FUNERARY CUSTOMS

Much of our knowledge about ancient Egyptian culture comes from archaeological evidence uncovered in tombs. Objects, inscriptions, and paintings from tombs have led Egyptologists to conclude that what appeared to be a preoccupation with death was in actuality an overwhelming desire to secure and perpetuate in the afterlife the "good life" enjoyed on earth.

Over the more than three thousand years of ancient Egypt's history, traditional beliefs about the transition to eternal life persisted, with new ideas being incorporated from time to time. Most important for full participation in the afterlife was the need for an individual's identity to be preserved. Consequently, the body had to remain intact and receive regular offerings of food and drink.

The afterlife was assured by:

• Preserving the body through mummification.
• Protecting the body in a tomb in which the name of the deceased was inscribed.
• Providing the deceased with food and drink or illustrations of it in case no one was available to make the offerings.

To protect the spirit of the deceased, scenes and inscriptions were written on coffins and the walls of tombs. These texts included such writings as adaptations of the myth about the death of Osiris and spells to protect the deceased on his or her dangerous journey to the underworld. Figures known as shabtis functioned as servants for the deceased.

The final step in the transition to the afterlife was the judgment by Osiris, god of the underworld, in a ritual known as the Weighing of the Heart. If a person had led a decent life, he or she would be judged worthy of eternal life. Many spells and rituals were designed to ensure a favourable judgment and were written in the papyrus or linen "Book of the Dead."

All ancient Egyptians believed in the afterlife and spent their lives preparing for it. Pharaohs built the finest tombs, collected the most elaborate funerary equipment, and were mummified in the most expensive way. Others were able to provide for their afterlives according to their earthly means. Regardless of their wealth, however, they all expected the afterlife to be an idealized version of their earthly existence.

MUMMIFICATION IN ANCIENT EGYPT

1. The first mummies in Egypt were preserved naturally when the deceased was buried in the desert sands. This enabled desiccation (drying out) to take place. Bodily fluids would seep into the sand and what remained namely; skin, hair, tendons and ligaments, would dry out naturally. Other ways that bodies have been preserving around the world are; ice, sunlight, smoke, fire, chemicals, peat bogs, certain soils and muds.

2. The ancient Egyptians believed that to enjoy the Afterlife, the body of the deceased should bear as close a resemblance to the living person as possible. Features of the face were often modelled in linen bandages and painted. Even nipples and the male sex organs have been found modelled in cloth and placed in position so the deceased would be entire in the afterlife.

3. When graves became more elaborate and the deceased were no longer just buried in the desert, the ancient Egyptians found that the bodies started to decay. Which was the complete opposite to what they strived for. So, they started to look for ways to emulate, by artificial means, the preserving properties of the sand graves.

4. By the first dynasty there is evidence that natron, a natural salt found in Egypt, was being used. The body would be covered in the salt, which acted like the hot desert sand and started the process of desiccation.

5. However using natron alone proved not to be enough, as bodies would still decompose due to internal organs.

6. Evisceration (disembowelling) was the next stage of development in mummification, which involved removing the internal organs so the moisture they contained did not cause internal rotting of the corpse.

7. Removal of the brain was done through the nose, using a pick. The heart was left in place as the Egyptians believe it housed the person's soul.

8. Removed body organs would be wrapped in linen, coated in resin and laid close by, either in a recess, or in later dynastic periods, in four canopic jars. This was to ensure that the deceased would still be whole in the afterlife.

9. The entire body was covered in many layers of linen, impregnated with resin to try and keep out the elements.

10. However it was eventually realised that the decaying process started from within the body and not by the outside elements.

11. The quality of the linen varied according to the quality of the mummification.

12. The reams and reams of bandages gave shape to the dried out corpses.

13. It's believed that the word 'mummy' comes from the Arabic word 'mummiya' meaning bitumen - a tar-like substance. This is because when early Arabs saw mummies, which were covered in black resin, they thought that the ancients had used bitumen.

14. Immortality depended upon the mummification of the body, as it also preserved the 'Ka' - the spirit that accompanied the physical body in life. If the body decayed so did the person's 'Ka' spirit.

15. The New Kingdom (18th - 20th dynasties 1600 - 1050 BC) produced some of the best-preserved mummies.

THE MUMMIFICATION PROCESS

• The process of mummification started in the 'House of Purification' where the body would be washed in Nile water.
• Next the body was taken to the 'House of Mummification' where the organs were removed and the body's cavity washed out with palm wine. The body was then covered with natron (salt) for 40 days whilst it dried out.
• After the salt was removed the body was taken back to the 'House of Purification' where the body cavity was filled with various materials, including natron and linen. The corpse was then covered with resin to seal out moisture and finally wrapped in bandages.
• The wrapping process was very involved and could take a few weeks to complete. They usually started with the hands or feet, wrapping each digit individually. Resin was applied to each new layer, gluing them together.
• Spells and incantations were uttered by the temple priests and amulets such as; ankhs, scarabs, djed pillars were placed within the bandages to offer protection in the Afterlife.
• Death masks were often placed on the corpse and the finished mummy would be placed in a body shaped coffin, 'Suhet'(sarcophagus) which was then placed in the tomb along with all the items the deceased would need in the afterlife - eg food, drink, games, clothes, jewellery, furniture, writings, and even servants in the form of Shabti or Ushabti (clay figures).

The Clickable Mummy

http://www.akhet.co.uk/clikmumm.htm

This site allows you to click on parts of a picture of a mummy and then explains about that part!