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Talk like an Egyptian? Epistemological problems with the synthesis of a vocal sound from the mummified remains of Nesyamun and racial designations in mummy studies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 May 2021

Uroš Matić
Uroš Matić*
Affiliation:
Österreichisches Archäologisches Institut, Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna, Austria
*
Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

The paper examines epistemological problems behind a recent study claiming to provide a synthesis of a vocal sound from the mummified remains of a man named Nesyamun and behind racial designations in Egyptian mummy studies more generally. So far, responses in the media and academia concentrated on the ethical problems of these studies, whereas their theoretical and methodological backgrounds have been rarely addressed or mentioned only in passing. It seems that the media reaction has targeted the synthesis of a sound rather than other, equally problematic, assumptions found in Egyptian mummy studies. By focusing on the epistemological problems, it will be demonstrated that the issues of greatest concern are endemic to a general state of a considerable part of the discipline of Egyptology and its unreflective engagement with the material remains of the past, especially human remains.

Keywords

NesyamunEgyptologymummiesscientific racismethicsepistemology
Type
Articles
Information
Archaeological Dialogues , Volume 28 , Issue 1 , June 2021 , pp. 37 - 49
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Copyright
© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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