Using a CT scanner, some computer software and a 3-D printer, researchers have been able to re-create the vocal sound of an Egyptian man who died and was mummified about 3,000 years ago. The mummified remains were that of Nesyamun, a priest who lived during the reign of the pharaoh Ramses XI and likely would have used his vocal cords a lot in his profession.
In order to re-create the sound of his voice, the research team conducted a series of CT scans of Nesyamun’s vocal tract at Leeds General Infirmary in England. From the scans, they created a 3-D digital reconstruction, which they then printed using a 3-D printer. After hooking it up to an electronic larynx and a loudspeaker, they got a sound close to what would have been Nesyamun’s last.
He died of what appears to have been an insect sting to the tongue, so his last sound was probably something along the lines of “ow.” According to The Guardian, the sound that the team got was closer to “eeuuughhh.”
“What we’d like to try to do next is develop a computer model that will allow us to move [the vocal tract] around and form different vowel sounds and hopefully, ultimately words,” said University of York Professor John Schofield, an archaeologist and co-author of the study.
