Detail

This Roman-era egg survived for centuries simply by luck. Its shell is now too fragile to be touched or even exposed to air. Scientists need to approach this issue extremely carefully.

The discovery of the egg was first announced in 2019, but it wasn’t until recently that scientists scanned the egg and noticed that its insides had not dried and washed away from the shell as they expected.

The egg turned out to be even more surprising. There was still liquid, egg yolk and white inside.
– says Dana Goodburn-Brow, who took part in the preservation of the find. He says this research is the most important turning point in his 40-year career. After all, this is a once-in-a-lifetime discovery.

The lack of clear boundaries to distinguish yellow from white in the scans suggests that they were mixed for so long. You may also see a small air bubble between the liquid and the crust.

Microtomogram shows the liquid inside the egg and the air above it in red / Photo: Christopher Dunmore, Life Sciences Imaging Centre, University of Kent

Three other eggs found in the same archaeological site did not reach the museum safely. They were accidentally broken by scientists during analysis, emitting the pungent, sulphurous odor you’d expect from 1,700-year-old rotten eggs.

This English story shows how to hide an egg: video

Between 2007 and 2016, a clutch of chicken eggs was unearthed in a boggy hole in the town of Aylesbury in south-east England. The water appears to protect them from severe erosion in a drier environment.

Scientists suspect that this area, dating back to Roman times, may have once been used as a wishing well. The eggs may have been intended as spiritual or religious offerings, thrown for good luck, fertility, or during funeral ceremonies..

Leather shoes, tools, pottery, coins and a basket were also found in the pit.

After discovering the valuable contents of the single surviving egg, researchers transported it to the Natural History Museum in London for further study. Now that it is safely stored, experts are trying to analyze its contents without breaking it apart.