The earliest ancient Egyptians buried their dead in small pits in the desert. However, over many centuries, the ancient Egyptians developed a new method of preserving these bodies so they would remain lifelike. The process includes embalming the bodies and wrapping them in strips of linen. This process is now called mummification. Throughout this technique, the body is covered and filled with different substances that help preserve the body and body parts from decomposing. There are many theories concerning the matters found with the mummified bodies and the reasons behind their presence. Although Sandison and Amaros & Vozenin-Serra share and explain the importance of the substances present in mummification, they use two different materials, studied and analyzed, to clarify the cognition behind their use. While Sandison describes the theory by Herodotus, which states that natron was the substance used; Amaros & Vozenin-Serra explain this theory and show evidence of the use of cedar sawdust for embalming by ancient Egyptians.
Quick summaries of the articles
The article “The Use of Natron in Mummification in Ancient Egypt” by A.T.Sandison starts by explaining that there still exists confusion and uncertainty with regard of the basic technique of mummification. The author also describes the theory stated by the ancient Greek historian; Herodotus. Sandison’s detailed description of the process of mummification is repeated many times throughout his article due to the fact that there are many different experimental observations about this ancient technique.
The article “New Evidence for the use of Cedar Sawdust for Embalming by Ancient Egyptians” by Victoria Asensi Amaros and Colette Vozenin-Serra, explains how a team of scientists u...
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...dure of mummification in ancient Egypt. Sandison explains why mummification was so important in the Egyptian culture. He also describes that natron was a very important substance used to preserve the body, and provides different recent experiments to prove that. While, Amaros & Vozenin-Serra supply many scientific facts, found by different anthropologists and historians, which state how cedar sawdust is one of the main materials used to mummify a body in ancient Egypt.
Works Cited
Sandison, A.T. “The Use of Natron in Mummification in Ancient Egypt”. Journal of Near Eastern Studies, Vol. 22, No. 4 (Oct., 1963), pp. 259-267. JSTOR. Web. 1 May 2014
Amaros, Victoria Asensi & Vozenin-Serra, Colette. “New Evidence for the use of Cedar Sawdust for Embalming by Ancient Egyptians”. The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, Vol. 84 (1998), pp. 228-231. JSTOR. Web. 1 May 2014
The Egyptians during this period took ample time and detail on the mummification process to ensure a successful transition from the netherworld to rebirth. The Coffin of Tentkhonsu, 1025-980 B.C., it’s a depiction of how the Egyptians valued and honored their elite members of society, as well as their gods. The Coffin of Tentkhonsu, itself dates back to the III intermediate period in Egyptian culture. The Egyptian believe was to join Osiris, whom was believed to have ascended to Netherworld and accomplished eternal life.
Perhaps the most notorious of burial practices originating in Egypt is that of mummification. Why such an extraordinary attempt was made to preserve cadavers may seem
One of the most famous aspects of ancient Egyptian religion are their beliefs about death and life after death. They believed that after they died, their hearts were weighed by Anubis, the god of mummification and the afterlife. If they had lived good lives, their life force (also referred to as Ka) could join up with their soul. If they lived bad lives, the two forces had to be separated forever which was an extremely bad thing. One of their well-known practices was putting food and personal belongings into the tomb with the mummy before the tomb was sealed. They believed that the soul had survived with these things during the person’s life so they needed them to survive in the afterlife as well. Their strong belief in death and the afterlife resulted in them being so deeply attached to their homeland that they rejected prolonged military operations beyond their borders because they feared that they would die on foreign soil and they would not be given the proper rites for their continued journey after life. (Mark
When looking over Etruscan v tombs, we can see a similarity between what Etruscans leave behind to entomb their dead relatives, to what the ancient Egyptians to entomb their dead relatives. Starting with how the buried their dead, for the ancient Egyptians, while for the most part buried their upper society into mastaba’s, located at in a necropolis on the west bank of the Neil river. While not as in a grand scale as the Egyptian’s, the Etruscans tombs where built in clusters together, though on difference between the two was the fact that the tombs were built together like a small town much like the Etruscan cemetery at Cerveteri. Another similarity is the way they both use sarcophagi in their individual burials, with those entombed also being
The history and tradition of Egypt is one of the most greatly studied and admired of all past world civilizations. The lure of the pyramids and the specter of the sphinx have led many archeologists to dedicate his/her life to unraveling the mysteries of ancient Egyptian culture. Arguably, the most captivating aspect of Egypt’s past is that of mummification. Why did the Egyptians mummify their dead? What beliefs did the Egyptians have regarding the after life? What portion of the Egyptian civilization was mummified? What was the Book of the Dead? This is a mere sampling of the questions that come to my mind when I think of ancient Egyptian culture. I hope to lay forth answers to these questions and many more in the following pages dedicated to the history and purpose behind Egyptian mummification.
The elements that will be focused on are the multiple functions of the tomb and rituals, specifically the mummification of bodies. Ancient Egyptian tombs had many functions; the main function being to hold the bodies of the dead. Tombs were typically built during a person’s lifetime and were ready by their time of death (Olson, 2009). Before bodies were put in the tombs, they underwent a process called mummification to help preserve the body and keep it intact. The tomb was also a place where family members could come and visit the deceased. In the early years, tomb structures were very simple; they consisted only of one chamber (Grajetzki, 2003: 3-4). Later on, façade tombs were built— which consisted of two parts; an “underground chamber for the dead and the superstructure built above the ground, over the shaft and the burial chamber” (Grajetzki, 2003: 8). Next, the Egyptian tombs and ...
