A scary 3,000-year-old tumor “with teeth” was discovered in an ancient burial site in Egypt
scary 3,000-year-old tumor “with teeth”: Archaeologists have found an extremely strange and rare discovery in an ancient Egyptian cemetery: a tumor with a tooth.
An ovarian tumor was found in the pelvis of a woman who died more than 3,000 years ago and is believed to be between 18 and 21 years old.
The tumor, described as the size of a nickel, is now the oldest known example of a teratoma, a rare type found in the ovaries or testicles. This unique find also appears to have two distinct teeth covered in enamel.
The woman’s remains were found by Anna Stevens of Cambridge University and Gretchen Dobbs of Southern Illinois University, who have been leading the research project at the Amarna cemetery since 2005.
The morphology of the woman’s pelvis allowed the researchers to determine her gender, while her age was assessed through the way her teeth grew.
The woman’s remains were surprisingly still covered in gold jewelry and one of them was known to archaeologists.
On one of the fingers was a golden ring with an image of Bes, the god of fertility. Researchers further speculate that her tumor may have affected her fertility.
The presence of a gold ring decorated with the god Bes on the left hand of Person 3051 [labeled female], and perhaps the placement of the hand and ring close to the mass, may indicate that the teratoma was asymptomatic. According to Science Direct, the study explains that Person 3051 was trying to use Bes to protect against pain or other symptoms or to help with her efforts to conceive and give birth.
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