#ming-dynasty

[upstairsdownstairsandinbetween]

Abby Aldrich Rockefeller garden, Seal Harbor, Maine,

Landscaping by Beatrix Farrand,

Photo: Larry Lederman/Courtesy of the Monacelli press

[playadeeo-blog]

Lifelike "Wet Mummy" Found During Roadbuilding

With eyebrows, hair, and skin still intact after more than 600 years, a remarkably preserved Chinese "wet mummy" remains bundled in her quilt after centuries in a flooded coffin. The body had been found in a tomb, accidentally uncovered by roadbuilders near the city of Taizhou. The woman's age at death is unknown, but her unlined face suggests she was fairly young.

"Wet mummies survive so well because of the anaerobic conditions of their burials," said archaeologist Victor Mair. That is, water unusually void of oxygen inhibits bacteria that would normally break down a body. 

A coin was placed on the body as a kind of charm against malevolent influences.

Jade was associated with longevity in ancient China. But in this case, the jade ring was "probably a sign of her wealth instead of a sign of any concern about the afterlife.