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Narrator: Could this
5,000-year-old ball

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be a stone cold killer?

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Somara: Catapulted, thrown.

4
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It could do some damage.

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Narrator: Is this literally
shocking invention

6
00:00:13,914 --> 00:00:15,814
the victorian viagra?

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Auerbach: Order one of
pulvermacher's electrified belts

8
00:00:18,919 --> 00:00:22,521
and turn yourself into
a paradigm of masculinity.

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Narrator: And what is
so wrong about this ancient

10
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egyptian mummified cat.

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This mummy is empty.
There's no cat in it.

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Narrator: These are the most
remarkable and mysterious

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objects on earth.

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Hidden away in museums,

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laboratories,
and storage rooms.

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Now, new research
and technology can

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get under their skin like
never before.

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We can rebuild them,

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pull them apart,

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and zoom in

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to reveal the unbelievable,

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the ancient,

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and the truly bizarre.

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These are the world's
strangest things.

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Locked in a cabinet at
the national museum of scotland

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sits a strange stone object.

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It was carved from
a solid black rock

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thousands of years ago.

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It's beautiful,
and it's aesthetic,

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and it's almost like
a piece of art.

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Narrator: It is
one of archaeology's

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greatest mysteries.

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It must have a function.

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Archaeologists have been
speculating about it for over

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a century, but we still
don't know what it is.

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Narrator: Now, using
the latest technology,

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we can re-examine this
incredible object

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in minute detail.

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This is the towie ball.

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For over 160 years,

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the function of
this intricately

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decorated rock has
eluded archaeologists.

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The towie ball
is made of stone.

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It weighs about a pound.

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It's the shape and dimension
of a baseball.

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It features
four stone lobes,

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three of which are decorated
with concentric circles

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and spirals.

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It's a remarkable object.

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Narrator: The ball might be
considered a one-off curiosity,

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but it isn't,

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bellinger: We've now found
over 500 of these objects.

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They range in exact size
and in the type of stone used,

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but they're all similar enough
to be grouped, reasonably, as

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a single category.

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Narrator:
But it is the towie ball that

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stands out as the most complex,

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detailed,
and finest of them all.

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Who made it?

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What is it for?

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How old is it?

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The towie ball is discovered
around 1860 by workmen digging

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a drainage ditch in the small
scottish hamlet of towie,

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hence the name.

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In fact,
nearly all the carved

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balls have turned up
in scotland.

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They've been found in various
places, about 20 in the orkneys,

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two in England and ireland,
and one from norway.

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But the majority have been
found in northeast scotland,

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and that suggests that this is
almost certainly

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a scottish artifact.

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They form broadly two groups,

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one with these sort of
nodular protuberances,

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like the towie ball,

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others which can have
many tens of bumps

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or pustules or nubbins

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upon them,
looking very much

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like very spiky versions
of the towie ball.

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Narrator:
But it is the towie ball,

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the most intricate of them all,
that really

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intrigues archaeologists.

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Macdonald:
In archaeology,

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we often date things
by association,

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but here, we have an object on
its own and dateless.

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Narrator:
It isn't until 2013,

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over 150 years after
the ball was found,

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that archaeologists
finally uncover

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a definitive way of dating it.

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New excavations at
the ness of brodgar

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in the orkneys
discover a stone ball

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beneath a wooden buttress.

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Narrator: Archaeologists
can use carbon dating

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of the wood buttress
to get a definitive age

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for the ball, as they are
confident it had been

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intentionally buried beneath
the buttress.

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It was radiocarbon dated

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to 2900 bc.

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Narrator: So the stone carved
balls, including the towie ball,

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are around 5,000 years old,
from the neolithic period.

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Bellinger:
The neolithic first appeared

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over 10,000 years ago
in the middle east and china,

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where they developed
new technologies

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for growing food crops,
rather than having to go

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out and hunt and gather
their food.

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Narrator:
It is the beginning of farming

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and a settled way of life.

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It was also a revolution

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technologically speaking,
especially in terms of

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the creation of polished
stone artifacts

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and also the increased
complex decoration

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of objects.

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Narrator: The neolithic period
is a dramatic

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and permanent transformation
of human existence.

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Bellinger: Neolithic literally
means "new stone age,"

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and stone was the calling card
and the core tool

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and material
that the individuals living in

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this time worked with.

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Stone endures in just about
every environment,

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and so that is what we have
for the most part to make

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our understandings
of the neolithic people.

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Narrator: The level of
expertise and man hours

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needed to create
these stone balls

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suggest they must play

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a very significant role in
neolithic life.

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But what is it?

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What are these carved
stone balls for?

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One theory that's been
suggested for the towie ball

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is that it is
a demonstration

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of the skill of the stonemason
who made it.

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Some have speculated
that these stones

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were actually, in effect,

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portable portfolios that

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craftspeople could carry around
with them and present

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as evidence of the quality
and the variety of work

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that they could produce,

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and that could
explain the level of detail.

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It's a bit of
showing off, really.

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Narrator: The idea
that these carved balls

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are a sort of
stonemason cv would

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help explain some of
the differences between

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the 500 or so balls discovered.

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Or does it?

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Only maybe a dozen
are as intricate

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or as well finished
as the towie ball.

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So that does not
fully convince

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to explain
why they were made.

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Narrator: Unless they aren't
all finished pieces.

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Somara: It took a huge amount
of work to create these things.

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So maybe the ones that were
less finessed were

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the result of people just
giving up, getting frustrated.

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Maybe the stonemason
just ran out of steam.

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Narrator: But some
archaeologists think this idea

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is just too hard to reconcile
with the evidence.

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It's not a theory that's
entirely without

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any merit, but it's not
the strongest explanation.

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Narrator: There is a very
different and rather

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surprising theory to explain
the towie ball.

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Maybe it was some kind of
stone-age storybook.

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Bellinger:
Storytelling has always

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been hugely important
to humanity,

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but 5,000 years ago
in neolithic britain,

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there wasn't any way of
writing it down.

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It was all oral.

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Macdonald: The notion is that
the towie ball might

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have served as a sort of
trigger for memory, using

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the undulations on its surface
as a kind of

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means of counting
or stringing together

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a narrative by playing
your fingers across it.

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Narrator: Mnemonic storytelling
aids do exist in other cultures.

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Macdonald: For the luba people
of central africa,

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there's a tangible vehicle of
memory, which is known as

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a lukasa,
or a memory board.

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And these,
made out of wood,

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with some iconographic
carving added to them,

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but mainly with beads of
different colors strung to them,

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are used as a system of
cues for recounting epic tales.

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Narrator: But there's a snag
with this theory.

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Only a handful of balls
are carved with

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any real detail,
and even they throw up problems.

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Even if we look at the very
best objects

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for this sort of thing,
like the towie ball,

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the patterns are simply
too repetitive and too simple

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to be extremely useful
as a mnemonic device.

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Narrator: Perhaps
the towie ball is something

185
00:10:04,605 --> 00:10:09,107
less artistic
and altogether more violent.

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Narrator: There are multiple
competing explanations for

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the 5,000-year-old
towie ball's purpose.

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One popular theory
is that it is a weapon.

189
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Bellinger: Looking
at these balls

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and actually handling them,

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it sort of brings
to mind a weapon, potentially.

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Those things weighing
about a pound each,

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if you hit someone with it,
it's gonna hurt.

194
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It's gonna leave a mark.

