<![CDATA[The remains of a woman who had incredible hair extensions have been found on the site of a city built in Egypt about 3300 years ago. Experts state that the body of this woman wasn't mummified, but simply wrapped in a mat. According to Jurlanda Bos, an archaeologist associated with the Amarna Project, the woman wore an extremely complex coiffure that had almost seventy extensions fastened in different layers and heights. Bos stated that the discovery of the woman's body left her perplexed and puzzled. Reports of the discovery were published in the Journal of Egyptian Archaeology. The name, occupation or age of this woman is still not known, but she is just one of hundreds of corpses with fashionable hairstyles. All of these corpses were buried in a cemetery in the ancient city of Amarna. Amarna was the newly constructed capital of Egypt during the time of King Akhenaten. The Pharaoh is attributed with founding the Aten supremacy in Egyptian religion - a major revolution in the ancient society. Amarna was abandoned right after Akhenaten's death. It is now populated by archaeologists who are searching the city with a fine tooth comb to uncover more information about this tumultuous time in Ancient Egyptian history. Bos stated that it is more than likely that the woman's hair was styled after her death. Although Bos also suggested that such expansive hairstyles were a part of everyday life and fashion. Bos has found other skulls that feature complex hair extensions. In fact, one was styled from dark black and gray hair, suggesting that more than one person had donated their hair to create the piece. Of the hundred skulls that were recently excavated in the Amarna cemetery, twenty eight still had hair. One of the most noticeable facts is the wide variety of hair styles and hair types of Ancient Egypt. People had all sorts of hair - from curly black to straight brown. This goes to show that the Ancient Egyptians were extremely conscious about their hair and beauty, something that was demonstrated by Cleopatra in her use of exotic materials to maintain her youthful glow and exotic beauty. Scientists still have no idea why such hair styles were popular in the city. They are conducting research in the area to try and uncover answers to the countless questions that the discoveries in the Amarna graves have posed. The excavations also suggest that Ancient Egyptians were extremely fond of braids. The braids found on the skulls consisted of three strands, with each strand measuring about 0.5cm in width when tightly braided. The braids were common, but they were rarely more than 20cm long. This means that short or shoulder length hair was preferred by the Ancient Egyptians. The longest extension that has been found is around 30cm long. Further evidence of how conscious Ancient Egyptians were about their looks can be found in the fact that one woman had applied an orange-reddish dye to her gray hair. Experts are analyzing the hair samples in order to try and determine exactly what substances were used as dyes at the time. ]]>
Proof of Hair Extensions Among Ancient Egyptians