It is historically important how an ancient society chooses to honor, remember and protect their dead. By studying ancient societies burial rituals historians can better understand any society and how that society functioned. Most societies have very specific rules for burials, so each person knows exactly what to do to guarantee a clear path to the better than now afterlife. The Egyptian and Etruscan peoples were two very different societies with very different ideas about burial rituals and protection. Every Egyptian or Etruscan citizen knew with full faith that there was a safe path to heaven waiting for them. To understand protection in the context of burial it is important to look at how each society was run, who ran it and what was the society leaders goals.
Egypt is a big rich historical country in northeast Africa, its included in the region known as the middle east and its capital Cairo. Ancient Egypt which is commonly known for its rich cultural heritage has undergone several cultural changes from pre-historic times. This paper will explore burial practices and artifacts associated with those practices. The physical body was preserved properly because of the believe in afterlife which was an important funerary practice.
Interestingly, X-rays reveal that the mummy case of Paankhenamun does in fact contain a mummy inside dating back to the years of c. 945 – 715 B.C. The practice of mummification was the Egyptian people’s way of preserving the spirits of the Gods/Goddesses and royalty. The idea was that when these beings came back to life, they would be preserved and well prepared for their next lives. By the time of the New Kingdom, the Egyptians already had developed techniques of mummification, which were done under a priest’s supervision (Stokstad 114), and since Paankhenamun was the priest of Amun, he was most likely was in charge of these procedures.
The process of mummification began as an accident. Before they buried their dead in proper graves, the Egyptians laid their loved ones to rest in shallow pits in the desert. The sand and heat from the sun dried out the bodies which preserved them perfectly. However, when they started burying their dead in coffins, they realized that the bodies were no longer being preserved. This is when they decided to come up with their own way of preserving or “mummifying” the deceased. (“Mummification”)
In the present time, Ancient Egypt is one of the most notable early civilizations that took care in preserving the bodies of their dead (Wikipedia.com). However, preservation of the deceased’s body advanced during the Age of
Thus, the art and architecture of Ancient Egypt stemmed directly from their religion. Egyptian theology, with its deified pharaohs and strange animal-headed gods, was complicated, but the most important belief was that survival after death depended upon the preservation of the body. This belief would influence the architectural design of the tomb, where the corpse was ultimately sealed (Silverman:142, 1997). Immortality was only for privileged royal and priestly beings (Stierlin:54, 1983).This implies that their tombs would be somewhat prestigious and not just and ordinary burial site. At the day of resurrection the Ka or soul would re-enter the dead body; this meant that it must be there, intact, ready for that moment. It followed logically, that 'once the corpse was embalmed or mummified, it must be preserved in an impregnable tomb.
Burials are one of the main sources of knowledge concerning the Early Bronze Age. The most common practice during this time was placing several generations of one family in the same cave or tomb with a variety of offerings, such as pottery vessels, jewelry, and metal objects. In most cases, skeletal remains were found disarticulated with the skulls separated from the bodies. For example, at Tell Asawir bones were packed in pottery jars; at Azor there is some evidence of cremation; and at Jericho the skulls were separated and arranged in rows (Mazar 1990). Shaft tombs were found at some sites, such as the vast cemetery at Bab edhDhra’, where the Early Bronze Age I phase includes several thousand shaft tombs. As no settlement was established in this phase, the cemetery may have belonged to pastoral semi-nomads. This notion is supported by the method of burial––no more than six or seven individuals were found in each cave; each of these were disarticulated––the long bones arranged in one pile and the skulls laid out in a row (Mazar 1990). The flesh was probably extracted from the bones by boiling, a practice which would have suited the semi-nomadic lifestyle of those who may have kept the bones of the deceased in temporary graves or shelters until they could bring them to final burial in a more central or sacred cemetery (Mazar 1990). Multiple interment in caves continued into the Early Bronze Age II-III. This phase at Bab edh-Dhra’ includes rectangular burial chambers (Mazar 1990).
The most common ancient Egyptian burial practice is the mummification process as depicted in source B. Mummification is a ritual that embalmers performed when a pharaoh died. Source B is a photograph of the canoptic jars which are a main component of the mummification process. The first step in the mummification process is the removal and preservation of most of the internal organs, such as the lungs, the stomach, the liver and intestines. These organs are then separately embalmed and placed into canoptic jars as source B reveals. These jars were often decorated with one of the four animal-headed sons of the god Horus. Each head is believed to be the protector of each organ within the jar and is dedicated to a specific deity. The preservation of the organs is significant as they allowed the dead person to breathe and eat in the afterlife. The internal organs were then wrapped and put into either the body or put in boxes instead of sitting in jars. Canoptic jars were still placed in the tomb but they were solid or empty and provided a symbolic purpose. In Tutankhamun’s tomb the canoptic jars were discovered in a shrine that was found in the treasury room of the tomb. Source B is useful is when understanding the mummification process.
... learning about ancient medical practices in Egypt, therefore I have decided to continue research and expand my paper into a twenty page research paper for my final research paper at the end of the semester. In my next portion of my ten page paper I will explore the other topics stated in my thesis. My final paper will merely be a continuation of the topics that I have written about in this paper. I will explore and go into depth with the topics of human embalmment and its significance to the work of modern medicine today. I would also like to compare modern day embalmment for funerals with embalmment rituals used in Ancient Egypt. Another primary focus for the next installment of this paper will be a detailed argument of why it would be a wonderful and scientifically beneficial idea to fund and continue research of medical practices in Ancient Egypt.