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00:10:50,417 --> 00:10:52,617
Narrator: The idea that
the towie ball might be

196
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a neolithic killing machine

197
00:10:54,221 --> 00:10:56,521
fits well
with increasing evidence

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that this is not
a peaceful time.

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Neolithic burials have been
excavated for,

200
00:11:02,629 --> 00:11:05,330
you know, over 100 years.

201
00:11:05,432 --> 00:11:08,199
But it's only recently, with
the development of very

202
00:11:08,201 --> 00:11:13,038
sophisticated osteoarchaeology,
that we can begin to understand

203
00:11:13,106 --> 00:11:16,174
how people died in
the neolithic.

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00:11:16,176 --> 00:11:19,611
Macdonald: Increasing evidence
shows that warfare

205
00:11:19,713 --> 00:11:21,546
was more common
than we have thought.

206
00:11:21,615 --> 00:11:25,417
This wasn't a shiny, happy
community all the time.

207
00:11:25,519 --> 00:11:27,819
Narrator: Head injuries
inflicted by weapons often

208
00:11:27,921 --> 00:11:30,922
leave a very recognizable
pattern of fractures.

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00:11:33,160 --> 00:11:35,994
Macdonald: A recent
research project examining

210
00:11:35,996 --> 00:11:39,531
350 neolithic crania
from britain

211
00:11:39,533 --> 00:11:45,303
found that up to 7 percent had
instances of traumatic injury.

212
00:11:45,305 --> 00:11:48,873
I mean, if you think about it,
with the positive aspects of

213
00:11:48,875 --> 00:11:50,709
reliance on agriculture,

214
00:11:50,811 --> 00:11:53,411
which allows you to settle in
one place,

215
00:11:53,413 --> 00:11:56,514
you've got a lot of people
settled in one place,

216
00:11:56,616 --> 00:12:00,919
and human nature being what it
is, that inevitably leads to

217
00:12:00,921 --> 00:12:05,056
stratification
and ultimately, to conflict.

218
00:12:05,092 --> 00:12:08,326
Narrator: So what kind of weapon
could the towie ball be?

219
00:12:08,328 --> 00:12:11,830
Macdonald: They could have been
used as a kind of macehead,

220
00:12:11,932 --> 00:12:14,332
with the lobes giving
a means to wrap

221
00:12:14,401 --> 00:12:19,237
sinew or cord around them and
attach them to a stout stick,

222
00:12:19,306 --> 00:12:23,108
and therefore be a kind of
war club.

223
00:12:23,210 --> 00:12:26,611
Narrator: But if it is just
a glorified stone age club,

224
00:12:26,613 --> 00:12:28,613
why decorate it so carefully?

225
00:12:28,715 --> 00:12:30,548
There are precedents for this,

226
00:12:30,617 --> 00:12:32,417
particularly
the mouth macehead,

227
00:12:32,419 --> 00:12:35,053
which is another neolithic
object, which is quite

228
00:12:35,122 --> 00:12:36,721
extensively decorated.

229
00:12:36,823 --> 00:12:39,924
Narrator: But there may be
a problem with this theory.

230
00:12:39,926 --> 00:12:42,727
We know that the towie ball
is made

231
00:12:42,829 --> 00:12:46,397
out of a metamorphic stone
known as hornfels.

232
00:12:46,399 --> 00:12:50,301
If this hits a solid object,

233
00:12:51,638 --> 00:12:54,038
it is going to suffer
a conchoidal fracture,

234
00:12:54,074 --> 00:12:56,541
much in the way
that glass would.

235
00:12:56,610 --> 00:12:58,810
Narrator: Expanding
the state-of-the-art

236
00:12:58,879 --> 00:13:02,413
3d graphic, we can examine
every part of

237
00:13:02,415 --> 00:13:05,049
the towie ball for the tiniest
evidence of this

238
00:13:05,118 --> 00:13:06,751
distinct fracture.

239
00:13:06,820 --> 00:13:10,421
We don't see these sort
of fractures on

240
00:13:10,423 --> 00:13:14,526
the towie ball or any other of
these stone balls.

241
00:13:14,594 --> 00:13:16,628
Narrator:
We also know neolithic peoples

242
00:13:16,630 --> 00:13:18,997
often bury their weapons
in their graves,

243
00:13:18,999 --> 00:13:23,301
but the towie ball is not
found in a grave, and neither

244
00:13:23,303 --> 00:13:26,037
are many of the other
carved balls.

245
00:13:26,106 --> 00:13:29,607
It all suggests the towie ball
isn't a weapon.

246
00:13:30,811 --> 00:13:32,844
But is there
another explanation,

247
00:13:32,946 --> 00:13:35,146
one that would justify
the effort that

248
00:13:35,215 --> 00:13:37,515
has gone into making
the towie ball?

249
00:13:41,721 --> 00:13:45,023
Is it a message
to their gods?

250
00:13:45,025 --> 00:13:47,725
One thing that's really
striking about these objects,

251
00:13:47,794 --> 00:13:51,229
when you look closely at
the designs themselves,

252
00:13:51,298 --> 00:13:54,699
is that they really resemble
those found on some

253
00:13:54,801 --> 00:13:58,736
religious structures created
during the same time.

254
00:13:58,805 --> 00:14:01,806
So particularly thinking about
newgrange,

255
00:14:01,808 --> 00:14:04,075
a passage grave in ireland.

256
00:14:04,077 --> 00:14:06,444
You know, it suggests
that there could

257
00:14:06,513 --> 00:14:10,648
be a religious purpose
to these balls.

258
00:14:10,717 --> 00:14:12,851
Narrator: Archaeologists
believe religion

259
00:14:12,953 --> 00:14:14,252
and these intricate symbols

260
00:14:14,321 --> 00:14:17,822
are intimately connected to
life in the neolithic.

261
00:14:17,924 --> 00:14:22,527
It brings us back to
the ideology of the people of

262
00:14:22,629 --> 00:14:24,896
the neolithic period
in europe --

263
00:14:24,898 --> 00:14:29,100
the winter solstice,
the equinox, bodies of water,

264
00:14:29,236 --> 00:14:31,803
offerings to other worlds.

265
00:14:31,905 --> 00:14:35,039
We can see traces of
the ritual, but it's hard for

266
00:14:35,108 --> 00:14:38,509
us to connect the dots
and reconstruct the full

267
00:14:38,511 --> 00:14:40,311
spiritual system.

268
00:14:40,313 --> 00:14:42,814
But it was there.

269
00:14:42,916 --> 00:14:46,851
Narrator: So what is
the truth about the towie ball?

270
00:14:46,953 --> 00:14:51,322
Stonemasons' advert, weapon,
stone age storybook?

271
00:14:51,324 --> 00:14:53,858
With so many possibilities,

272
00:14:53,960 --> 00:14:56,461
there is no single answer

273
00:14:56,529 --> 00:15:00,331
and ultimately, we may find
that there are two

274
00:15:00,400 --> 00:15:03,601
or three different
viable interpretations

275
00:15:03,703 --> 00:15:05,436
for the use of these objects.

276
00:15:05,505 --> 00:15:07,906
Narrator: The towie ball
remains an enduring

277
00:15:07,908 --> 00:15:10,808
and beautiful mystery
and a window

278
00:15:10,810 --> 00:15:14,545
into the lives of
our ancestors 5,000 years ago.

279
00:15:21,421 --> 00:15:24,455
In an antique collector's
cabinet in virginia sits

280
00:15:24,524 --> 00:15:27,558
a strange metal contraption
from the 19th century.

