What a discovery!
A team of archaeologists working at a dig in Amarna, Egypt recently analyzed 100 skulls recovered from a cemetery where they discovered a variety of remains exhibiting elaborate hairstyles including hair extensions and red henna hair dye.
“The remains were found near Amarna — a city built as the new capital of Egypt under the reign of Akhenaten (reign ca. 1353-1335 B.C.), a revolutionary king who sought to establish the first monotheistic religion,” reports Live Science.
Among the finds were the remains of an unidentified woman (featured above) who displayed a very complex coif of about 70 extensions fastened to her head. According to archaeologist Jolanda Bos, it’s unclear whether the extensions were added before or after death.
“Whether or not the woman had her hair styled like this for her burial only is one of our main research questions,” Bos told Live Science. “The hair was most likely styled after death, before a person was buried. It is also likely, however, that these hairstyles were used in everyday life as well and that the people in Amarna used hair extensions in their daily life.”
Other skulls exhibited extensions created from grey and dark black hair and an orange-red color which suggested that the hair may have been dyed with henna, a flowering plant used as a permanent hair color to hide gray strands.
Hit the flip for more photos of the amazing archaeological find below. – ruthie hawkins/@ruubabie
Photo credit: Jolanda Bos and Lonneke Beukenholdt.
Images: Jolanda Bos and Lonneke Beukenholdt.
