Iowa holds its fair share of history, including plenty of mystery and intrigue. But perhaps the most exotic puzzle to be contained within our state’s borders is the one associated with the Ancient Egyptian mummy that has found a resting place within the walls of the Putnam Museum in Davenport.

Welcome to the Putnam Museum in Davenport, Iowa. This science and history museum is a veritable treasure trove of all kinds of interesting, educational exhibits, from the periodic table of elements to biomimicry to birds to gems to waterways to music.

Putnam Museum / Facebook

And of all the fascinating options you can find at the Putnam, perhaps the most intriguing display is their “Unearthing Ancient Egypt” display. After all, how many other places in Iowa allow you to actually experience what it was like to live in Ancient Egypt, complete with a real Ancient Egyptian mummy?

Cristy / OIYS The answer is zero. Zero other places in Iowa offer this type of experience.

Which is why you’ll definitely want to come tour the “Unearthing Ancient Egypt” exhibit yourself.

Cristy / OIYS Pro Tip: give yourself plenty of time to explore this exhibit. There are plaques to read, maps to examine, artifacts to view, and so much more.

There’s even an unsolvable mystery to ponder. This mummy was long thought to be Isis Neferit, a chantress in the temple of Isis about 3,000 years ago.

Cristy / OIYS

Apparently, though, it’s not. The coffin is the coffin of Isis Neferit, but the body inside the coffin is that of another unidentified woman, born some 600 years after Isis Neferit.

Crisy / OIYS How did this woman’s body get into Isis Neferit’s coffin? Who is she? What happened to Isis Neferit? These are questions without answers, at least for now.

Visit “Unearthing Ancient Egypt” yourself between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday or 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Putnam Museum / Facebook Admission for members is free. Otherwise, adults are $9 and youth ages 3-18 are $8.

Learn more at the Putnam Museum website here or their Facebook page here. For a different kind of ancient history in Iowa, visit the Effigy Mounds.

Putnam Museum / Facebook

Cristy / OIYS

The answer is zero. Zero other places in Iowa offer this type of experience.

Pro Tip: give yourself plenty of time to explore this exhibit. There are plaques to read, maps to examine, artifacts to view, and so much more.

Crisy / OIYS

How did this woman’s body get into Isis Neferit’s coffin? Who is she? What happened to Isis Neferit? These are questions without answers, at least for now.

Admission for members is free. Otherwise, adults are $9 and youth ages 3-18 are $8.

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Address: Putnam Museum and Science Center, 1717 W 12th St, Davenport, IA 52804, USA