| Baby Aboutalib | |
| |
| Biographical Information | |
|---|---|
| Name(s) | Zahra's baby |
| Age | 0 years old |
| Sex | undetermined |
| Status | medical curiosity |
| Height | 42 cm |
| Source | |
| Culture | Moroccan |
| Date(s) | 1922-1975 |
| Site | NOrth Africa |
| Current Location | |
| Location | Casablanca |
| Catalog # | |
In 1955, Zahra Aboutalib was pregnant but never gave birth. According to her Moroccan culture, she believed that a baby can sleep inside the mother. When Zahra turned 75 years old, she started to experience pain in her abdomen.
Mummification[]
The baby who died in utero many decades ago had calcified in her body's attempt to protect her. This occurs when the body is unable to remove a dead fetus and in order to protect the human body from infection caused by decomposing tissue the fetus mummified, becoming a "stone baby."
Stone baby
It was the result of an ectopic pregnancy where the baby essentially grows in the abdominal cavity, it had fused to her vital organs and abdominal wall making the removal difficult although it was achieved successfully. The 'stone' fetus was removed weighing 7lb and measuring 42cm. In this case, the deceased fetus was too big to be reabsorbed by the mother's body, which caused a reaction from her immune system. The fetus' body was covered in a calciferous substance as the tissues died and became dehydrated. As this wall built up, the baby was mummified and become lithopedion or "stone baby".
References[]
10 Mummies With Mysterious Stories To Tell. (2014, June 20). Retrieved March 19, 2017, from http://listverse.com/2013/10/12/10-mummies-with-mysterious-stories-to-tell/
Zahra Aboutalib and her Sleeping Baby | 46 Year Pregnancy. (2016, March 18). Retrieved March 19, 2017, from http://mymultiplesclerosis.co.uk/ep/zahra-aboutalib-stone-baby/