2,000-Year-Old Mummies Are Revealing to Researchers Ancient Medical Practices that Could Save Lives Today
By Marion Apio
Walking into the “Mummies of the World” exhibition at the California Science Center, the shift in atmosphere is immediate.
The bright, high-energy halls of the main museum give way to a somber, cinematic stillness, where low-light displays and a hauntingly quiet soundscape pull visitors out of 2026 and into a deep, historical silence.
A distinct, faintly earthy aroma hangs in the air—the scent of centuries-old organic preservation—serving as a sensory reminder that these are not replicas, but the actual remains of living beings.
The mummies are positioned with startling intentionality; they are well-preserved, clean, and carry the immense weight of the civilizations that produced them.
Whether wrapped in delicate, aged linen shrouds or dressed in ancient, weathered outfits and wooden ornaments, the level of detail is a testament to the care taken to escort these individuals into eternity.
Inside this immersive space, the diagnostic tools of the future meet the mysteries of the ancient world. At the heart of the current investigation are two Egyptian priests, Nes-Min and Nes-Hor, who recently underwent virtual autopsies at Keck Medicine of USC.
The Exhibition returns to the California Science Center for its final international tour stop from February 7 through September 7, 2026, appearing in the Weingart Foundation Special Exhibits Gallery on the third floor. Located at 700 Exposition Park Drive in Los Angeles, the museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and features this collection of over 30 human and animal mummies produced by World Heritage Exhibitions, a subsidiary of NEON.
This closing engagement is staged now to offer a final opportunity for the public to view these specimens—including a new selection of mummies never before seen in Los Angeles—before they are returned to their 10 lending institutions worldwide. Admission for the special exhibit is $27.95 for adults, $23.95 for students and seniors, and $19.95 for children, with discounted member rates and combo tickets available for those also attending the “Mummies 3D” IMAX film.
Using a state-of-the-art 320-slice CT scanner, radiologists peeled away digital layers of history in millimeter eyelids and the wear on a lumbar vertebra that tells a story of chronic back pain centuries old. “We brought the mummies over and scanned them in 0.5 millimeter, really thin slices,” said Summer Decker, the 3D imaging lead for Keck Medicine of USC. “We have thousands upon thousands of images to look beneath the wrappings.”
The investigation revealed that Nes-Min lived with a collapsed spine, a condition recognizable to any modern patient.
“If you saw this 3D print sitting on my desk in the hospital, I would immediately know which surgeon I was going to have to go to fix this,” Decker said.
The data identified man-made holes in the vertebrae, suggesting that surgeons 2,000 years ago may have been attempting some of the world’s first spinal operations.
This technological bridge proves that the secrets of the dead can be solved by the same science used to heal the living.
Jeff Rudolph, president and CEO of the California Science Center, noted that the museum takes its responsibility to display these remains seriously.
The exhibition answers the persistent questions regarding why and how these bodies were preserved. In Egypt, mummification was a sacred technology designed to escort the soul into the afterlife, extending even to animals like cats and lizards, which were preserved as offerings or beloved companions. In other regions, nature took the lead.
The “mummy bundles” of the Peruvian Highlands were preserved by the thin, dry air of the Andes, bound in flexed, fetal positions with grass cords and placed in elaborate baskets that signaled their high status. For the local community, the exhibit is a powerful “STEAM” connection.
“The marriage of science and history here is fascinating,” Waller said. “We’re still learning so much about things that happened in the past with new technology.”
This sentiment is shared by Leroy Hamilton, a photographer from Leimert Park who has documented the Science Center for 25 years. Hamilton views the center as a sanctuary where youth can trade video games for a firsthand look at human endurance.
“In a throw-away world like today, to see something that’s been preserved like this is mind-boggling,” Hamilton said.
The investigation concludes with a glimpse into the future of surgery through Jonathan Ford, a biomedical engineer at USC.
Using CT data, the team has 3D-printed life-sized replicas of ancient artifacts, such as a Scarab amulet that served as a bracelet on Nes-Min’s wrist.
“You could not see them without destroying them,” Ford said. “Now you can even hold them.”
As Decker points out, Los Angeles is the unique intersection where the entertainment industry’s cinematic tools meet medical necessity.
The resulting story is one of shared survival: the same 3D-modeling technology used to visualize an ancient priest’s spine is used at Keck Medicine to help surgeons practice on physical reproductions of a patient’s heart or liver today.
By treating these ancient residents as patients rather than artifacts, 2026 technology ensures that the medical lessons of the past directly improve the community’s health today.
Photo by Marion Apio