281
00:15:28,728 --> 00:15:30,395
It was, quite literally, one of

282
00:15:30,397 --> 00:15:33,531
the most shocking medical
devices ever created.

283
00:15:36,403 --> 00:15:38,937
Narrator: Now, using
the latest technology,

284
00:15:39,039 --> 00:15:43,041
we're bringing this bizarre
contraption out into the light.

285
00:15:44,711 --> 00:15:48,513
Pulvermacher's
electro galvanic chain.

286
00:15:48,615 --> 00:15:51,816
It was claimed to be
a revolution in medical science.

287
00:15:51,918 --> 00:15:55,820
Narrator: It's made from
120 perforated metal links

288
00:15:55,822 --> 00:15:58,523
connected together into
a chain.

289
00:16:00,527 --> 00:16:03,828
Each link consists of
a copper casing, housing

290
00:16:03,930 --> 00:16:07,732
a zinc rod wrapped
in vinegar-soaked cloth.

291
00:16:07,801 --> 00:16:11,202
Handles made of metal and wood
attach to either end.

292
00:16:12,305 --> 00:16:14,305
It looks well made and has

293
00:16:14,407 --> 00:16:16,941
the feel of a professional
piece of kit.

294
00:16:17,043 --> 00:16:18,876
Marks:
People went crazy for them.

295
00:16:18,878 --> 00:16:20,244
Thousands of people
were strapping

296
00:16:20,313 --> 00:16:22,013
these strange things
across their bodies.

297
00:16:23,283 --> 00:16:26,818
Narrator: Which is surprising,
given that its sole function was

298
00:16:26,920 --> 00:16:30,321
to deliver 132 volts of
electricity directly into

299
00:16:30,323 --> 00:16:31,823
the body,

300
00:16:31,925 --> 00:16:34,225
more or less equivalent to
plugging yourself

301
00:16:34,227 --> 00:16:35,960
into a u.S. Power outlet.

302
00:16:37,430 --> 00:16:41,232
This is basically a device for
electrocuting yourself.

303
00:16:43,003 --> 00:16:46,137
Narrator: Why would someone
do something so bizarre?

304
00:16:47,407 --> 00:16:49,307
Does it actually
produce electricity?

305
00:16:50,810 --> 00:16:54,045
And were people really
electrocuting themselves

306
00:16:54,114 --> 00:16:55,713
for their health?

307
00:17:02,322 --> 00:17:05,156
Narrator: In the mid-19th
century, britain's empire is

308
00:17:05,191 --> 00:17:06,524
expanding rapidly.

309
00:17:06,526 --> 00:17:09,460
The country is
embracing change,

310
00:17:09,529 --> 00:17:12,230
led by an explosion
of innovation

311
00:17:12,332 --> 00:17:14,532
and game-changing invention.

312
00:17:15,702 --> 00:17:18,636
And then there's
the pulvermacher belt.

313
00:17:18,705 --> 00:17:20,938
Its inventor,
isaac pulvermacher,

314
00:17:21,007 --> 00:17:22,440
is a mysterious figure.

315
00:17:22,509 --> 00:17:24,042
We don't have any photographs
of him, but we know

316
00:17:24,110 --> 00:17:26,611
he was a prussian
traveling inventor.

317
00:17:28,415 --> 00:17:30,314
Narrator:
In the 1850s,

318
00:17:30,417 --> 00:17:32,350
pulvermacher is
traveling around europe,

319
00:17:32,419 --> 00:17:34,719
gathering support
and testimonies that will help

320
00:17:34,821 --> 00:17:38,756
him sell what he claims is
the portable cure for almost

321
00:17:38,825 --> 00:17:41,125
every ailment known to man.

322
00:17:41,194 --> 00:17:45,129
The self applicable electro
galvanic chain belt,

323
00:17:45,231 --> 00:17:47,565
for the cure of nervous
and chronic diseases

324
00:17:47,600 --> 00:17:49,300
without medicine.

325
00:17:49,402 --> 00:17:50,902
What a title.

326
00:17:50,904 --> 00:17:52,036
Marks:
It's a panacea.

327
00:17:52,105 --> 00:17:55,406
It can treat rheumatism,
liver problems,

328
00:17:55,408 --> 00:17:57,508
tiredness, headaches,

329
00:17:57,510 --> 00:18:00,812
dizziness, fatigue,
even sexual problems.

330
00:18:00,914 --> 00:18:03,347
So you name it,
the belt can fix it

331
00:18:03,416 --> 00:18:05,049
through the magic
of electricity.

332
00:18:05,118 --> 00:18:07,418
Or so says
the mysterious pulvermacher.

333
00:18:14,494 --> 00:18:16,227
Narrator: Pulling the belt apart
reveals that it

334
00:18:16,329 --> 00:18:18,830
can definitely give you
a nasty shock.

335
00:18:20,733 --> 00:18:23,401
So the belt consists of
a series of

336
00:18:23,403 --> 00:18:25,436
interconnected links.

337
00:18:25,505 --> 00:18:31,109
Each one has a copper casing,
and inside that is a zinc rod,

338
00:18:31,111 --> 00:18:33,111
which is wrapped
in a little cloth

339
00:18:33,213 --> 00:18:34,545
soaked in vinegar.

340
00:18:34,614 --> 00:18:36,647
Narrator:
Two different metals,

341
00:18:36,716 --> 00:18:38,549
with a conducting
liquid between,

342
00:18:38,618 --> 00:18:41,519
like vinegar,
will produce electricity.

343
00:18:41,621 --> 00:18:43,621
It's high school science.

344
00:18:43,723 --> 00:18:46,124
This makes every link in
the belt

345
00:18:46,226 --> 00:18:48,426
an individual battery cell.

346
00:18:48,428 --> 00:18:50,828
Sella: The beauty
of these things is

347
00:18:50,930 --> 00:18:52,830
that the more of
these you link up,

348
00:18:52,932 --> 00:18:54,932
the bigger
the voltage you get.

349
00:18:55,034 --> 00:18:57,201
Steele: Pulvermacher had a range
of different models,

350
00:18:57,303 --> 00:18:59,737
but the 120-cell version

351
00:18:59,772 --> 00:19:02,440
could deliver
a whopping 132 volts.

352
00:19:06,045 --> 00:19:08,012
Narrator: There are
several recommended ways

353
00:19:08,014 --> 00:19:09,614
to use the device.

354
00:19:09,616 --> 00:19:12,850
These include
the simple shock method,

355
00:19:12,952 --> 00:19:15,753
where you hold the metal tubes
with damp hands and bang

356
00:19:15,788 --> 00:19:17,421
the linked chains together.

357
00:19:17,524 --> 00:19:20,024
Each time they connect,
you get a shock.

358
00:19:22,128 --> 00:19:24,729
There is the conductor
brush, specifically

359
00:19:24,731 --> 00:19:28,232
for electrocuting
the mouth and ears.

360
00:19:28,301 --> 00:19:31,736
And then there is the
interrupting clockwork system,

361
00:19:31,771 --> 00:19:33,738
which, when connected to
the electric chain

362
00:19:33,806 --> 00:19:36,941
and wound up, sends shocks to
that part of the body

363
00:19:37,010 --> 00:19:39,043
that most needs a regular jolt.

