'No! Don't touch it,' he cried out excitedly, and then immediately
apologetic. 'Forgive me, Herr von Schiller, was im but this is
fascinating. It strongly supports the theory of an exchange of bodies. I
think we should study it, before we proceed with the unwrapping. With
your permission of Herr von Schiller.'
course, Von Schiller hesitated. He was anxious to discover what lay
beneath this rat's nest of old rags, but he realized the virtue of
caution and prudence now. A hasty move might do irreparable damage. He
straightened up and stepped down from his block.
'Very well,' he grunted. He pulled a handkerchief from the breast pocket
of his dark blue doublebreasted suit jacket, and mopped the heavy sweat
from his face. His voice was shaky as he asked, 'Is it possible? Could
this be Mamose himself?'
Stuffing the handkerchief back into his trouser pocket, he discovered
with mild surprise that he had a painful erection. With his hand in his
pocket he rearranged it to lie flat against his stomach. 'Remove the
loose wrapp
'With your permission, Herr von Schiller, we should take the photographs
first,' Reeper suggested tactfully.
Of course,' von Schiller agreed at once. 'We are scientists,
archaeologists, not common looters, Take the photographs.'
They worked slowly, and von Schiller found the delay tantalizing. There
was no sense of the passage of time down here in the vault, but at one
stage von Schiller, now in his shirtsleeves, glanced at his gold
wrist-watch and was surprised to see' that it was past nine 'clock at
night. He unknotted his necktie, threw it on the bench where his jacket
already lay, and reapplied himself to the task.
Gradually the shape of a human body emerged from under the compacted
mass of ancient bindings, but it was after midnight when at last Nahoot
teased away the last untidy clump of old cloth from the mummy's torso.
They blinked at the glimpse of gold just visible through the neat layers
of bandages laid upon the corpse by the meticulous and skilful hands of
the embalmers.
'Originally, of course, there would have been several massive outer
coffins. These are missing, as are the masks.
Those must still be in Pharaoh's original sarcophagus, covering the body
of Tanus in the royal -tomb that still awaits discovery. What we have
left here is only the inner dressing of the royal mummy.'
With long forceps he peeled away the top layer of bandage asVon
Schiller, perched on his block, grunted and shuffled his feet.
'The pectoral medallion of the royal house of Mamose,' Nahoot whispered
reverently. The great jewel blazed under the arc light. Resplendent in
blue lapis lazuli and red carrielian and gold, it covered the entire
chest of the mummy. The central motif was of a vulture in flight,
soaring on wide pinions, and in its talons it clutched the golden
cartouche of the king. The craftsmanship was marvelous, the design
splendid.
'There is no doubt now,' von Schiller whispered. 'This proves the
identity of the body.' cartOUc xt they unwrapped the king's hands,
