This Mummy Talks For The First Time After 3000 Years With A 3D Printed Vocal Tract

We have the chance to hear a mummified priest living in Egypt 3000 years ago speak for the first time with the help of technology.

What the scientists behind this creation did was to CT (Computed Tomography) scan the throat and larynx of Nesyamun, the said mummy, and then 3D print his vocal tract. This helps the experts hear how he might sound like when he was alive.

The mummy was moved to Leeds General Infirmary from Leeds City Museum and then scientists generate images of his vocal tract using a CT scanner.

Then an artificial larynx, which is used mainly for speech synthesis, is utilized to pair what the 3D printer did and the real vocal tract of Nesyamun.

While what scientists hear sounds more like a goat bleating than human languages, the experts believe that today’s technology can help us achieve much more.

What they intend to do next is to develop a computer model that can move the vocal tract to create vowel sounds, and then, complete words. While what they have now is far from what the priest might have sounded like when he was alive, they hope that they can come closer in the future.

Nesyamun’s mummy was unwrapped back in 1824 and experts revealed that he passed away at the age of 50s.

Some initial research suggested that he died of being strangled but later, scientists are convinced that the death was caused by an allergic reaction after some kind of insect stung his tongue. This explains why he has no damage to the throat but his tongue sticks out.

Nesyamun might die an unfortunate death but his mummified body is considered lucky as it made it out just before a bombing raid happened and destroyed many of artifacts kept in Leeds in 1941.