364
00:19:46,819 --> 00:19:49,120
But where does pulvermacher
get the idea that

365
00:19:49,122 --> 00:19:52,857
electricity really can be some
kind of miracle cure?

366
00:19:53,927 --> 00:19:56,427
And why do the victorians
buy into it?

367
00:19:59,065 --> 00:20:02,099
The idea of medical
electricity really takes hold

368
00:20:02,101 --> 00:20:05,102
in the 18th century with
the quest for something called

369
00:20:05,171 --> 00:20:07,505
the vital force

370
00:20:07,507 --> 00:20:10,708
and an accidental experiment

371
00:20:10,810 --> 00:20:12,410
with a frog.
-[frog croaks]

372
00:20:12,512 --> 00:20:15,112
vital force is an idea
that goes all the way back

373
00:20:15,215 --> 00:20:16,614
to the ancient egyptians.

374
00:20:16,616 --> 00:20:20,318
What is it that animates
living beings?

375
00:20:20,320 --> 00:20:22,620
What is this mysterious
force that

376
00:20:22,622 --> 00:20:25,156
makes things alive
rather than dead?

377
00:20:26,726 --> 00:20:27,825
Narrator: The man
who believes he has

378
00:20:27,827 --> 00:20:32,129
found it is italian scientist
luigi galvani.

379
00:20:32,131 --> 00:20:35,399
His experiment is...Unusual.

380
00:20:35,401 --> 00:20:36,834
Steele:
He was playing around

381
00:20:36,936 --> 00:20:38,336
with static
electricity machines,

382
00:20:38,404 --> 00:20:40,304
and, at the same time,
dissecting frogs,

383
00:20:40,406 --> 00:20:42,106
and what we think
might have happened

384
00:20:42,175 --> 00:20:43,507
is that one of
his assistants touched

385
00:20:43,509 --> 00:20:45,810
a scalpel on a nerve in
the frog's leg.

386
00:20:45,812 --> 00:20:47,545
Perhaps that scalp had been
charged up with some

387
00:20:47,614 --> 00:20:49,714
static electricity from
somewhere, and the frog's

388
00:20:49,816 --> 00:20:52,617
leg kicked, and what
this showed us was there was

389
00:20:52,619 --> 00:20:55,019
a fundamental relationship
between electricity

390
00:20:55,021 --> 00:20:56,754
and whatever
makes muscles move.

391
00:20:58,491 --> 00:21:01,325
Narrator: Galvani is convinced
that he has discovered

392
00:21:01,327 --> 00:21:02,960
this vital force,

393
00:21:03,062 --> 00:21:05,029
and he renames it
animal electricity,

394
00:21:05,031 --> 00:21:08,332
a life force that comes
from the tissue itself.

395
00:21:10,203 --> 00:21:13,437
When galvani publishes
his first report

396
00:21:13,506 --> 00:21:16,540
on this experiment,
it really, no pun intended,

397
00:21:16,609 --> 00:21:19,110
shocks the world.

398
00:21:19,112 --> 00:21:21,912
Narrator: Galvani believes
his new theory

399
00:21:21,914 --> 00:21:25,349
of animal electricity
has huge medical potential.

400
00:21:25,418 --> 00:21:28,119
Steele: But it was gonna take
more than the kicking leg

401
00:21:28,121 --> 00:21:30,187
of a dead frog to convince
the world of this.

402
00:21:30,189 --> 00:21:34,692
This all changed in 1798,
when galvani died and passed

403
00:21:34,694 --> 00:21:38,429
on the baton on to his nephew
and assistant, giovanni aldini.

404
00:21:39,766 --> 00:21:43,501
Narrator: Aldini takes his
uncle's theories on the road.

405
00:21:43,603 --> 00:21:46,103
The inspiration for
the pulvermacher belt

406
00:21:46,105 --> 00:21:48,606
comes partly from his work,

407
00:21:48,608 --> 00:21:52,310
one of literally the most
shocking experiments of

408
00:21:52,312 --> 00:21:57,048
the entire 19th century.

409
00:22:00,720 --> 00:22:03,120
Narrator: Pulvermacher's
electrical belt

410
00:22:03,222 --> 00:22:04,822
is a medical invention
that takes

411
00:22:04,924 --> 00:22:06,957
the 19th century
by storm.

412
00:22:08,528 --> 00:22:09,960
It relies on the idea that

413
00:22:10,063 --> 00:22:13,230
electricity is
the vital force of life.

414
00:22:13,299 --> 00:22:15,933
One man more than any
other becomes

415
00:22:16,035 --> 00:22:19,603
famous for spreading
that idea around europe --

416
00:22:19,706 --> 00:22:22,707
italian scientist
giovanni aldini.

417
00:22:24,510 --> 00:22:30,081
He tours europe with a voltaic
pile, and he uses it to conduct

418
00:22:30,083 --> 00:22:33,417
electricity through
the cadavers of various animals,

419
00:22:33,486 --> 00:22:37,121
like dogs and sheep,
making them kick and twitch.

420
00:22:37,123 --> 00:22:42,226
But he decides to up the ante
a bit and uses not an animal...

421
00:22:43,162 --> 00:22:44,762
[woman screaming]

422
00:22:44,831 --> 00:22:48,032
...But a person.

423
00:22:48,101 --> 00:22:50,334
Narrator: His most famous
experiment takes place in

424
00:22:50,403 --> 00:22:53,804
1803 at the royal college
of surgeons.

425
00:22:54,841 --> 00:22:56,540
In front of a large audience,

426
00:22:56,609 --> 00:22:59,543
aldini hooks his device up to
recently hanged murderer,

427
00:22:59,612 --> 00:23:00,945
george foster.

428
00:23:02,682 --> 00:23:05,316
He sends 132 volts
of electricity

429
00:23:05,418 --> 00:23:08,119
surging through
the dead convict's corpse,

430
00:23:09,555 --> 00:23:13,324
and it immediately begins
to move.

431
00:23:13,426 --> 00:23:17,528
The audience is terrified --
they think aldini is trying to

432
00:23:17,530 --> 00:23:20,264
bring back to life
a dead murderer,

433
00:23:20,333 --> 00:23:22,099
but he reassures them
saying, no,

434
00:23:22,201 --> 00:23:26,036
this is a device that might be
able to revive others

435
00:23:26,105 --> 00:23:27,104
and save their lives,

436
00:23:27,206 --> 00:23:30,241
perhaps someone
who had recently drowned.

437
00:23:30,309 --> 00:23:32,643
Narrator:
Aldini's demonstration

438
00:23:32,712 --> 00:23:37,214
changes the way 19th century
people view electricity.

439
00:23:37,216 --> 00:23:40,418
Even mary shelley's
frankenstein is directly

440
00:23:40,420 --> 00:23:44,321
influenced by george foster's
electrifying return.

441
00:23:46,959 --> 00:23:50,227
Of course, aldini isn't
actually re-animating the dead.

442
00:23:50,329 --> 00:23:53,264
He is demonstrating that
the nervous system uses

443
00:23:53,332 --> 00:23:55,933
electricity to control
a living body.

444
00:23:56,002 --> 00:23:59,136
Steele: Our muscles move in
response to electrical signals

445
00:23:59,205 --> 00:24:01,038
that flow through our nerves
to the muscles.

446
00:24:01,107 --> 00:24:03,741
Electricity is a vital force,

447
00:24:03,810 --> 00:24:06,811
but in a dead body, there's
no source of electricity.

