1,300-Year-Old Mummified Leg With Christian Tattoo Unearthed at Ghazali Monastery in Sudan

A rare find was discovered in a monastery in Sudan. Scientists unearthed a mummified leg with a tattoo referencing Jesus Christ.

Mummified Leg With Christian Tattoo

The owner of the tattoo was buried in the Ghazali monastery in Northern Sudan, 9.3 miles (15 km) from the banks of the Nile, and was probably one of the local monks. Unintentionally, Purdue University archaeologists stumbled upon the foot tattoo, which appears to feature symbols that allude to the name of Jesus Christ.

It was the second tattoo from Sudan's medieval past uncovered. At the time, the country was a part of the Nubian kingdoms.

While photographing the bones, Purdue Ph.D. candidate Kari Guilbaul accidentally made the findings. Despite being an expert in medieval tattooing techniques, she admitted that the discovery was completely fortuitous and was not looking for any possible marks on the remains.

When Guilbault unwrapped the leg, she noticed a marking on the foot. In her previous experience, it could be a tattoo. She photographed and revealed the tattoo in exquisite detail using specialized picture editing software initially developed for researching cave art.

Per Dr. Robert Stark, who has been heading the bioarchaeological investigation of the Ghazali remains, it was a personal tattoo that may have been intended as a milestone on a spiritual journey. The tattoo features a symbol known as a "Christogram," which is a monogram created by joining the Greek letters "chi" and "rho" and serving as an acronym for the name of Christ. Alpha and Omega, the start and last letters of the Greek alphabet, are also included, signifying the Christian conviction that god is the source and capstone of all things.

Stark added that the alpha and omega were first utilized as symbols of the Christian religion by the Roman emperor Constantine circa 300 CE. Additionally, the tattoo's orientation indicated that it was intended to be seen by the wearer, implying a private rather than a public purpose. The location on the foot can be an allusion to Christ's crucifixion or a metaphor for a spiritual journey.

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Mummies With Golden Tongue

If the recent mummy discovered had a Christian tattoo, another team of archaeologists excavated mummies with golden tongues in the Qewaisna Necropolis. The gold piece is thought to have replaced the deceased's actual tongues after embalming so they could speak with Osiris in the afterlife. In Egyptian mythology, Osiris, one of the most important gods of ancient Egypt, is referred to as the "Lord of the Underworld" and the "Judge of the Dead."

The cemetery, which features "many tombs" carved into the rock in Tuna El-Gebel's Al-Ghuraifa district, was discovered during excavations last August. Researchers have also uncovered hundreds of archaeological items, including wooden and stone coffins, some of which contained mummies, amulets, ornaments, and funeral statues.

They also found a coffin with the high priest's daughter inside, two wooden boxes containing canopic jars, and a collection of "ushabti" sculptures. The ancient Egyptians preserved the deceased's organs for the afterlife by removing the lungs, liver, intestines, and stomach after mummification and storing them in canopic jars.