
Confronted excruciating toothache, it's easy to believe no-one has felt pain like it before.

But a 2,200-year old mummy is set to go on display that was afflicted by modern-day illnesses such as tooth decay and osteoporosis.

The illnesses, discovered using a CT scan, indicate that during his lifetime, the man avoided manual labour in the sun in favour of focusing on his spiritual wellbeing – and eating carb-heavy snacks.

A 2,000-year old mummy is set to go on display that was afflicted by modern-day illnesses such as osteoporosis and tooth decay. This picture shoes the richly-decorated embalmed body of the man, who is thought to have been a priest

The mummy is the only such relic in Israel, and has been dubbed the 'Protective Eye of Horus,' after the Egyptian god.

Horus is one of the most significant deities in ancient Egyptian religion, being a god of the sky and of war, and was depicted as a falcon or man with a falcon head.

It was kept for decades at a Jesuit institute in Jerusalem before it was loaned to the Israel Museum.

The decorative mummy will be displayed in a museum setting for the first time from tomorrow.

The illnesses, discovered using a CT scan, indicate that during his lifetime, the man avoided manual labour in the sun in favour of focusing on his spiritual wellbeing – and munching on carb-heavy snacks. A CT scan of the man's skull is shown above

The mummy is the only such relic in Israel, and has been dubbed the 'Protective Eye of Horus,' after the Egyptian god. Here, the decorated mummy, complete with its gold mask, can be seen inside a wooden sarcophagus

WHY MIGHT THE MUMMY HAVE TOOTH DECAY? Experts previously studied 3,000 ancient Egyptian mummies to find almost one in five have 'worn teeth, periodontal diseases, abscesses and cavities'. The prevalence of tooth decay may have been caused by the ancient Egyptians' diet of bread and honey, as well as other sweet baked treats. The mummy on show may have eaten lots of sugary treats. Advertisement

The research on the mummy builds on previous international studies that have shown that people in ancient Egyptian times suffered from some of the modern-day diseases.

'Osteoporosis is a disease that is characteristic of the 20th century, when people don't work so hard. We are glued to screens,' said Galit Bennett, who curated the mummy exhibit.

'We were very surprised that there were people who didn't do physical work and that it affected their bodies like this man here.'

The museum said that thanks to Egyptian embalming processes and Jerusalem's dry climate, the mummy's bones, teeth and even remnants of blood vessels were found largely intact, providing a treasure-trove of medical details.

The mummy was also found to have had tooth cavities, which may have been caused by a love of sweet foods, popular with the Ancient Egyptians.

Researchers studied the mummy's remains earlier this year using a CT scanner - technology that allowed them to discover the diseases and determine the mummy was a man who lived to what was at the time a relatively old age of 30 and 40 years.

The decorative mummy will be displayed in a museum setting for the first time from tomorrow. The mummy is pictured left and CT scan, showing the man's final pose, as well as hidden medical details, is pictured right

The research on the mummy (shown above, including its mask) builds on previous international studies that have shown that people in ancient Egyptian times suffered from some of the modern-day diseases

'Osteoporosis is a disease that is characteristic of the 20th century, when people don't work so hard. We are glued to screens,' said Galit Bennett, who curated the mummy exhibit. 'We were very surprised that there were people who didn't do physical work and that it affected their bodies like this man here.' Another CT scan showing the mummy in profile is shown above

He was originally five foot six tall (167cm) but either in his lifetime or death, had shrunk to a more diminutive five foot one. (154cm).

His apparently sedentary lifestyle, as well as inscriptions on his coffin, indicates he was a priest, the museum said.

It believed the mummy is originally from Akhmim, some 300 miles (480km) south of present-day Cairo.

It was given as a gift to the Jesuit Pontifical Biblical Institute in Jerusalem in the late 1920s by Jesuits in Alexandria, Egypt.

The mummy, nicknamed 'Alex,' was encased in a gold and black coffin and wrapped in strands of linen, with a gold mask placed atop its concealed skull.

Researchers studied the mummy's remains (pictured) earlier this year using a CT scanner - technology that allowed them to discover the diseases and determine the mummy was a man who lived to what was at the time a relatively old age of 30 and 40 years

Alex is not the first mummy to be found to have suffered from tooth decay.

Experts from the University of Zurich studied 3,000 ancient Egyptian mummies to find in 2013 that almost one in five have 'worn teeth, periodontal diseases, abscesses and cavities' according to a study published in the Journal of Comparative Human Biology.

The prevalence of tooth decay may have been caused by the ancient Egyptians' diet of bread and honey, as well as other sweet baked treats.

The study reviewed CT scans taken of mummies and said that out of 85, there were 5 cases of degenerative disorders, including osteoarthritis and four cases of atherosclerosis - the hardening of the arteries.

Infectious diseases were also detected, Discovery News reported, including tuberculosis and gangrene of the teeth and gums. Seven mummies also revealed signs of malaria, and 10 had tumours.