448
00:24:06,913 --> 00:24:11,715
Narrator: Maybe the fabled vital
force hasn't been discovered,

449
00:24:11,818 --> 00:24:14,318
but here is proof
that electricity

450
00:24:14,320 --> 00:24:16,954
is an essential part of life.

451
00:24:17,023 --> 00:24:20,124
Aldini's experiment
kickstarts further

452
00:24:20,126 --> 00:24:22,526
experimentation in using

453
00:24:22,528 --> 00:24:26,964
electrotherapy to treat
all kinds of ailments.

454
00:24:27,033 --> 00:24:28,933
It's thought that
the application

455
00:24:29,035 --> 00:24:30,601
of direct current
to the human body

456
00:24:30,703 --> 00:24:33,737
might be able
to cure all kinds of issues,

457
00:24:33,806 --> 00:24:35,706
a true panacea.

458
00:24:35,808 --> 00:24:38,108
Narrator: The world is ready
to embrace electricity

459
00:24:38,211 --> 00:24:42,112
in medicine --
they call it electrotherapy.

460
00:24:43,449 --> 00:24:47,251
And leading the charge is
pulvermacher's belt.

461
00:24:47,320 --> 00:24:51,322
So does this strange device
really work?

462
00:24:53,726 --> 00:24:57,394
By the middle
of the 19th century,

463
00:24:57,396 --> 00:25:00,030
electrotherapy
is all the rage.

464
00:25:00,032 --> 00:25:03,601
You have clinics opening up in
major cities like london

465
00:25:03,703 --> 00:25:06,704
and paris,
all promising cures

466
00:25:06,706 --> 00:25:08,706
for whatever ails you through

467
00:25:08,708 --> 00:25:10,241
the application of
direct current.

468
00:25:11,310 --> 00:25:14,111
Narrator: But the miracle
electrotherapy cures rapidly

469
00:25:14,113 --> 00:25:16,213
get out of hand.

470
00:25:16,215 --> 00:25:18,816
As is often the case
with new inventions,

471
00:25:18,918 --> 00:25:22,319
especially those that tout to
cure common ailments,

472
00:25:22,321 --> 00:25:25,122
it quickly moves out of
the control of scientists

473
00:25:25,124 --> 00:25:26,524
and medical professionals,

474
00:25:26,626 --> 00:25:29,260
and electrotherapy
becomes something that

475
00:25:29,328 --> 00:25:31,829
people are interested in
as a household item.

476
00:25:31,931 --> 00:25:36,500
Narrator: This huge expansion in
electrotherapy is possible

477
00:25:36,502 --> 00:25:39,603
because of a very different
type of invention --

478
00:25:39,705 --> 00:25:42,206
mail order catalogs.

479
00:25:42,308 --> 00:25:45,309
Auerbach: Mail order catalogs
are the predecessors

480
00:25:45,411 --> 00:25:47,011
of things like amazon.

481
00:25:47,013 --> 00:25:48,646
You have a huge catalog.

482
00:25:48,714 --> 00:25:53,150
You see the item you like,
you put in an order, and presto,

483
00:25:53,219 --> 00:25:56,220
a few days or weeks later,
it shows up on your doorstep.

484
00:25:56,322 --> 00:25:58,656
Narrator: In this brave
new world of mail order

485
00:25:58,691 --> 00:26:02,760
miracle cures, pulvermacher's
belt is a smash hit.

486
00:26:02,828 --> 00:26:04,428
West: People want
to be convinced that

487
00:26:04,430 --> 00:26:05,663
what you have will work.

488
00:26:05,731 --> 00:26:07,998
They want you to cure their
baldness or their impotence

489
00:26:08,000 --> 00:26:10,301
or whatever else it is,
and it makes them feel

490
00:26:10,303 --> 00:26:13,137
better to think that there's
something out there that works.

491
00:26:13,205 --> 00:26:16,040
Narrator: And you can tell them
pretty much anything you want.

492
00:26:16,108 --> 00:26:19,944
Unlike now, there are no rules
around advertising.

493
00:26:20,046 --> 00:26:22,313
There's no licensing,
and there's no regulation of

494
00:26:22,315 --> 00:26:24,448
the market.
-The moment you allow

495
00:26:24,517 --> 00:26:28,152
someone to lie and make money
and face no consequences,

496
00:26:28,220 --> 00:26:29,820
the obvious result
is that people will

497
00:26:29,822 --> 00:26:33,324
lie and make money
and face no consequences.

498
00:26:33,426 --> 00:26:35,759
Narrator: And it isn't just
pulvermacher's electrotherapy

499
00:26:35,828 --> 00:26:38,862
cures taking advantage of
this medical free-for-all.

500
00:26:39,999 --> 00:26:41,632
In parts of america,

501
00:26:41,701 --> 00:26:45,736
there are three times as many
quack doctors as real ones,

502
00:26:45,805 --> 00:26:48,806
and the mail order
cure business is driving them.

503
00:26:48,908 --> 00:26:51,508
You can find adverts for face
soap containing

504
00:26:51,611 --> 00:26:52,843
small amounts of arsenic.

505
00:26:52,945 --> 00:26:56,080
You can find cigarettes that
are supposed to cure asthma

506
00:26:56,082 --> 00:26:58,015
and cholera,
and you can even find

507
00:26:58,017 --> 00:26:59,750
adverts with images
of toddlers

508
00:26:59,785 --> 00:27:02,720
advertising cocaine
toothache drops.

509
00:27:08,527 --> 00:27:11,629
Narrator: Pulvermacher's belt
rides this wave of miracle cures

510
00:27:11,631 --> 00:27:15,599
because it is supported by
some eye-catching advertising.

511
00:27:15,701 --> 00:27:19,503
One always successful strategy
is to appeal to either

512
00:27:19,505 --> 00:27:24,608
femininity or to masculinity,
and this is exactly what's done

513
00:27:24,610 --> 00:27:28,345
with the electrified belt, and
there's advertisements of these

514
00:27:28,381 --> 00:27:32,049
rather buff victorian men in
kind of scant clothing with

515
00:27:32,118 --> 00:27:34,952
this belt strapped on,
and it asks the viewer,

516
00:27:35,021 --> 00:27:37,821
"men, why are you weak?"

517
00:27:37,823 --> 00:27:40,858
the solution is obvious --
order one of pulvermacher's

518
00:27:40,960 --> 00:27:43,327
electrified belts,
and turn yourself into

519
00:27:43,429 --> 00:27:46,263
a paradigm of masculinity.

520
00:27:46,332 --> 00:27:48,298
And it isn't just pulvermacher

521
00:27:48,300 --> 00:27:50,734
trying to corner
the electrotherapy market.

522
00:27:52,605 --> 00:27:55,239
So you start to see ads
for electric socks,

523
00:27:55,307 --> 00:27:56,940
you've got electric corsets,

524
00:27:57,009 --> 00:28:00,210
advertisements for all kinds of
home electrotherapy devices,

525
00:28:00,212 --> 00:28:03,213
claiming to cure
everything and anything that

526
00:28:03,315 --> 00:28:04,815
ails the human body.

527
00:28:04,817 --> 00:28:07,518
In this brave new world
of diy

528
00:28:07,520 --> 00:28:09,553
electrotherapy treatments,
pulvermacher's belt

529
00:28:09,588 --> 00:28:12,222
is making a killing, and he
moves his main production

530
00:28:12,224 --> 00:28:13,891
center from london
to cincinnati,

531
00:28:13,893 --> 00:28:16,727
allowing him to sell belts
across europe and america.

