Could the 'Egyptian Mummy' Discovered in German Attic be a 20th Century Murder Victim?

German police and forensic experts have been left mystified following examination of an Egyptian-style mummy discovered by a German boy in his grandmother's attic.

Many believed the mummy, discovered by 10-year-old Alexander Kettler inside a sarcophagus complete with hieroglyphic inscriptions, was a fake. It was found in August at the boy's grandmother's house in Diepholz, northern Germany.

However, X-ray and CT scans have now revealed a relatively intact skeleton wrapped up inside the bandages, including a well-preserved human skull with an arrow sticking out of the left eye socket.

To further add to the mystery, examinations also show a metal layer covering the bones of the skeleton and the cotton used to wrap the body dates from the 20th century and are machine-woven.

The bandages have not been removed for fear of damaging the remains. A death mask was also discovered inside the sarcophagus.

German police, prosecutors and forensics experts are now facing a genuine mystery as to the origins of the body.

Pathologist Andreas Nerlich of Munich's Bogenhausen hospital told Spiegel Online: "There's no way this is a typical Egyptian mummy. We're dealing with an imitation.

"But a human body, and perhaps more than one, were used to make it."

Experts are also baffled by the metal which is covering the skeleton.

"Someone went to a lot of trouble to wrap the bones in this covering," Nerlich added. "Perhaps because they anticipated an X-Ray examination, because this is definitely a hindrance."READ MORE