The variety of burial rituals and customs of Egyptian and Etruscan societies

902 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Paragraph on egyptian burial rites

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.
The omnipotent Egyptians ruled all of there empire with total absolute control, ruled by an absolute monarch, the Pharaoh. The pharaoh decided the right procedure to follow for just about everything that happened in ancient Egypt. From the Encyclopedia Britannica Egyptian religion, “The task of the king as the protagonist of human society was to retain the benevolence of the gods in maintaining order against disorder” (Britannica). The burial practices for the average Egyptian citizen was very different than for a Pharaoh. The average citizen would be buried in the desert, wrapped in cloth and with some food and treasured possessions, not much need for protection. The Pharaoh planned his whole life for exactly how the burial ritual would be remembered and how Pharaoh could protect his legacy for all eternity. The largest protector the world has ever seen is the Great Sphinx statue from the Giza funerary complex.
The Giza funerary complex is a mix of assorted Pharao...

... middle of paper ...

...encken 126-7). By using the tumulus or mounded tomb method the Etruscan people could hide these elaborate tombs in plain sight. Scholars of today appreciate that protective insight as they explore the treasure trove of information and artifacts preserved in the Etruscan tombs.
The Egyptian and Etruscan peoples were very different in many ways, but what they had in common was a respect for the afterlife. Many of their strange rituals seem bizarre by today’s standards. Human sacrifice, underground cities for the dead, but it worked for them. I am sure today there are many rituals our society follows that any average Egyptian or Etruscan would at least question.
The world of today owes all the society’s of the past a powerful thank you. Without the extreme level of protection towards burial sites we would lack all the wonderful knowledge that these burial sites bring.

Show More
Related

  • Tomb Of Pairy Analysis

    691 Words  | 2 Pages

    Ancient Egyptian culture was largely focused on the afterlife. One of their most important deities, Osiris, became the ruler of the Underworld through death. The pharaoh and elite class prepared for their impending deaths throughout their lives. Much of what survives from ancient Egypt today was found in tombs and temples of the dead. When one of the elite died, the process of laying him or her to rest was extensive. Harold Hays explains that “the ritualized process of embalming and mummification is usually stated as lasting seventy days” (Hays 5). "Funeral Procession, Tomb of Pairy" shows two of the processes that Hays details. The first depicted is the procession to the tomb. Pairy’s body would have already been through several processions, mummification, and embalming. This particular procession’s goal is to lead not just the body, but also the spirit into the afterlife. People of both high and low classes attended this procession, carrying with them the tomb goods (Hays 6-7). The second depicted

    Read More

  • The Coffin Of Tentkhonsu

    769 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Difference Between Etruscans And Egyptian Pyramids

    186 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Egyptian pyramids and the Etruscan burial practices are very much alike. They both consist of burying the dead in a special grave where they are both honored and still remembered depending on how the grave was made. The Egyptian pyramids were a much larger burial ground compared to the Etruscans such as example 8.4 The Great Pyramids. Gizeh, Egypt. These great pyramids usually consisted of huge chambers with many rooms to live in and were usually the tombs for pharaohs unlike the Etruscan which were for an average person. Both of these cultures did include tombs that had been furnished to perceive an actual human being such as example 8.5 Innermost Coffin of Tutankhamen. Egyptian Museum, Cairo. Another huge difference between these two

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast The Afterlife In Egypt And Mesopotamia

    803 Words  | 2 Pages

    In both Egypt and Mesopotamia, they both have ideas about the afterlife. The two have some similarities and differences about the afterlife in which whether they come back as another person, or they come back as another soul, or they go to another world. In Egypt and Mesopotamia there are different meanings of the afterlife through the similarities, difference, and the different civilizations.

    Read More

  • Egypt And Aztecs Comparison Essay

    476 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Egyptians and Aztecs, are there own marked down in history with there many different but also similar activities. It’s what separates them out today when learning about the different culture and beliefs of this civilizations.

    Read More

  • The Importance of Etruscan Sarcophagi

    935 Words  | 2 Pages

    Through the means of commemorating and remembering those of prestige and importance, tombs and sarcophagi are produced of these individuals. This funerary manner and distinctive burial practice was initiated Etruscan culture and it developed through the means of cremation and inhumation in earns. The concept of placing the remains of individuals in elaborate, thought out spaces was a valuable attribute of these people. The Etruscan objective of creating the best possible outcome in the afterlife dictated the way in which individuals ornamented and became portrayed in their tombs. Presen...

