Pain and agony are written onto the faces of mummies found world-wide, their mouths agape as if frozen mid-scream. Now one researcher has unlocked the reason why.

“This temporo-mandibular joint is fairly loose…. Unlike the tight ball-and-socket linking the leg and the hip, the jaw and cranium are held together only by ligaments and muscles. If unimpeded–by the position of the body, wrappings, or very fast desiccation–the jaw will drop down as the muscles relax and decompose after rigor mortis.”

So, how do morticians today keep their clients from screaming? Unlike their Victorian predecessors who employed a chinstrap, they use needle and thread. It is somewhere on the continuum between gross and disturbing, but if you really need to know, you can look at this website’s note about “Mouth Closure.”

An earthenware vessel, from the time of Jesus Christ, bearing a mysterious inscription has been found at a dig in Jerusalem.

“It is possible that this type of vessel was used by Jesus to wash his hands before eating,” said Shimon Gibson, author of the recently published “The Final Days of Jesus — The Archaeological Evidence.”

The letters, either ancient Hebrew or Aramaic, are legible though the meaning of the 10 lines of text is yet to be deciphered, according to Gibson who heads the University of North Carolina team conducting the dig.

The remains of a castle and ancient city have been found in south Osmaniye province in Turkey.

Stating that the castle and the ancient city were surrounded by city walls and that they have found ceramic pieces, Associate Professor Füsun Tülek told the Anatolia news agency: “We found Umayyad ceramics dating back to the late seventh and early eighth centuries. We also frequently encountered ceramics from the ninth century. Yet, we did not find ceramics dating earlier than the seventh century. We are certain that the castle and ancient city belong to the early Islamic period.”

The 5,000-year-old skeleton of a warrior has been found in a flooded beach tomb near Rome.

The bones — believed to date from the 3rd millennium B.C. — were discovered in May as art hunters were carrying out routine checks of the region’s archaeological areas, Carabinieri art squad official Raffaele Mancino said.

Archaeologists believe the warrior was likely killed by an arrow, part of which was found among his ribs, Mancino said. There was also a hole in the back of the skull, and six vases and two daggers were found buried nearby.

The descendants of Tipu Sultan, the 18th Century “Tiger of Mysore”, who are now rickshaw pullers and domestic servants, are to have their royal status restored.

But more than 200 years after Tipu Sultan was finally overpowered and killed by East India Company forces, mainly led by Scots officers, in the Fourth Mysore War at Seringapatam, his impoverished descendants are to have their royal status restored.

They are being rehabilitated as a mark of respect to the ruler many Indians regard as the first hero of their freedom movement.