The Persian Princess: A Tale of Deception and Mystery

The Unveiling

In the heart of October 2000, a tantalizing discovery emerged from the arid landscapes of Baluchistan, Pakistan. A mummy, heralded as the Persian Princess, surfaced and quickly captivated the world. With whispers of ancient royalty, this mummy was supposedly entwined with the opulent history of Persia, yet its unearthing was as much about deception as it was about revelation.

The Discovery

On October 19, 2000, Pakistani authorities, during a murder investigation, stumbled upon a videotape recorded by Ali Aqbar. In this tape, Aqbar brazenly claimed possession of a mummy for sale. Under interrogation, he directed the police to a house belonging to tribal leader Wali Mohammed Reeki in Kharan, near the Afghanistan border. Reeki alleged that an Iranian, Sharif Shah Bakhi, had entrusted him with the mummy, claiming it was unearthed after an earthquake near Quetta. Valued at a staggering 600 million rupees, or about $11 million, the mummy was poised for sale on the black market. Reeki and Aqbar soon faced accusations of violating Pakistan's Antiquities Act, which threatened a maximum penalty of ten years in prison.

Misidentification and Initial Frenzy

Barely a week later, on October 26, Pakistani archaeologist Ahmad Hasan Dani of Quaid-e-Azam University addressed a press conference. He announced that the mummy appeared to be a princess from around 600 BC. The mummy was wrapped in a manner reminiscent of ancient Egyptian burials, encased in a gilded wooden coffin adorned with cuneiform carvings, and nestled inside a stone sarcophagus. On her brow sat a golden crown. An inscription on a golden chest plate identified her as Rhodogune, purportedly a daughter of Xerxes I of Persia, a link to the illustrious Achaemenid dynasty.

Dani speculated that she might have been an Egyptian princess married into Persian royalty or perhaps a descendant of the Achaemenid king, Cyrus the Great. Yet, the mystery deepened—mummification was a predominantly Egyptian custom, and no mummy had ever been found in Persia before.

A Battle for Ownership

The discovery sparked an international tug-of-war over ownership. The Iranian Cultural Heritage Organization asserted the mummy's Persian royal lineage, demanding its return. However, Pakistan's Archaeological Department insisted on its rightful claim since it was found in Baluchistan. Even the Taliban in Afghanistan laid claim, while locals in Quetta clamored for its return. The Awan tribe of Balochistan also staked a claim, citing the inscription's possible connection to their royal family, the House of Hika Munshi, and demanded its relocation to their Kallar Kahar Fossil Museum.

In November 2000, the mummy was displayed at the National Museum of Pakistan, further igniting public interest.

The Investigation Unfolds

The tale took a twist when American archaeologist Oscar White Muscarella recalled an encounter in March of the same year. Photographs of a similar mummy had been shown to him by Amanollah Riggi, a middleman representing an unidentified Pakistani antiquities dealer. The dealer claimed the mummy belonged to a Zoroastrian family, asserting it was a daughter of Xerxes based on a translated cuneiform inscription. However, carbon dating revealed the coffin to be merely 250 years old, raising suspicions of forgery. Muscarella, wary of the deception, severed ties and alerted Interpol through the FBI.

In Pakistan, Asma Ibrahim, curator of the National Museum, scrutinized the mummy in police custody. Her findings were startling—the body was not as ancient as the coffin suggested. Decomposition fungi on the face indicated recent death, and the mat beneath the body was only about five years old. As the investigation intensified, Iran and the Taliban reiterated their claims, while the Taliban asserted they had caught the smugglers who transported the mummy from Afghanistan.

Further scrutiny revealed inconsistencies in the breastplate inscriptions, which were not in proper Old Persian. The forgers mistakenly used the Greek name Rhodugune instead of the Persian Wardegauna. CAT and X-ray scans at Agha Khan Hospital disclosed mummification inconsistencies with genuine Egyptian methods. The heart, typically preserved, was missing, and tendons, which should have decayed, were intact.

On April 17, 2001, Ibrahim published her report, revealing that the Persian Princess was a woman aged 21-25 who died around 1996. Her death, likely caused by a blunt force to the lower back or pelvic region, suggested a possible murder. Accelerator mass spectrometry dating confirmed the forgery. Her teeth, removed post-mortem, and damage to her hip joint, pelvis, and backbone further pointed to foul play. The police launched a murder investigation, arresting several suspects in Baluchistan.

The Final Resting Place

The Edhi Foundation eventually took custody of the body. On August 5, 2005, they announced plans for a proper burial. Despite delays and lack of response from police and government officials, the foundation finally interred the remains in 2008.

Contemporary Reflections

In August 2016, artist Hili Greenfeld presented "The Persian Princess," an exhibition in Jerusalem. The exhibit paid homage to the anonymous woman, who fleetingly attained the status of a princess only to be later recognized as a murder victim. Greenfeld's work explored the abrupt shift in perception—from an esteemed royal figure to a forgotten casualty of violence. The artist utilized symbols from the forgery, such as rosettes and gold crowns, merging them into synthetic imitations of Persian rugs and graffiti murals, evoking both the allure and deception of the original tale.

Sources

For additional information, please refer to the Wikipedia article on the Persian Princess.