The mummy Nesikhonsu A is a supreme example of 21st Dynasty (c. 1070-945 B.C.) embalming. Her body was molded to retain a lifelike form, stones were inlaid under her eyelids, and flowers were wrapped around her toes. Like most ancient Egyptians, this wife of a pharaoh died young. But her body was prepared for a glorious afterlife.


Djedptahiuankh also dates to the 21st Dynasty. His body cavity was packed with lichen, his mouth filled with sawdust, and sculpted stone eyes were inserted under his half-closed lids.


Like other 21st Dynasty mummies, Nesitanebetashrua A was painted with yellow ochre. The inscription on her coffin indicates she was a priestess, and the quality of her embalming reflects her high status.


The Egyptologist who unwrapped "Lady Rai" called her "the most perfect example of embalming that has come down to us from the ... early 18th Dynasty, or perhaps even of any period." Her beautifully braided hair was protected in its own bandages.


Seti I, like his father Rameses I, was a great military leader and powerful pharaoh of the 19th Dynasty (c. 1319-1196 B.C.). Tomb robbers severed the mummy's head from its body, but Seti I's expressive face remained unharmed.


Rameses II ("the Great") may be the most famous of all Egyptian kings. He reigned for 67 years and lived well into his 80s. By the time of his death, he suffered from severe arthritis, arteriosclerosis, and abscesses in his teeth.


Scholars debate her identity but agree that the mummy known as "The Elder Woman" lived some 3,600 years ago. Tomb plunderers battered her body, perhaps in a search for precious amulets wrapped near her heart.


Rameses V reigned for only five years during the 20th Dynasty (c. 1196-1070 B.C.). He died in his early 30s, and a possible reason for his premature death is evident on his mummy, which is scarred on the face, neck, and chest by smallpox.


Countless mummies have been destroyed by tomb raiders seeking treasures within their linen wrappings.

source: pbs.org

A tiny bird so rare and unusual that its scientific name means "strange owl" was spotted for the first time in the wild.

Conservationists working in Peru got their first natural glimpse of the long-whiskered owlet in February 2007 while working in a private mountain reserve.

The species wasn't even known to exist until 1976, and since then the only known living specimens have been those caught in nets at night.

"Seeing the long-whiskered owlet is a huge thrill," said David Geale of Asociación Ecosistemas Andinos, who was part of the research team, in a press statement.

The American Bird Conservancy, which partnered in the research, described the sighting as "a holy grail" of bird biology.

As few as 250 of the owlets are thought to exist, scientists said, and the birds are as distinctive as they are rare.

With their diminutive size, bright orange eyes, and wild, wispy facial feathers, the dainty birds belong to their own genus, dubbed Xenoglaux, or "strange owl."

The owlets owe much of their survival to the remoteness of their dense mountain habitat, the researchers said. But as human activity encroaches on Peru's northern forests, the birds' future looks dimmer.

"Due to the rapid destruction of its forest habitat and its tiny range, it is inferred that the species is in serious decline," Geale said.

"Until recently, the owlets key habitat was completely unprotected."

PLAYING host to 250,000 bats is the queer but profitable hobby of Milton F. Campbell, of San Antonio, Tex. His lakeside bat hotel, a tall wooden tower shaped like the base of a windmill, is the outgrowth of experiments begun years ago by his father, Dr. Charles A. R. Campbell, at that time city bacteriologist of San Antonio. Believing that bats would rid the area of malaria-carrying mosquitoes, Dr. Campbell spent years trying to induce the creatures to settle in a wooden roost which he constructed near the city sewage plant. Finally, by means of ear-splitting phonograph records, which drove the bats from their accustomed haunts, he effected their transfer to his specially constructed tower.

Soon afterwards, residents of the region began to notice a decrease in the number of mosquitoes. A single bat, Dr. Campbell discovered by dissection studies, will consume as many as 3,750 of these pests during a single night’s feeding. Since its introduction, the Campbell bat roost has been a source of revenue as well as a laboratory for the study of the strange little creatures it houses. Visiting bats, tens of thousands of them that choke the interior and often hang in great bunches from the outside eaves, pay their rent by adding to the accumulation of guano in the roost.

Once a year, Campbell cleans this deposit from the interior, raking it down a chute at the bottom and sacking it up for sale. Bat guano is said to be a nearly perfect fertilizer. Sampled and labeled, as required by law, it sells for from five to ten cents a pound. Last year, the roost yielded nearly 6,000 pounds of guano. In fact, so profitable has the unique venture become that quantities of the special lure used for attracting bats, and detailed plans for establishing similar roosts, have been sold to prospective bat raisers in several parts of the country, with an eye to both profit and mosquito control.

"With fangs bared and gums blazing, a male gelada looks tough enough. But in the Ethiopian highlands make no mistake: The queens are in charge."

Abraham Lincoln, October 3, 1862 on the Battlefield of Antietam. This is perhaps the best outdoor portrait of Lincoln. He is shown standing next to Allan Pinkerton (Left) and General McClernand (Right).

The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest day in American History. There were 23,000 casualties in one day . . . four times the casualties suffered during the D-Day invasion. The Battle of Antietam was one of the defining moments in American History.

In the fall of the year 1862, Abraham Lincoln had become desperate for a victory in the Civil War. Up to that time, the South had achieved victory after victory. Bull Run, Wilson's Creek, and Shiloh had all been convincing victories for the South. Abraham Lincoln realized that if the North did not achieve a victory soon, the survival of the Union would be in doubt. This led Abraham Lincoln to look to God and make an offer . . . Lincoln prayed that if God would grant him victory on the battlefield, he would free the slaves.

Slavery had haunted Lincoln for some time. He fully realized the cruelty and brutality of this corrupt institution, but he did not have the strength to stand up against it. Desperate for a victory, he made the deal with God. Shortly after this, he received news of McClellan's success at Antietam. Despite devastating losses, McClellan was able to drive Lee out of Maryland, and back into Virginia. The battle of Antietam was fought on September 17, 1862. On September 22, 1862 Abraham Lincoln honored the promise he made to God, and issued the Emancipation Proclamation.