 000). They had buried them
in gardens to hide them. He said the mummies had been found near Ghor al-Safi in Karak,
125 kms south-west of Amman, near the eastern shore of the sea.
END OF REPORT
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