    Read More

  • Egyptian View of the Afterlife

    1690 Words  | 4 Pages

    It is clear that tombs and burial rituals were a key element in the Egyptian society and their way of life as it ties into almost all things they did on a daily basis. Whatever a person’s status was when they were alive followed them into the afterlife. Food and luxury goods were buried with a person so that they could have it in the afterlife. The tombs became a person’s new house after they died. Therefore, making it as nice as possible was really important. Art work and clay models were added to a person’s tomb as material goods needed for the afterlife. They were also seen as decorations that kept the tombs looking nice. Throughout the years, Egyptian artworks on the inner parts of the tombs and on the coffins show a development in the Egyptian customs. Each new development was created to better preserve the bodies and comfort of the dead.

    Read More

  • Death and Afterlife in Ancient Egyptian Society and the Mesopotamian Society

    738 Words  | 2 Pages

    There were many ways that the Ancient Egyptian society and the Mesopotamian society were similar yet at the same time they were very different. Egyptians and Sumerians agreed on religion in a sense that both cultures were polytheistic. However, the relationships between the gods and goddesses were different between the Sumerians and Egyptians. This essay will discuss those differences in culture, religion and the viewpoints on death and afterlife.

    Read More

  • The Burial at Thebes

    1224 Words  | 3 Pages

    This play is ultimately concerned with one person defying another person and paying the price. Antigone went against the law of the land, set by the newly crowned King Creon. Antigone was passionate about doing right by her brother and burying him according to her religious beliefs even though Creon deemed him a traitor and ordered him to be left for the animals to devour. Creon was passionate about being king and making his mark from his new throne. Although they differed in their views, the passion Creon and Antigone shared for those opinions was the same, they were equally passionate about their opposing views. Creon would have found it very difficult to see that he had anything in common with Antigone however as he appears to be in conflict with everyone, in his mind he has to stand alone in his views in order to set himself apart as king. Before he took to the throne Creon took advice from the prophet Tiresias who had so often had been his spiritual and moral compass, and yet in this matter concerning Antigone he will take advice from no one, not from the elders of Thebes, or even his own son Haemon.

    Read More

  • Burial Practices of Ancient Egypt

    1333 Words  | 3 Pages

    The funerary rituals introduced by the Egyptians were the most intricate, spiritual rites in their times and, perhaps, even to this day. Their elaborate customs, tombs, and gifts to the dead were representative of their pious, devoted nature. Albeit not all were as imposing as the oldest and still remaining Seven Wonder of the World, the Pyramids of Giza, all were meaningful and sacred. The Egyptians, highly reverent of their dead, adopted ornate, religious burial practices to fit to every member of their society.

    Read More

  • Egyptian Tombs

    1865 Words  | 4 Pages

    were 10 doors and at end there was a statue of Osiris, the god of the

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Mesopotamia And Egyptian Death

    815 Words  | 2 Pages

    Of the first civilizations, Mesopotamia and Egypt left behind the most widely available documented look at the past (92). Interestingly enough, the basis for societal rank was comparable between these two civilizations. But despite similarities in social stratification, Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilization had very dissimilar views on life and the afterlife.

    Read More

  • The Egyptian Process of Mummification

    900 Words  | 2 Pages

    Upon completion of this procedure, the body will now be ready for burial. Egyptians used other methods of embalming. One method attributed to the lower class was to bury the body in the desert sand for a lengthy period of time. Then the sand was sunk. The result of this method dried the skin of the body into a leathery shell.

    Read More

  • Cemetery Prototype Database

    1892 Words  | 4 Pages

    As the database will be used for research as well as town-planning by a wide variety of people, including historians, local councils, genealogists, sociologists and epidemiologists, it is anticipated that it will include not only information about the graveyards themselves, but also the buildings, individual gravestones and the records of people buried there. [Emphasis added]

    Read More

  • Ancient Egyptian Religious Architecture

    1288 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

More about The variety of burial rituals and customs of Egyptian and Etruscan societies

Open Document