Ancient Egypt

Mummification: How did they do it?

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  It was very important to ancient Egyptian religious beliefs that the human body was preserved. A method of artificial preservation, called mummification was developed by the ancient Egyptians. Mummification was a complicated and lengthy process which lasted up to 70 days.

 A mummy is the body of a person (or an animal) that has been preserved after death.
 They were any Egyptian who could afford to pay for the expensive process of preserving their bodies for the afterlife. The Egyptians made mummies because they believed in life after death. They believed that they had to preserve their bodies so they could use them in the afterlife.

What is the afterlife?
The Egyptians believed that when they died, they would make a journey to another world where they would lead a new life. They would need all the things they had used when they were alive, so their families would put those things in their graves. Egyptians paid vast amounts of money to have their bodies properly preserved. Egyptians who were poor were buried in the sand whilst the rich ones were buried in a tomb.


Mummification took a very long time, from start to finish, it took about 70 days to embalm a body. The priest in charge would wear the mask of a jackal representing the god Anubis.

1. The body was washed and purified.
2. Organs were removed. Only the heart remained.
3. The body was filled with stuffing.
4. The body was dried by covering it with a substance called natron, like salt. This substance absorbed all the moisture from the body.
5. After 40 - 50 days the stuffing was removed and replaced with linen or sawdust.
6. The body was wrapped in strands of linen and covered in a sheet called a shroud.
7. The body was placed in a stone coffin called a sarcophagus.

The mummy was now ready for its journey to the afterlife.



Why did they leave the heart in the body?
The Egyptians thought the heart was the centre of intelligence and emotion.

Who was the god of mummification?
Anubis was the god of mummification. He had a human body and the head of a jackal. His job was to prepare the bodies of the dead to be received by Osiris.

What objects did they put in Egyptian Tombs?
Ancient Egyptians were buried with their belongings and the tomb walls were painted with scenes from the dead persons life. The objects included furniture, games and even food was placed in the tombs for the long After Life journey!

What are canopic jars?
Canopic Jars were used by ancient Egyptians to hold mummified remains.


Where were the pharaohs buried?
In the Old and Middle Kingdoms, Egyptian kings were buried in pyramids. About 50 royal pyramids have survived. They were built on the desert edge, west of the ancient capital of Memphis. The tombs were designed to protect the buried Pharaoh's body and his belongings.


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