Continuity mistake: When O'Connell and Evie burst in on the mummy after it has killed Burns, O'Connell aims at it with one revolver in his right hand. As the mummy advances, he suddenly has two revolvers in both hands, and before that, he has made no move to his second gun.
Continuity mistake: As the sun is rising, Hamunaptra is revealed (a literal trick of the light). However, long before the sun is fully up (let alone directly overhead), Dr. Chamberlain is seen holding an umbrella over his head, blotting out the sun which is now shining directly *down* on him.
Continuity mistake: When Henderson gets killed by Imhotep in his hotel room, the shadow of his corpse being thrown shows it to be thrown quite a distance across the room, yet when Imhotep appears, and then walks off, Henderson's corpse is right by his feet. It was thrown much further than that.
Continuity mistake: Following the attack of the Magi on the adventurer's camp, the short sighted American's shaving foam changes from shot to shot.
Continuity mistake: At the beginning of the movie Anck-Su-Namun stabs herself with the knife she just used to stab the Pharaoh, but no blood is on the knife.
Continuity mistake: When Henderson shoots the burning guy to save Jonathan, I counted at least ten shots from his pistol. Also happens when Rick shoots, he seems to fire off more than the 12 shots you would think he'd be limited to.
Continuity mistake: Rick's wrist brace is missing in prison and during the trek across the desert, with no sign of the tattoo we learn in the next film is under it.
Continuity mistake: During the foreign legion battle, the defensive line starts to retreat from the wall, falling under the force of the attack. Rick is at the centre of a group of five soldiers who are more or less in a V-pattern. When the camera changes position from front to back, there's just 3 of them.
Continuity mistake: When everyone jumps off the burning river boat it is heading away from them, but in the next shot the boat is just starting to pass everyone while they are reaching the shore.
Continuity mistake: When Imhotep takes Benny as his servant, he holds out some gold items in a very skeletal hand (where he had the gold when he had no pockets is another matter). When O'Connell and friends are leaving Hamanoptera, Imhotep's hand comes out of the sand. You can see that it is either a prop hand, or a crewman's hand in a glove, as it is thicker than it was a few moments before.
Continuity mistake: At the stand off at the base of Anubis, when Beni says, "There are 4 of you and 15 of me. Your odds are no so good". O'Connell crosses his right arm over to point a gun at Beni, but they are no longer crossed immediately after when replies, "I've had worse."
Continuity mistake: When Evie shows Dr. Bey the ancient Egyptian map, she points at Hamunaptra with her left hand, but in the next shot, based on her body position, she's pointing at the map with her right hand.
Continuity mistake: In the scene where Imhotep's sarcophagus first falls through the ceiling Jonathon is practicing his golf swing a few feet away from Rick and Evie. When the sarcophagus falls exactly where Jonathon has been standing, Jonathon is suddenly 20 feet away without having had a chance to move.
Continuity mistake: In the scene where the group is waiting on Evie to decipher where the black book is, Jonathan runs out to get the car and it's pointing one way. When everyone runs out to get in the car, it's now pointing on the opposite direction. There's no way he could've turned the car around that fast.
Continuity mistake: When Imhotep's coffin is first found, O'Connell blows the sand out of the lock where the key is supposed to go. For the rest of the scene, the amount of leftover sand in the lock (particularly the arches) changes from shot to shot.
Chosen answer: The tattoos on his forehead are the Egyptian Hieroglyphs that spell "Underworld", and the ones on his cheeks are the Egyptian Hieroglyphs for the word "truth." All Medjai males get these tattoos as part of the coming-of-age rite, when they turn sixteen, of which the most important is the tattoo on their right wrist (which Rick O'Connell also has) that marks them as "warriors for God." Other tattoos specific to Medjai males are on their arms, forearms, hands, pectorals, shoulder blades and beneath the navel - the tattoos on the nose and chin are no longer used, since the time of Seti I. Medjai females only get the wrist tattoo when they come of age, but are not marked with any of the other symbols that are particular to men. Fun fact: If the Medjai - male and female alike - shows any sign of pain or cries during the tattooing process, it is considered that they have brought shame to their family.