532
00:28:16,729 --> 00:28:20,798
Narrator: But there is one
very big issue with lots

533
00:28:20,800 --> 00:28:25,135
of these electrotherapy cures,
including pulvermacher's belt.

534
00:28:25,204 --> 00:28:27,104
Auerbach: The real problem
with all these electrotherapy

535
00:28:27,206 --> 00:28:31,041
gadgets is that the claims
were completely overblown.

536
00:28:31,110 --> 00:28:34,611
The idea that you can cure
constipation and headaches

537
00:28:34,714 --> 00:28:38,549
and impotence all simply by
mildly electrocuting yourself

538
00:28:38,584 --> 00:28:39,950
is ridiculous.

539
00:28:40,019 --> 00:28:41,652
Narrator: So ridiculous,
in fact, that it

540
00:28:41,721 --> 00:28:44,321
eventually attracts
the attention of

541
00:28:44,323 --> 00:28:46,056
the u.S. Government.

542
00:28:46,125 --> 00:28:50,127
How will they respond
to these outlandish claims?

543
00:28:56,435 --> 00:28:59,303
Narrator:
By the early 20th century,

544
00:28:59,305 --> 00:29:03,207
the writing is on the wall for
the wild west world of

545
00:29:03,209 --> 00:29:07,111
electrotherapy miracle cures,
like the pulvermacher belt.

546
00:29:07,113 --> 00:29:09,713
The government clamps down on

547
00:29:09,715 --> 00:29:13,350
the false promises made by
electrotherapy devices.

548
00:29:13,385 --> 00:29:16,620
You also have the postal
office stepping in and more

549
00:29:16,722 --> 00:29:18,956
carefully regulating
what you can buy

550
00:29:19,058 --> 00:29:21,158
and sell and deliver
over the postal service.

551
00:29:22,862 --> 00:29:24,128
Narrator:
The government has spotted

552
00:29:24,130 --> 00:29:27,164
a major stumbling block
with the belt.

553
00:29:27,233 --> 00:29:30,834
There's no proof that it makes
anyone better.

554
00:29:30,936 --> 00:29:35,038
The market in home
electrotherapy devices

555
00:29:35,107 --> 00:29:38,242
really crashes out,
and pulvermacher's

556
00:29:38,310 --> 00:29:42,012
electro galvanic medical chain
goes down with it.

557
00:29:42,014 --> 00:29:44,548
Narrator: Pretty soon,
it's impossible to sell

558
00:29:44,617 --> 00:29:46,517
an electrical miracle cure

559
00:29:46,585 --> 00:29:49,052
without actually proving
that it works.

560
00:29:49,121 --> 00:29:52,422
It's the end of the line
for pulvermacher's belt.

561
00:29:52,424 --> 00:29:55,058
The company goes bust,
which really

562
00:29:55,127 --> 00:29:57,327
shouldn't come as much of
a shock.

563
00:30:03,102 --> 00:30:05,102
At the penn museum
in philadelphia

564
00:30:05,204 --> 00:30:08,205
is a curious ancient
egyptian relic,

565
00:30:08,207 --> 00:30:12,209
a tiny mummy --
but not of a human.

566
00:30:12,211 --> 00:30:14,611
This strange bundle of
linen strips

567
00:30:14,713 --> 00:30:17,748
has the unmistakable head of
a cat.

568
00:30:17,817 --> 00:30:21,251
Cats were really important for
the ancient egyptians.

569
00:30:21,320 --> 00:30:23,620
So, you know, it makes sense
that they would

570
00:30:23,722 --> 00:30:27,391
have wanted to mummify cats
just as they did humans.

571
00:30:27,393 --> 00:30:30,828
Narrator: But something about
this mummy shocked researchers.

572
00:30:34,066 --> 00:30:37,935
Now, using cutting-edge imaging
technology, we can show in

573
00:30:38,003 --> 00:30:40,904
astonishing detail
what is so strange

574
00:30:40,906 --> 00:30:43,040
about this bizarre object.

575
00:30:45,511 --> 00:30:49,546
It is 19 inches long,
with a small, round head,

576
00:30:49,615 --> 00:30:53,317
tiny ears, eyes,
and a nose, attached to

577
00:30:53,419 --> 00:30:56,720
an elongated body
without legs.

578
00:30:56,822 --> 00:31:00,858
But that's not what makes this
artifact so strange.

579
00:31:02,328 --> 00:31:04,828
Narrator: Because for a cat
mummy, it's got one very

580
00:31:04,930 --> 00:31:06,063
big shortcoming,

581
00:31:06,131 --> 00:31:10,801
there's no cat inside,
not even any random bones.

582
00:31:10,803 --> 00:31:15,105
Narrator: Where is the cat?
Was it removed?

583
00:31:16,842 --> 00:31:21,511
Was the cat even there in
the first place?

584
00:31:21,513 --> 00:31:25,315
Could this weird relic be
a modern fake,

585
00:31:25,317 --> 00:31:26,950
or an ancient one?

586
00:31:32,791 --> 00:31:35,325
Egyptian mummies have
fascinated people for hundreds

587
00:31:35,327 --> 00:31:39,463
of years, but it reaches
a peak in the 19th century.

588
00:31:39,531 --> 00:31:43,000
Egyptomania
was an international craze

589
00:31:43,002 --> 00:31:45,035
around the world at the time.

590
00:31:45,104 --> 00:31:47,237
Narrator:
People just can't get enough

591
00:31:47,306 --> 00:31:48,605
of egypt and its mummies.

592
00:31:48,607 --> 00:31:50,741
Bellinger:
People believed that they had

593
00:31:50,809 --> 00:31:54,811
magical powers and properties,
mystical properties.

594
00:31:54,914 --> 00:31:57,047
Narrator: But mummies
were never meant to be

595
00:31:57,116 --> 00:31:58,615
a victorian sideshow.

596
00:31:58,717 --> 00:32:01,718
Mummification in ancient egypt
was a way of

597
00:32:01,787 --> 00:32:05,255
preserving the body so that
after the death, this individual

598
00:32:05,291 --> 00:32:08,759
could have an afterlife.
-Narrator: In the 19th century,

599
00:32:08,827 --> 00:32:12,329
the problem archaeologists
have is that it is impossible

600
00:32:12,331 --> 00:32:16,099
to see inside the wrappings
without destroying the mummy.

601
00:32:16,101 --> 00:32:19,202
In order to learn
about mummies,

602
00:32:19,305 --> 00:32:22,039
they had to be unwrapped,

603
00:32:22,107 --> 00:32:25,709
and this was a very
destructive technique.

604
00:32:25,711 --> 00:32:26,944
Narrator:
But that doesn't stop

605
00:32:27,012 --> 00:32:30,147
the victorians holding
bizarre unwrapping parties.

606
00:32:30,215 --> 00:32:32,716
People would pay
a lot of money to

607
00:32:32,718 --> 00:32:35,953
be present at one of
these mummy unwrapping events.

608
00:32:40,159 --> 00:32:43,727
Narrator: So late 19th century
egyptologists leap on the newly

609
00:32:43,829 --> 00:32:47,664
discovered technique of x-rays
to end this mummy destruction.

610
00:32:48,801 --> 00:32:51,201
Today, x-rays continue
to reveal

611
00:32:51,203 --> 00:32:53,837
hidden wonders beneath
the linen wrappings.

