this is a really fascinating article about both the science and the politics of mummy dna testing

a lot of it is about who carries out the testing (egyptians or foreigners) and whether the conclusions are scientifically viable.

there is mention, however, of how earnestly people care about who the ancient pharaohs shared dna with: people ranging from leftist activists to white supremacists have (scientifically sparse, politically passionate) arguments about who gets to “own” tutankhamun and hatshepsut and akhenaten.

and then there’s looting to contend with, and the egyptian revolution