In ancient Egyptian belief, a spirit
released at a person's death which
abandons the body and flies to the
stars
An object believed to offer magical
protection to the person who wears it
A scientist who studies cultures,
civilizations of the past through their
remains and artifacts
In ancient Egyptian belief, a spirit
released at the time of a person's death
which represents the character or
personality
Tiny organisms found abundantly in
the air, water, soil, and in the digestive
systems of humans and animals; some
of which cause disease and decay
A collection of spells and prayers
placed in ancient Egyptian tombs to
protect and guide the dead
Mummification in ancient Egypt was a very long and expensive process.
From start to finish, it took about seventy days to embalm
a body. Since the Egyptians believed that mummification
was essential for passage to the afterlife, people were
mummified and buried as well as they could possibly
afford. High-ranking officials, priests and other nobles
who had served the pharaoh and his queen had fairly
elaborate burials. The pharaohs, who were believed to
become gods when they died, had the most magnificent
burials of all. In the case of a royal or noble burial, the
embalmers set up workshops near the tomb of the mummy.
The art of Egyptian mummification consisted of many
steps. First, the body was washed and ritually purified. The next step
was to remove the deceased person's inner organs. A slit was cut into
the left side of the body so that the embalmers could remove the
intestines, the liver, the stomach and the lungs. Each of these organs
was embalmed using natron, which served to dry out the organs and
discourage bacteria from decaying the tissues.
The organs were then individually wrapped using long strips of linen and
placed in canopic jars. The lids of these jars were fashioned after the four
sons of Horus, who were each entrusted with protecting a particular
organ.
Here are some canopic jars with lids depicting the four sons of Horus:
Kelsey Museum of Archeology, #KM 73.1.1-4
*Qebehsenuef, the falcon head -- intestines
*Duamutef, the jackal head -- stomach
*Hapy, the baboon head -- lungs
*Imsety, the human head -- liver
After the removal of the inner organs, the body cavity was stuffed with
natron. The brain was then removed through the nose using long hooks.
Since the ancient Egyptians considered the brain unimportant,
it was probably thrown away.
The body was then placed on a slanted embalming table and
completely covered with natron. This allowed fluids to drip away
as the body slowly dried out. This part of the process took about
forty days, after which the natron was removed, inside and out,
to reveal a dried, shrunken body. After another cleaning, the body
was rubbed with unguents to aid in preserving the mummy's
skin. The head and body cavity were stuffed with packing.
The mummy was then prepared for bandaging. First, the
embalming cut in the side of the body was sewn up and covered
with a patching depicting the protective eye of Horus. The body
was adorned with gold, jewels and protective amulets. Fingers
and toes were covered with protective gold caps and individually
wrapped with long, narrow strips of linen. Arms and legs were
also wrapped, then the entire body was wrapped to a depth of
about twenty layers. The embalmers used resin to glue the layers
of wrappings together. The wrapped head was covered with a
mummy mask. Finally, the last layer of bandages went on and
was given one last coating of resin. The mummy was the ready
for burial.
Once the mummy was finally prepared, it was time for the
funeral. The mummy and its canopic jars were transported by sled
from the embalming tent to the tomb. People were hired to
demonstrate their grief by crying and throwing dust on their hair.
At the site of the tomb, religious ceremonies were held to prepare
the dead for the afterlife. In particular, the Opening of the
Mouth ceremony was believed to allow the mummy to see, hear,
eat and drink in the spirit world.
Over time almost all Egyptians who could afford to became
mummies when they died -- a total of about 70 million mummies
in 3,000 years. By the 4th century AD, many Egyptians had
become Christians and no longer believed that mummification
was necessary for life after death. Eventually, the Egyptians
gave up the art and science of making mummies.
So where did all the mummies go? Sadly, most were plundered in
ancient times by grave robbers and vandals looking for treasures
wrapped up in the bandages. Countless mummies were also
destroyed during the Middle Ages, when they were ground into
powders to make supposedly magical potions. Later on, modern
treasure hunters blundered into their tombs looking for artifacts
and souvenirs. Even industry aided the destruction by using
mummies' bandages to make paper or burning their bodies for
fuel.
The best preserved mummies are those of the pharoahs and their
relatives. These mummies tended to be more carefully embalmed
and protected from harm. The mummies that have survived allow
us to look back into the past and know something of the ancient
Egyptians and their time. Three of the most famous Egyptians
mummies are Tutankhamen, Seti I and Rameses II (Ramses the
Great).
Tutankhamen, known to many as King Tut,
was probably just a boy when he was crowned pharoah in the
18th Dynasty. He was still a teenager when he died of unknown
causes and was entombed in the Egyptian Valley of Kings.
Although Tutankhamen was not one of the more distinguished or
important pharoahs in his own time, he has a very special place in
ours.
Tutankhamen's tomb was discovered in 1922 by Howard Carter.
Over the next several years, Carter's expedition carefully uncoverd
the riches within, including the gold mask above. A number of
mysterious deaths that followed the opening of the tomb set off
wild rumors of a mummy's curse.
Today, Tut is known to countless people the world over, in part
because his is the only pharoah's tomb ever discovered intact.
Tut's burial site had somehow escaped pillaging by grave robbers
for over 3000 years. His mummy and its magnificent
solid gold sarcophagus, along with wall paintings, furniture,
weapons, games and other artifacts have survived to the present,
giving us a unique glimpse at the trappings of an ancient
pharoah.