Themes

Archaeologists in Egypt have uncovered the remains of victims of an ancient epidemic that occurred nearly two millennia ago, believed at the time to be the end of the world, according to a report in Live Science. The discovery was made at the funerary complex of Harwa and Akhimenru in the ancient city of Thebes (modern-day Luxor), and includes a giant bonfire containing human remains, where victims of the ancient epidemic were incinerated, as well as bodies covered in a thick layer of lime, and three kilns where lime was produced. In ancient times, lime was used to subdue the stench of rotting corpses and as a disinfectant. [[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_original","fid":"3985","attributes":{"alt":"Lime kiln disinfectant - Egypt","class":"media-image","style":"width: 489px; height: 342px;","typeof":"foaf:Image"}}]] A lime kiln built