612
00:32:54,907 --> 00:32:58,008
Escolano-poveda: It is basically
like a virtual autopsy.

613
00:32:58,010 --> 00:33:02,746
It gives us lots of new
opportunities to learn

614
00:33:02,815 --> 00:33:07,351
about the mummies without
destroying them in the process.

615
00:33:14,526 --> 00:33:16,727
Narrator: So, when a team
from penn museum

616
00:33:16,829 --> 00:33:18,996
examines the cat mummy
in detail,

617
00:33:18,998 --> 00:33:23,400
they turn to the x-ray machine
to reveal its secrets.

618
00:33:23,469 --> 00:33:25,702
They are expecting to
virtually unwrap

619
00:33:25,704 --> 00:33:28,505
the mummy and examine
the cat inside.

620
00:33:28,507 --> 00:33:31,608
But they are in for a shock.

621
00:33:31,610 --> 00:33:33,710
When they image this mummy,

622
00:33:33,712 --> 00:33:36,313
there's nothing to see.

623
00:33:36,315 --> 00:33:38,548
Narrator: Using
cutting-edge graphics,

624
00:33:38,617 --> 00:33:41,918
we can reveal the interior
in detail.

625
00:33:41,920 --> 00:33:46,056
There's no cat,
not even any random bones.

626
00:33:46,125 --> 00:33:49,726
Narrator:
Where is the cat?

627
00:33:49,728 --> 00:33:53,864
Is this just
an elaborate fake?

628
00:33:55,934 --> 00:33:58,101
The idea that this is

629
00:33:58,103 --> 00:34:00,804
a modern forgery is
certainly plausible.

630
00:34:00,806 --> 00:34:04,141
Fake egyptian artifacts have
a long and infamous history.

631
00:34:06,111 --> 00:34:10,113
Benecke: Artifacts from egypt
became very fashionable.

632
00:34:10,115 --> 00:34:14,918
The sites where the diggings
took place were robbed all

633
00:34:14,920 --> 00:34:17,521
the time, and they could not be
protected very well.

634
00:34:17,623 --> 00:34:21,525
And that opened up
the market for forgeries,

635
00:34:21,527 --> 00:34:23,226
because it was much,
much easier

636
00:34:23,228 --> 00:34:24,961
to forge everything
and to sell it for

637
00:34:25,030 --> 00:34:26,830
very high prices.

638
00:34:26,832 --> 00:34:29,833
Narrator: And forgers were
definitely faking mummies.

639
00:34:29,935 --> 00:34:33,603
The vatican museum in rome had
two mummies in its collection,

640
00:34:33,605 --> 00:34:36,006
and in 2015,
researchers ran

641
00:34:36,008 --> 00:34:38,008
them through
the full battery of tests,

642
00:34:38,010 --> 00:34:42,045
x-ray, ct scan, dna analysis,
you name it,

643
00:34:42,114 --> 00:34:46,950
and what they discovered is that
the mummies were -- were fakes.

644
00:34:47,019 --> 00:34:48,218
They were full of a jumble of

645
00:34:48,220 --> 00:34:51,254
medieval bones
and a 19th century nail.

646
00:34:51,323 --> 00:34:54,124
Narrator: So it's credible
that the cat mummy might be

647
00:34:54,226 --> 00:34:56,059
a modern forgery...

648
00:34:56,128 --> 00:34:57,828
Except for one thing.

649
00:35:00,833 --> 00:35:04,835
In close up, the wrappings
reveal a telltale pattern.

650
00:35:04,937 --> 00:35:09,406
The way it is wrapped has this
sort of crisscross pattern

651
00:35:09,508 --> 00:35:11,341
that creates
these diamond shapes

652
00:35:11,410 --> 00:35:14,411
that was very common in
the late period and especially

653
00:35:14,546 --> 00:35:16,246
in the greco-roman period.

654
00:35:16,315 --> 00:35:18,448
This is then a good
indication that

655
00:35:18,517 --> 00:35:22,219
it is actually an ancient
egyptian mummy.

656
00:35:23,322 --> 00:35:27,057
Narrator: This strange
cat mummy is authentic.

657
00:35:27,126 --> 00:35:29,626
So was the cat removed
in antiquity?

658
00:35:29,728 --> 00:35:31,828
Or was it never there in
the first place?

659
00:35:32,764 --> 00:35:36,199
Is it simply an ancient fake
rather than a modern one?

660
00:35:43,242 --> 00:35:46,042
Narrator: Researchers are
certain this ancient cat mummy

661
00:35:46,078 --> 00:35:47,344
is authentic,

662
00:35:47,412 --> 00:35:50,046
even though it does not
contain the body of a cat.

663
00:35:51,750 --> 00:35:54,217
So why would the ancient
egyptians go to so

664
00:35:54,286 --> 00:35:56,920
much effort to make it appear
like it does?

665
00:35:59,858 --> 00:36:02,125
The answer might have
something to do with the reason

666
00:36:02,227 --> 00:36:05,529
the egyptians made animal
mummies in the first place.

667
00:36:05,531 --> 00:36:09,733
Animals were associated with
individual gods and goddesses.

668
00:36:09,801 --> 00:36:13,403
And so, by creating
an animal mummy,

669
00:36:13,505 --> 00:36:15,639
people believed
that they were actually

670
00:36:15,707 --> 00:36:19,109
capturing some of
the spiritual power of the god

671
00:36:19,111 --> 00:36:21,044
associated with the animal.

672
00:36:21,113 --> 00:36:25,649
So, for example, the falcon was
associated with the god horus,

673
00:36:25,717 --> 00:36:29,152
the baboon with the god
thoth, and the cat with

674
00:36:29,221 --> 00:36:31,555
the goddess bastet,
who happened to be

675
00:36:31,623 --> 00:36:33,857
among the most popular
of the gods

676
00:36:33,959 --> 00:36:35,625
in the egyptian pantheon.

677
00:36:36,662 --> 00:36:40,730
Narrator: Egyptologists believe
most animal mummies like this

678
00:36:40,732 --> 00:36:43,033
are gifts to the gods.

679
00:36:43,101 --> 00:36:45,035
Escolano-poveda: They were
mummified in order to

680
00:36:45,103 --> 00:36:48,605
be presented as offerings to
different gods.

681
00:36:48,607 --> 00:36:51,942
The idea was not to offer them
an afterlife

682
00:36:52,044 --> 00:36:55,045
but to make them work as
an offering to a god.

683
00:36:59,551 --> 00:37:01,851
Narrator:
Before the late period,

684
00:37:01,954 --> 00:37:03,353
when the cat mummy is made,

685
00:37:03,422 --> 00:37:06,756
bronze statues were the go-to
method for offerings to

686
00:37:06,825 --> 00:37:07,724
the gods,

687
00:37:07,826 --> 00:37:11,661
but as the demand for
offerings grew,

688
00:37:11,730 --> 00:37:15,732
the cost and complexity of
bronze leads to an increase in

689
00:37:15,801 --> 00:37:18,101
the use of mummified animals,

690
00:37:19,104 --> 00:37:21,204
and archaeological evidence
suggests that

691
00:37:21,306 --> 00:37:24,140
egyptians get very
enthusiastic about them.

692
00:37:26,111 --> 00:37:29,512
During the so-called late
period of ancient egypt,

693
00:37:29,514 --> 00:37:34,150
tens of millions of
animal mummies were produced.

