'Screaming Woman' mummy suffered a painful death in ancient Egypt, virtual autopsy finds

An ancient Egyptian woman died in so much pain, her muscles instantaneously locked up — freezing her final scream in place for 3,500 years, an analysis of the mummy, dubbed the "Screaming Woman," reveals. 

The researchers also found that the woman had been embalmed in expensive imported substances and had all of her organs inside her body, suggesting a unique way of preservation.

The researchers revealed their findings in a new study published Friday (Aug. 2) in the journal Frontiers in Medicine.

"Mummification in ancient Egypt is still full of secrets," study co-author Sahar Saleem, a mummy radiologist at Kasr Al Ainy Hospital of Cairo University, told Live Science in an email. Intact organs are usually a sign of poor or neglected mummification, but the Screaming Woman was remarkably well preserved. 

"This was a surprise to me, as the classic method of mummification in the New Kingdom [circa 1550 to 1070 B.C.] included the removal of all organs except the heart," Saleem said.

Related: 7 famous mummies and secrets they've revealed about the ancient world

Archaeologists unearthed the "Screaming Woman" mummy, named after her gaping mouth, in Deir el-Bahari, near Luxor, Egypt, in 1935 while excavating the tomb of Senenmut, a prominent architect and government official who was rumored to be the secret lover of Queen Hatshepsut. The Screaming Woman was interred in a nearby burial chamber and is likely a close family member of Senenmut, Saleem noted.