The discovery was unexpected for researchers at the University hospital in Lund who hoped to learn more about the health and lives of people from that period by examining the remains of the extremely well preserved Bishop Peder Winstrup.
“You can only speculate as to whether it was one of Winstrup’s next of kin, or whether someone else took the opportunity while preparing the coffin. But we hope to be able to clarify any kinship through a DNA test,” said Per Karsten, director of the historical museum at Lund University, in a press release.
Karsten said the fetus could be related to Winstrup, who was one of the founding fathers of Sweden’s Lund University. But perhaps more likely, Karsten said, the fetus was placed there by someone with access to Winstrup’s coffin in order to have an illegitimate child buried in sanctified ground.
The preliminary results of the scan also revealed that the body still hosts most of the internal organs — unusual for a mummy.
The bishop wasn’t preserved by the usual mummification process but simply dried out naturally. The good condition of the body appears to be the result of ideal conditions — constant air flow, plant material in the coffin, a long period of illness for the bishop before death, causing him to be very lean, and the fact that he was buried during the winter months.
Analysis of the remains suggest the 74-year-old had gallstones, which could indicate a diet of fatty foods, and tooth decay possibly resulting from eating a lot of sugar. The bishop also appeared to suffer from osteoarthritis in both the knee and hip joint — and a bad shoulder.
“His right shoulder was slightly higher than his left, due to an injury to a tendon in the shoulder. This would have limited Winstrup’s mobility, making it difficult for him to carry out simple everyday tasks such as putting on a shirt or combing his hair with the comb in his right hand,” Caroline Ahlström Arcini, an osteologist working on the project, said in a press release.
Read more at Discovery News
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