694
00:37:35,654 --> 00:37:38,922
Narrator: The number of animal
mummies consumed is startling.

695
00:37:40,259 --> 00:37:45,061
In 2011, a team of
archaeologists found a set

696
00:37:45,097 --> 00:37:49,132
of catacombs in saqqara
dedicated to the god anubis,

697
00:37:49,201 --> 00:37:51,001
and they have estimated
that there are

698
00:37:51,003 --> 00:37:55,038
around eight million animal
remains within the catacombs.

699
00:37:56,141 --> 00:37:58,608
Narrator: There simply
weren't enough wild animals

700
00:37:58,710 --> 00:38:00,510
to meet this kind of demand.

701
00:38:01,713 --> 00:38:04,547
Egyptologists believe
this gap is filled by

702
00:38:04,616 --> 00:38:08,218
farming sacrificial animals
on an industrial scale.

703
00:38:10,822 --> 00:38:13,423
If so many mummies are
being made,

704
00:38:13,425 --> 00:38:16,826
could an empty mummy be
slipped in to make money from

705
00:38:16,928 --> 00:38:18,561
gullible pilgrims?

706
00:38:18,630 --> 00:38:21,131
Or is this practice more
common than

707
00:38:21,133 --> 00:38:22,999
egyptologists believed?

708
00:38:25,304 --> 00:38:27,804
In 2000,
researchers start

709
00:38:27,806 --> 00:38:31,341
a 13-year project to answer
this question.

710
00:38:31,410 --> 00:38:33,643
The results are astonishing.

711
00:38:33,712 --> 00:38:37,247
Bellinger: They ran over 800
mummies through a ct scanner

712
00:38:37,316 --> 00:38:39,416
and were astonished to find

713
00:38:39,518 --> 00:38:42,719
that only one-third of
them actually contained

714
00:38:42,788 --> 00:38:45,822
full animal remains inside.

715
00:38:45,824 --> 00:38:49,426
Another third had
partial animal remains,

716
00:38:49,528 --> 00:38:53,129
and the rest had
no animal remains at all.

717
00:38:53,131 --> 00:38:55,065
Narrator: So what is
the explanation

718
00:38:55,100 --> 00:38:56,700
for this empty cat mummy?

719
00:38:56,802 --> 00:38:59,736
Bellinger: Some scholars have
proposed the idea that

720
00:38:59,805 --> 00:39:02,539
this sort of empty mummy
was part of

721
00:39:02,607 --> 00:39:06,309
a generalized scam culture,
and you know, honestly,

722
00:39:06,411 --> 00:39:08,411
who's gonna unwrap it to
check, right?

723
00:39:14,419 --> 00:39:17,420
Narrator: There is one problem
with the scam theory.

724
00:39:17,522 --> 00:39:20,223
It may not contain
an actual cat,

725
00:39:20,325 --> 00:39:23,927
but this object has still been
through the same laborious

726
00:39:23,929 --> 00:39:26,830
and expensive process
as a real mummy.

727
00:39:26,898 --> 00:39:31,134
It was wrapped according to
the style that would be used

728
00:39:31,203 --> 00:39:35,105
in -- in real cat mummies,
and also, the face and the head

729
00:39:35,207 --> 00:39:38,108
of the cat was modeled so that
it looked like a cat in

730
00:39:38,210 --> 00:39:40,710
the same way as was done
with -- with real mummies.

731
00:39:40,812 --> 00:39:44,948
So, uh, the ears will be
modeled, the face, the snout,

732
00:39:45,016 --> 00:39:48,118
the eyes, and details will be
painted so that it looks like

733
00:39:48,186 --> 00:39:49,819
a real cat.

734
00:39:49,921 --> 00:39:52,956
Narrator: This amount of care
and effort doesn't fit with

735
00:39:53,058 --> 00:39:56,559
the idea that the cat mummy is
just a cheap knockoff.

736
00:39:59,131 --> 00:40:02,432
The true explanation for this
strange thing may lie within

737
00:40:02,501 --> 00:40:05,935
some of the other animal mummies
the uk researchers examined.

738
00:40:07,239 --> 00:40:09,539
Bellinger: They found some
extraordinary things.

739
00:40:09,608 --> 00:40:13,510
I mean, one, for example,
a crocodile mummy,

740
00:40:13,512 --> 00:40:16,613
which, inside,
revealed to contain

741
00:40:16,681 --> 00:40:20,450
four adult croc skulls
surrounded by

742
00:40:20,519 --> 00:40:22,452
four baby crocodile skulls.

743
00:40:22,521 --> 00:40:25,722
Just a very strange thing.

744
00:40:25,724 --> 00:40:27,724
Narrator:
What purpose could mummifying

745
00:40:27,726 --> 00:40:30,126
multiple animals serve?

746
00:40:30,128 --> 00:40:34,130
One explanation is that this
was a premium style

747
00:40:34,232 --> 00:40:36,132
that those who were wealthy
enough to purchase

748
00:40:36,201 --> 00:40:39,436
such things would do in
the hopes that it would get them

749
00:40:39,504 --> 00:40:42,605
even more favor with the gods.

750
00:40:42,707 --> 00:40:44,908
Narrator: Egyptologists
have suggested this could

751
00:40:44,910 --> 00:40:47,010
explain the empty cat mummy.

752
00:40:47,012 --> 00:40:50,046
Perhaps it's simply at
the other end of the scale

753
00:40:50,115 --> 00:40:51,548
from the lavish versions,

754
00:40:51,616 --> 00:40:55,218
a ritual offering on a budget.

755
00:40:55,320 --> 00:40:58,755
This is a classic case
of you get what you pay for.

756
00:40:58,824 --> 00:41:00,623
If you only had
a little bit of money,

757
00:41:00,625 --> 00:41:03,159
well, you would splash that out,
and you'd get

758
00:41:03,228 --> 00:41:05,962
an empty cat mummy that
still looked okay,

759
00:41:06,064 --> 00:41:09,532
was a little rough,
but it served your purpose.

760
00:41:09,601 --> 00:41:11,701
Narrator:
Because in ancient egypt

761
00:41:11,703 --> 00:41:14,904
the absence of an actual cat
might not be the problem

762
00:41:14,906 --> 00:41:16,940
it seems to a modern eye.

763
00:41:18,443 --> 00:41:20,710
Escolano-poveda: According
to ancient egyptian thought,

764
00:41:20,812 --> 00:41:23,947
if you had something
that looked like the mummy,

765
00:41:24,015 --> 00:41:25,415
it would do the job.

766
00:41:25,417 --> 00:41:28,051
It would magically work
in the same way as

767
00:41:28,119 --> 00:41:31,554
a real mummy would do when
you offered it to the deity.

768
00:41:31,623 --> 00:41:34,824
So for an ancient egyptian,
it would actually not be

769
00:41:34,893 --> 00:41:38,628
a huge problem to have one of
these fake mummies.

770
00:41:38,730 --> 00:41:41,164
Narrator: It seems
this cat mummy never contained

771
00:41:41,233 --> 00:41:45,201
an actual cat, but that
doesn't make it a fake.

772
00:41:45,303 --> 00:41:46,803
The people who bought
it probably

773
00:41:46,805 --> 00:41:49,405
knew there was nothing
inside it.

774
00:41:49,508 --> 00:41:52,208
It is still a gift for
the gods,

775
00:41:52,310 --> 00:41:55,144
just one for believers
on a budget.