Not far from the Nile River buried in the sands of Egypt's Sahara Desert, Brigham Young University scientists work to unearth hidden treasures, attempting to better understand Egyptian Christianity.
A team of Egyptologists, chemists, paleopathologists, archeologists and geologists spend time each January, February and March in Egypt, hoping to find artifacts and other clues that will tell them something about the people who lived more than 4,000 years ago.But beyond the artifacts, members of the group have discovered their own deeper testimony of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.
"When we have found Christian artifacts, we have been touched spiritually by the common faith and hope that we share with these people," said C. Wilfred Griggs, an Egyptologist and BYU professor of ancient scripture.
"We have had some very interesting things happen that have really built my testimony," said Dr. Vince Wood, a dentist and paleopathologist involved in the project. "We found some artifacts and symbols that show that they definitely had a deeper understanding of the gospel. It has certainly confirmed my testimony of the restoration and of Joseph Smith."
Griggs, director of the BYU research project, has traveled to Egypt almost every year for the past 10 years to unearth precious finds. The excavation project includes a pyramid built by Pharaoh Snefru in 2600 B.C. His son, Cheops, was builder of the Great Pyramid at Giza, Egypt. The project also includes exclusive excavation rights in a 300-acre cemetery that was in use before the arrival of Christianity and continued on through the coming of Christian faith in the area - from 200 B.C. to 800 A.D.
And it is that cemetery in Seila on the outskirts of Fayum, about 75 miles south of Cairo, that is the source of many BYU artifacts, Griggs said.
By digging into the past, the scientists are able to learn about the people's religious beliefs, clothing fashions, daily life, health and disease.
A good working relationship between Griggs and the Egyptian government has given BYU a chance to further its work in the desert country and make some significant discoveries.
Perhaps the most impressive find of late was unearthing a perfectly preserved mummy wrapped in linen and discovering a golden death mask with the burial. That 1989 find was so complete and priceless that it could compare to finding the tomb of King Tut in 1922, Egyptian authorities have said.
Scientists have found the deeper they dig, the older the burials in the cemetery. It was customary in that time to bury four or five people in one burial shaft with each body being separated by sand.
"We have learned that the people loved one another and that family relationships were very important because they were buried in clusters," Griggs said. "The way they braided the hair, dressed the deceased in many layers of new precious clothing and buried them with personal sentimental items expressing love shows a devotion and concern for the dead. People today might do well to exhibit the same concern as ancient people did."
Most scholars believe that Christianity didn't arrive in Egypt before 200 A.D., but Griggs has found revolutionary evidence of Christian symbols as early as 50 A.D. in the gravesites.
Finds in the cemetery - such as sacrament cups and wine vases - are evidence of some kind of a religious service at the gravesite, he said.
"We have been able to discover when Christianity came to this region and we have been able to learn a few things about the religious beliefs these people have by the way they dressed the dead. They had numerous ordinances or rituals associated with their Christian beliefs that they believed would help them in the next life."
While the burial site covers several periods of time, researchers have been able to document when Christianity arrived by the way the people were buried in the cemetery. Before Christianity, Egyptians buried their dead with the head to the east in the cemetery. Between 50 A.D. and 100 A.D. the burial changes with the head to the west. Following Christian belief, the Egyptian Christians believed that when Jesus returned to the earth, the dead "in Christ" would rise up to face the returning Savior who comes from the East.
The finds in the cemetery also "shows us that the early Church of the apostles was much more widespread than people had thought," he said. "There was an explosion of Christianity in the first century in the Mediterranean world. This answers some interesting questions such as how effective the apostles were and how successful the Church was in spreading to all nations."
But it's in the textiles that the scientists have found much of their information about the people's religious beliefs.
"Sometimes we have found robes, burial garments and beautifully designed pieces of clothing with religious symbols woven into them," Griggs said.
Marvin C.J. Kuchar, a chemist and BYU professor of clothing and textiles, is analyzing textiles found in the cemetery burials. Much of the burial clothing is dyed in bright colors and Kuchar is attempting to determine what the natural colors are and how the people dyed them.
Involved in the project since 1987, Kuchar said, "The Egyptians had great technologies. When you find a fabric that is 2,000 years old, you like to know why it lasted so long."
The fabrics are made of two fibers, wool or flax linen and some combinations of the two. The wool fabrics are generally the ones that have the most color, he said.
The digs have also shown that the rich people were buried in the brighter materials while the poor were buried in plain colors. But the respect for the dead is the same in both cases, Kuchar said. They were all buried in new clothing.
"This lets me understand that there was reverence for the dead in Egypt even back at the time of Christ," he said. "They took great care of the dead, even though some were very poor. They were buried in clean new blankets and clothing - the best they could afford."
Determining what the Egyptians were trying to convey through symbols woven into the fabric is another task Kuchar faces as a member of the team.
"We have found materials on some burial clothing that have designs and symbols that are the same as some of the symbols found in the hieroglyphic materials. They are symbols, not just decorations. They do have a meaning to the people.
"My conviction is that Egyptians believed in the life hereafter. They really didn't concentrate on death. They saw it as a passing door, not a great sorrowing thing. I am impressed with that."
The team's paleopathologists (studiers of ancient disease) plan to begin looking at genetic characteristics when they return to Egypt in January. Although some bodies are more than 2,000 years old, scientists can still find DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid, the fundamental genetic material that determines each person's characteristics, for research.
"We are looking for any disease they may have had to find out more about these people," said Wood, a part-time teacher at the University of California's San Francisco Dental School and a member of the Ygnacio Valley Ward, Walnut Creek East Stake. "If we can identify certain ancient diseases, we may find some answers that will help solve problems today. Also, it can help us if we are able to find out how these people reacted to various circumstances in their life."
The paleopathologists are making population studies to find out such things as sex, age at death and stature of an individual. By using a scanning electron microscope on the teeth from the bodies, the scientists are also able to determine age.
In their research, the scientists have found many mummies with light hair and light skin.
"Most people think Egyptians have black hair, but we have found a significant number of mummies that had blond and red hair and some with brown," Wood said. "We are not quite sure where these people came from. We are hoping to identify racial ties that way. The bodies that we are examining in the Christian cemetery could be a mixture of people from around the Mediterranean, not just in Egypt. That is why we are doing studies."
Griggs said the find is evidence that there were different races of people living in Egypt including Caucasian or fair-skinned and light-haired people.
For Griggs, his work in Egypt has brought about a new appreciation and love for people of different cultures and lands. "I have also learned that people from every age, including the ancient ages that we are dealing with, have the same hopes and aspirations and in many instances many of the beliefs we have today."