Etruscan letters form the Linen Book of Zagreb, later torn into strips to use as bandages to wrap an Egyptian mummy.

What was the mystery message written on the mummy's wrappings?

A puzzle confounded Egyptologists when an unidentified ancient language was found on a mummy's bandages in the 1800s. Solving it took decades but rewarded scholars with valuable insight into the authors—the Etruscans.

Etruscan letters form the Linen Book of Zagreb, later torn into strips to use as bandages to wrap an Egyptian mummy.
Courtesy of the Archaeological Museum of Zagreb, photograph by Igor Krajcar
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