Archaeologists excavating an ancient Egyptian city of Amarna have discovered a woman with more than 70 elaborate and lengthy hair extensions.
Researchers don’t know who she was or what she did but the former resident of the 3,300-year-old city is one of hundreds of people now being examined as experts uncover the lost history of the daily lives of Amarna's inhabitants.
Jolanda Bos, an archaeologist working on the project, told Live Science that the woman had not been mummified but buried simply, wrapped in a mat. She wore “a very complex coiffure with approximately 70 extensions fastened in different layers and heights on the head,” Ms Bos was quoted as saying.
Ms Bos, who led research into Amarna’s hairstyles, and published her findings in the Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, explained: “The hair was most likely styled after death, before a person was buried. It is also likely, however, that these hairstyles were used in everyday life as well."
A selection of 100 recently excavated skulls, of which 28 still had hair, showed that a variety of hairstyles were worn in Egypt between around 1353-1335 B.C. The heads showed that braids and coils around the ears were popular but often kept short. Fat was a frequently used styling product and Henna was used to hide any stray grey hairs.
This woman, among other ancient Egyptians, may have dyed her hair “for the same reason as why people dye their hair today, in order not to show the gray color,” Ms Bos said.
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