The
mummy of Lady Ray is one of the most important known mummies discovered in
Egypt. She was discovered in 1881 and researchers estimate that she was between
30 and 40 years old when she died around 1530 BC.
From
the remaining writings about Lady Rai , we know that she was a governess to Queen
Ahmose-Nefertari, who was the first queen of the Eighteenth Dynasty in ancient
Egypt.
The
body of Ahmose Enhapy, Ahmose Nefertari's aunt, was found mummy in the outer
coffin of Lady Rai.
The
process of mummifying the lady included wrapping her in linen. Her face and
body were covered in a mixture of resin and sand. There was an embalming
incision on the left side of her body which was covered by an embalming plate.
It
is possible that jewelry was placed on her right wrist during the mummification
process.
In
2009, researchers performed a computed tomography (CAT) scan of Lady Rai's body
and discovered that she was suffering from atherosclerosis. It is the oldest
known mummy suffering from the disease, and several other Egyptian mummies show
signs of atherosclerosis.
Lady rai (ca. 1570/1560 - 1530 BC) was an ancient Egyptian woman from the beginning
of the Eighteenth Dynasty who worked as a governess for Queen Ahmose-Nefertari.
Her
mummy remains were discovered in the Royal Cache (TT320) next to Deir el-Bahari
in 1881 and it is estimated that she was in her thirties at the time of her
death.
The
mummy was unwrapped by Grafton Elliot Smith in 1909. He described her mummy as
"the most complete example of mummification that has come down to us from
the early Eighteenth Dynasty, or perhaps from any other period." Now in
the Egyptian Museum, Cairo.