Ancient Egyptian Burial Practices

Historians and archaeologists are major parts in the way many historic investigations are completed and how the results are preserved. Historians and archaeologists contribute to our understanding of Egyptian burial practices by completing historic investigations in Egypt and gathering information to help produce evidence of certain activities occurring such as pit burials and mastabas, Tutankhamun is a very important example of how ancient Egyptian burial practices have been understood.

Historians are a major part of all historical investigations worldwide. A historian is an expert in or student in history, especially that of a particular period, geographical region or social phenomenon. Throughout all of Ancient history, historians have always created historic investigations as they research, study and write about the past. During investigations they are concerned with the continuous research of past events. When historians take part in historical investigations they do not do it alone as an archaeologists also contribute to historical investigations.

Archaeologists play a very significant role in the way a historical investigation is formed and completed. In the Oxford Dictionary of English, the definition of an archaeologist is a person who studies the human history and pre history through the excavation of sites and the analysis of artefacts and other physical remains. Archaeology is the study of past human behavior through the systematic recovery and analysis of material objects. These objects, called artefacts, can be as small as a button or as large as a building. Archaeology is divided into prehistoric and historical archaeology.

Tutankhamun is mainly known for his intact tomb, discovered in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings in 1922 by Howard Carter. Since then, his remains have held millions in awe over the mystery of his life and death. Born in 1341, Tutankhamun was the 12th King of the 18th Egyptian dynasty (bloodline). Even though Tutankhamun was one of the best-known pharaohs in ancient Egypt, he is a minor figure in ancient Egypt history. Tutankhamun was buried in a tomb in the Valley of the Kings and it is believed that his early death demanded that a hasty burial in a smaller tomb was needed as they are built for a lesser noble person.

Pit burials and mastabas are just two examples of Egyptian burial practices through out ancient history.

Pit burials, also known as pit graves, are the earliest form of ancient Egyptian burial practices. All ancient Egyptians, both rich and poor, were buried in shallow pit graves that were situated in the desert. The earliest type of grave housed that corpse and gradually small mementos of the of the deceased were buried with them, such as their weapons or the tools that were used by the deceased. A shallow rectangular grave, usually with rounded corners, was prepared according to the length of the body and was situated on the edge of the desert area. The grave was positioned facing the River Nile, so that the both faced the west. The River Nile in ancient Egypt was believed to be the bridge to the entry to the afterlife. East was the place for beginnings while the west was considered the place of

death.

A mastaba is an ancient Egyptian tomb in the form of a flat roofed, rectangular structure with inward sloping sides, constructed out of mud bricks or stones. Workmen on Augeste Mariette’s excavation used the term mastaba to describe the rectangular, flat-topped stone superstructures of tombs in the 19th Century. Old kingdom mastabas were used mainly for nonroyal burials. In nonroyal tombs a chapel was provided that included a formal tablet on which the deceased was shown seated at a table of offerings. The storage chambers were stocked with food and equipment and walls were often decorated with scenes showing the deceased’s expected daily activities.