The mysterious 1,700-year-old “salt” mummy with a long, flank neck is a natural death inside a mine. It is very well preserved and had a tragic end and today we can only speculate as to what happened to it.
Archaeologists have so far discovered six well-preserved salt mines in ChehraƄad, Iran.
The first “salt” mumy was discovered in 1994 along with some ancient artifacts, such as iron blades and gold earrings.
The salt mummy is easily recognizable by its long hairline and flank ƄarƄa. The man supposedly ʋiʋe died 1,700 years ago, during the time of GoƄierno Tsani and died at the age of between 35 and 40 years.
His head is on display today at the National Museum of Iran, Tehran. Years later, in 2004, scientists found more human remains in the mine. Older mummies were discovered in 2005, 2006 and 2007.
How these people died remains a mystery, but what is most likely is that they died as a result of an accident that occurred in the mine.
Numerous studies have been conducted on “salt” mummies, and scientists hope that these ancient human remains will help them learn more about the ancient mining that took place in the region.
The identity of the deceased is also a mystery and we do not know if they were locals or foreigners who were brought to work in the salt flats.
Based on the artifacts discovered in the mine and the study of the salt layers, the researchers believe that the mine was operating during three different eras and mining practices were organized differently each time.
However, scientists may not be able to study the “salty” mummy for much longer. A few years ago, there was a crack in the Plexiglas box in which the head of the mummy is kept. As a result of this, bacteria and insects entered the box and began to consume the remains.
Fortunately, the crack was discovered in time and a series of measures were taken to avoid further damage, but it is unknown how long the mummy will remain preserved.
