THE sensational re-discovery of a ceremonial mask of the ancient Egyptian God of Death sparked a frenzy of interest yesterday.

Scholars across the world were focusing on events at the Royal Pump Room Museum, in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, where a unique mask of the mysterious god Anubis was unveiled.

The uncovering of the true importance of the 2,500-year-old artefact could lead Egyptologists to re-write the history books, after fresh ideas on its role in mummification procedures were mooted.

Until now, it was thought the ancient Egyptians believed that only the jackal-headed god Anubis himself could perform the funeral ritual.

But now experts believe the mask, originally found in a tomb in southern Egypt, could have been worn by priests who took on the role of Anubis for funerals.

The mask is made of cartonnage - layers of linen and papyrus stiffened with plaster - and had been in the care of Harrogate's museum since it was bequeathed to the town in 1968.

But its significance only came to light after museum staff began re-cataloguing their collection, with the help of a local group of Egyptologists.

Expert Dr Joann Fletcher said: "The rediscovery of the Anubis mask is really tremendous.

"It is one of only three masks to have survived which were worn by the living, as opposed to those like King Tutankhamen's gold mask designed purely for the dead.

"Yet of the surviving three masks, the Harrogate example is unique. It's the only one which could have been worn as part of a fully-functioning ritual costume, because its construction would have allowed the wearer to speak.

"The mask suggests that temple images of Anubis-headed figures are representations of priests playing the part of the god, rather than of the god himself, as had previously been thought."

The Anubis mask will be the centrepiece of the museum's Land of the Pharaohs exhibition, which opens on March 2.