1.  Introduction 
2.  Why Mummify 
3.  Mummification 
4.  Ancient Beliefs of Mummification 

1.  Introduction 
2.  Solving Mysterys with X-ray 
3.  Modern Body Embalming 
4.  Mummies of the Future 

1.  Introduction 
2.  Movies 
3.  Arts and Ethnics 

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  1 April 2003

Introduction

Ancient Egyptians had acute concerns about death and were preoccupied by the afterlife. The main reason for their mentality was religion. Most of them wished to live to an age of hundred but it was quite impossible to achieve, given their unhygienic conditions, diets and technology (The oldest pharaoh was remarkably Pepi II who ruled Egypt for 94 years). Egyptians knew that only gods could grant life or death and they feared and rarely appreciated death for it was treated as something unfair although unavoidable.

Despite their love for life on earth, it was short-lived. Afterlife was eternal though, and ancient Egyptian prepared as much as they could for this. Most Egyptians spent their whole life carefully planning and ensuring the smooth passage of their souls into the afterlife. Of course, their final resting place was also something important to consider, although the human greed would begin to take its toll.

Besides resulting in the preparation for death and burial, this great belief for the afterlife also resulted in the construction of pyramids and tombs for the kings and queens. This was associated with the status of the people- the peasants got a small tombs and the pharaohs got colossal pyramids. Despite the different social statuses, most Egyptian had decent burials. In prehistory and later among the commoners, their bodies were curled up in a foetal position, wrapped with animal skins and placed in large clay jar, which would be buried in the desert.

The Egyptians believed that the bodies of the dead had to be intact in order to ensure a smooth passage into the afterlife; therefore they mummify the body (see mummification). This mummification process's main aim was to preserve the body as long as it could. According to today's discoveries, these preserved mummies could survive a great deal of time. Most Egyptian mummies discovered today still have their general physical features and some even have hairs intact.

Like most other civilisations, the Egyptians buried their dead with some items for use in the afterlife, which included food, clothing, jewellery and other daily essentials. For affluent Egyptians, the choice of having statues representing servants who would serve them in the afterlife was irresistible. Inside the tombs, paintings depicting daily life were painted onto it. Many believed that some prayers chanted by the priests performing the ritual would make Osiris, god of the Underworld, bring the daily scenes along with the dead to life. Egyptians were also buried with spells, prayers, hymns and other information to make sure that they would safely pass through the different tests in order to attain eternity. These collections of texts were mostly placed inside their tombs and were known as the Book Of The Dead.

Sometimes by studying the corpses of mummies in Ancient Egypt, Egyptian doctors could understand more about how the human body works, which could greater increase their ability to treat simple ailments. Animals that the Egyptian took as pets, such as monkeys, crocodiles and cats were also mummified.

Funeral Preparations

Three very important factors were present in the funeral process. Firstly, a body that would never decay. Secondly, an undisturbed resting place and thirdly, people who would always bring food.

The first step was to order a tomb that would last forever. The Egyptians did this long before they were expected to pass away. Often, the political and economical power of the deceased decided the cost of their burial. The option of arranging their own mummies was also recommended to ensure that they would have the best that they could afford. This could be done by visiting an embalmer, who would show his customers wooden model of mummies, with prices ranging from cheap to luxury. The cheapest way of preserving the body was by injecting seed oil and packing the body with natron for about 40 days before the family collected the body. The most expensive way could cost as much as 26 kilograms of silver, which was an enormous sum in those days.

If someone was rich but did not have any family, he or she could provide a livelihood for servants who would feed their "ka". Wealthy Egyptians could also afford a tomb with an enclosed courtyard at ground level, underground shaft and burial chamber. Pharaohs would order constructions of pyramids, which showed how strong and majestic he was. Most of these kept the tomb and treasures safe for it was carefully designed, but some were looted.

Besides, arranging the tomb and the mummy, Egyptians also needed to decide on the designs of his or her wall paintings. Unlike commoners, pharaohs needed a burial boat that would take them through the sky with the sun. Pharaohs, who needed to bring priceless treasures with them to the afterlife, would be posed with security problems. Therefore, pyramids were usually designed to have booby traps and false chambers.

Some common items that Egyptians brought with them to the afterlife were food, clothing, statues of servants, amulets and magical items. Important amulets included the protective eye of Horus, placed over the incision made in the body and amulets with the falcon symbol, which granted the bearer protective power. Other amulets protected specific parts of the body, including the heart, which prevented the heart from weighing more than the feather of truth, and some the limbs.

The mummy itself was covered with many layers of linens, casings and finally, decorated lid. The more layers a mummy had, the more secure it was. In most cases, a death mask made from compressed paper is placed over the mummy's head before encasing them in the layers of coffins. This way, the deceased's appearance could be identified without taking out all the layers of linen. The famous boy king, Tutankhamen, had a golden facemask and is an example of a modern death mask.

The Funeral

Egyptian funerals were very strange events. Although it ought to be a solemn occasion, the family and friends of the deceased celebrated the completion of the funeral process after that. It would be interesting to watch how the ancient Egyptians performed the rituals in the past.

After the mummy was made in the "House of life", there was a long procession of the items that it wished to be buried with, along with "hired mourners" (women and children who cried during the journey). Soon, it was carried on a sledge across the Nile to the west coast using a boat. Most Egyptians wished to stop at Abydos, the greatest Osirian sanctuary.

There, purification of the mummy with water and incense were also performed. a series of rituals were performed by priests, including the "Opening of The Eyes and The Mouth ceremony", which enabled the deceased to "see" and "speak", an essential part of the birth of a new life. The mummy was in front of a sacred stela, supported by the god Anubis. Meanwhile, the wife and the children of the deceased cried and mourned for his death.

