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DNA May Unravel Mummy's Lineage

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The Associated Press

Published: May 30, 2008

CAIRO, Egypt - Egypt plans to conduct a DNA test on a 3,500-year-old mummy to determine whether it is King Thutmose I, one of the most important pharaohs, the country's chief archaeologist said Thursday.

Zahi Hawass, Egypt's antiquities chief, said the DNA test and an X-ray will be carried out on a mummy found at the site of ancient Thebes on the west bank of the Nile, what is today Luxor's Valley of the Kings, the Middle East News Agency reported.

Hawass said a mummy on display in the Egyptian Museum that was purported for many years to be Thutmose I was not actually the ancient ruler's remains.
Thutmose I was the third pharaoh of Egypt's 18th dynasty of pharaohs. His reign is generally dated from 1506 to 1493 B.C.

He was succeeded by his son Thutmose II, who in turn was succeeded by Thutmose II's sister, Hatshepsut, ancient Egypt's most powerful female pharaoh.

Egypt has acquired a $5 million DNA lab, funded by the Discovery Channel, which has become a centerpiece of an ambitious plan to identify mummies and re-examine the royal mummy collection.

The best way to obtain accurate results is from the DNA found in a cell's nucleus because it contains information from both parents. However, mummy DNA is usually so deteriorated that the chances of finding usable nuclear DNA are slim.

Hawass did not say what the mummy's DNA will be compared to in the attempt to identify it.

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