Collectors of mummified remains face more than just legal risks from unregulated trade; they may also be inhaling toxic spores and handling heavy metals, according to researchers who analyzed the health threats associated with these artifacts.

The study, published in the International Journal of Cultural Property, details how the mummification process historically relied on substances like arsenic, mercury, and lead. These toxins can remain hazardous for centuries. Additionally, bacteria, fungi, and yeasts can lie dormant in tissues and reactivate when exposed to moisture or improper storage conditions—potentially causing respiratory infections, inflammation, and fever.

Lead author Dr. Jennifer Ouellette of Ars Technica notes that professionals who work with mummies typically wear masks, gloves, and lab coats. Amateur collectors, by contrast, may not take such precautions.

Historical cases underscore the risk. A 1962 study found poisonous fungal spores in mummified remains that caused respiratory illness. A 2013 analysis of the Capuchin Catacombs in Palermo, Sicily, revealed microbial and fungal blooms on hundreds of display mummies due to unstable environmental conditions. Similarly, a 2012 investigation at the Church of St. Peter and Paul in Krakow, Poland, identified three fungal species—Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Stachybotrys—on human remains, coffins, and in the air.

The paper is a timely reminder that the 'mummy's curse' associated with King Tutankhamen's tomb may have a mundane but dangerous explanation: toxic spores released when sealed environments are disturbed.

While the study focuses on antiquities, it arrives amid broader debates about unregulated markets and the unintended consequences of collecting. The authors urge governments and auction houses to warn buyers about potential health hazards and to enforce existing laws that already prohibit trade in illegally obtained remains.

For collectors, the message is clear: buyer beware—not just of provenance, but of what may be airborne.