After that, the mourners led by a priest, followed the mummy to its tomb, along with servants carrying burial items that would be used in the afterlife. During the Old Kingdom, there were the sun-god rituals- used for royals and later was introduced to their subjects.

The mummy would be placed in the burial chamber where a stone coffin (sarcophagus) was prepared. The last person to leave the place was responsible for sweeping all the footprints and sealing the door of the chamber. From that point of time, the mummy would begin his journey to the underworld while family and friends celebrated the successful ceremony. From there, the storied of his continual life would begin to unfold from the paintings.

The Afterlife

The afterlife would be full of expectations, at least for Egyptians who had done good deeds all their lives. It was this time that each and every Egyptians would get what they had given throughout their lives. The Ba, the soul of man, would hover near the body waiting for Isis, to receive it with great wings and to entrust it to the great and wise god Anubis.

The two would make their way to the extreme ends of the world, towards one of the four mountains, which supported the sky. Once both of them had reached over the high mountain, the Ba, descended into the "Gallery of the night", with Khephri's barge. Anubis managed to guide the boat safely through the swirling rapids furrowed by the spires of the great serpent Apophis. Finally, the boat would enter the heart of the Underworld, which is the reign of the "secret things".

In the banks and the waters of the river, gigantic monstrous baboons tried to capture the travellers, dragons tried to burn them and hideous creatures constantly harassed these sorrowful souls. Although the air was filled with cries and inhuman utters, only the friends of Osiris would be able to survive such ordeals. Soon after the great encounters were over, luminous divine beings help Anubis as he comforted and defended these weak and fear-stricken souls.

After all the hassles and harsh treatments, both of them finally arrived at the holy realm of Duat, where in order to leave, they must pass through seven gates and to enter the "Hall of Osiris", they must pass ten pylons. Each gate was guarded by three immortals: the magician god, the guardian god and the questioner god. In order to pass, the soul must know the appropriate magical words and the secret name of the Guardian of the threshold. If he managed to pass through, the passage of the ten pylons would begin, where the tutelary god of each pylon would reveal the "secret name" for his eternity.

Soon, the soul would find himself in the "Grand hall of justice of Osiris", where images of the universal gods and the cosmic Kas were everywhere. In the centre, a stepped pyramid stood and the soul, exhausted by his long journey, must help again with the help of Anubis. Four high judges, Shu, Tefnut, Geb and Nut (air, fire, earth and sky), stood at the summit of the pyramid. The final judgement took place with the presence of Osiris. Anubis, god of the dead, would weigh the heart of the deceased and find out if it had weighed more than the feather of Maat goddess of truth. Lives of Egyptians would be judged in this test and the findings were recorded by Thoth. Here, the soul must show that he had never done evil to anyone. Meanwhile, the monster, Amenuit, crocodile-lion-hippopotamus, kept watch and rose his head, ready to swallow the losing soul and drag it down to the gloom of Sokaris.

If the heart is lighter than the feather of truth, the spiritual Ka returned to make it live for eternity.

In the past, the Egyptian believed that it was essential for the deceased to have something for food and since then, depositing food offerings became a tradition. This could be done be the direct descendants of the dead person, but it would become much of an economic problem if as generations went by, and there would be a need to create a funerary fund, which attached a property to the tomb with a sufficient revenue to provide the deceased with enough food and a salary for a priest that would offer the food. At first, this was practised for the pharaohs, but it could also be the case for royal families if they were very rich.

Soon, this form of practice was gradually abandoned and a more systematic approach was applied- a contract between the priest and the family concerned which decided that the fund would be inherited, undivided, by one of the priest's sons (Egyptian priests were allowed to marry).

Towards the end of the Old Kingdom, two new beliefs came into existence- that of Osiris and the sun-god Re. Being the master of the Underworld, Osiris gave a piece of land to the deceased towards the end of the journey so that he could continue his earthly activities. Before reaching the "Fields of Iaru", the soul bathed in the "lotus lake" to purify itself and from there onwards, in the "Fields of Iaru", he sowed, ploughed and harvested. Although this was seen to be hard work, it could be alleviated with the help of the "ushebtis", which was representative of the figurines that were buried with the deceased. These people helped him to do the chores.

As for the sun-god rituals during the Old Kingdom, it was conducted to lead the deceased into the domain of the sun to accompany the sun-god , Re, on his journeys. During the day, the dead person remained in his tomb, enjoying the offerings and often taking a short walk on earth. At night, he accompanied Re in his solar ship and sometimes, stopped at the "Field of Iaru", and at dawn, he went back to the comfy of his tomb.

The soul would soon unite with the immortal Ka, ascent, and identify itself with the Supreme Being- Ra.

Smart Egyptians made a lot of precautions when it came to the protection of the body for afterlife. However, despite precautions and preventive measures, the tombs were often abandoned and looted. Hence came the importance of the use of magic to insure the dead person's access to the afterlife. Using objects to represent something simply made it exist. But someone still had to recite magic spells for it to exist.

After Death

People have heard of afterlife, but what about after death?

After the winds and storms of the funeral, Egyptians who were rich enough were able to offer food to their loved ones. Needless to say, the pharaohs of Egypt, who were treated with such great care. As for those peasants and commoners, who were unable to afford even an extra piece of bread for their loved ones, they did not have many opportunities to offer them food.

For people buried in large clay jars, if they were enough to be important and their family means permitted, burial chambers would be created at the bottom of the shaft where tools used by them, as well as models and seeds, would be deposited around their mummified bodies. A tumulus of stones was then constructed on the closed shaft. Rites with offerings of drinks and food were performed on the tumulus.

Very soon, these traditions were abandoned and were waiting for us to discover.
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