A Mummified Crocodile At The British Museum, Reviewed

Almost every visitor to the British Museum will have explored the Ancient Egypt section and seen the human mummies. But have you seen a mummified crocodile before?  It's the centrepiece of a new one room display just inside the main entrance. It is fantastically preserved and even has mummified hatchlings attached to its back.

This creature would have been revered by the Egyptians as it was seen as the reincarnation of the Crocodile God Sobek and connected to fertility — hence the hatchlings on its back.

The use of CT scans has also revealed cattle bones in its stomach, the remnants of its last meal. CT scans were used brilliantly in the British Museum's Ancient Lives exhibition and they're used to great effect here — making an already astonishing relic even more fascinating.

Scanning Sobek: mummy of the crocodile god is on display in Room 3, The British Museum until 21 February. The display is free to visit.