The Mummies of Egypt This is a picture of King Tut. Tutankhamun died young, probably during his ninth regnal year. Evidence for this is twofold. First, forensic analysis of his mummy has put his age at death at about 17. Secondly, clay seals on wine jars found in his tomb record not only the type of wine, the vineyard and the name of the chief vintner, but also the king's regnal year when each wine was laid down. The highest recorded date is Year 9, suggesting that Tutankhmnun died in that year. There is no positive evidence on Tutankhamun's mummy as to how he met his death: he certainly did not die of consumption as was once thought. However, autopsies and Xrays have located a small sliver of bone within the upper cranial cavity. It may have arrived there as the result of a blow, but whether deliberately struck, to indicate murder, or the result of an accident, such as a fall from a chariot, it is not possible to say.http://www.osirisweb.com/egypt/tutpage.htm http://web54.sd54.k12.il.us/district54/lts/jcimorelli/ancientegypt/images/tut1.gif *

What is a mummy? This presentation will explain what mummies are and how and why they were made. Can you guess what this hieroglyphic says? Mummy! http://www.discoveringegypt.co.uk/ecards/ *

A mummy is the body of a person or animal that has been preserved after death. The definition of a mummy is a dead body of a human or animal that has been embalmed and prepared for burial, as according to the practices of the ancient Egyptians or a withered, shrunken, or well-preserved body that resembles an embalmed body. The mummies in this picture were not found in Egypt. Mummies are found all over the world. http://www.shari.com/travels/ireland/images/ephemera/ssi-mummies.jpg *

How are the bodies preserved? Normally when something dies, bacteria and other germs eat away the skin, muscles, and organs, leaving only the bones behind. Bacteria need water to live, so mummification occurs if the body dries out quickly after death. The first picture shows bacteria- the organisms responsible for the decomposition of a body. The second picture shows a skeleton, which is not a mummy. A skeleton is left when the soft tissues are decomposed. A mummy is formed when the soft tissues are preserved. http://athens.arch.ox.ac.uk/schoolarch/institute/skeleton.gif http://www.envirotainer.com/envirotainer/eng/images/bacteria.jpg *

What causes the body to dry out quickly? Natural Conditions Embalming Mummies can form under natural conditions or can be purposely made through a process called embalming. Remember, for mummies to form, no water can be present (b/c if no water is present, the bacteria that eat the body can not survive and therefore the soft tissues are preserved). The natural conditions include extreme cold, heat, or smoke. In extreme cold, all of the water is frozen, and in extreme heat, all of the moisture in the body is immediately scorched away. Smoke creates mummies much like strips of meat are made into beef jerkey, they are essentially dried out and thus preserved. The Egyptians used chemicals and salts to embalm their dead. Salt dries body, preventing its decomposition. *

Why would anyone want to make mummies? The entire civilization of Ancient Egypt was based on religion, and their beliefs were important to them. Their belief in the rebirth after death became their driving force behind their funeral practices. The Egyptians believed that death was simply a temporary interruption, rather than complete cessation, of life, and that eternal life could be ensured by means like piety to the gods, preservation of the physical form through Mummification, and the provision of statuary and other funerary equipment. Each human consisted of the physical body, the 'ka', the 'ba', and the 'akh'. The Name and Shadow were also living entities. To enjoy the afterlife, all these elements had to be sustained and protected from harm. This scene depicts what occurs after a person has died, according to the ancient Egyptians. Beginning with the upper left-hand corner, the deceased appears before a panel of 14 judges to make an accounting for his deeds during life. The ankh, the key of life, appears in the hands of some of the judges. Next, below, the jackal god Anubis who represents the underworld and mummification leads the deceased before the scale. In his hand, Anubis holds the ankh. Anubis then weighs the heart of the deceased (left tray) against the feather of Ma'at, goddess of truth and justice (right tray). In some drawings, the full goddess Ma'at, not just her feather, is shown seated on the tray. Note that Ma'at's head, crowned by the feather, also appears atop the fulcrum of the scale. If the heart of the deceased outweighs the feather, then the deceased has a heart which has been made heavy with evil deeds. In that event, Ammit the god with the crocodile head and hippopotamous legs will devour the heart, condemning the deceased to oblivion for eternity. But if the feather outweighs the heart, then the deceased has led a righteous life and may be presented before Osiris to join the afterlife. Thoth, the ibis-headed god of wisdom stands at the ready to record the outcome. The deceased is then led to Osiris by Horus, the god with the falcon head. Note the ankh in Horus' hand. Horus represents the personification of the Pharaoh during life, and his father Osiris represents the personification of the Pharaoh after death. Osiris, lord of the underworld, sits on his throne, represented as a mummy. On his head is the white crown of Lower Egypt (the north). He holds the symbols of Egyptian kingship in his hands: the shepherd's crook to symbolize his role as shepherd of mankind, and the flail, to represent his ability to separate the wheat from the chaff. Behind him stand his wife Isis and her sister Nephthys. Isis is the one in red, and Nephthys is the one in green. Together, Osiris, Isis, and Nephthys welcome the deceased to the underworld. The tomb-owner would continue after death the occupations of this life and so everything required was packed in the tomb along with the body. Writing materials were often supplied along with clothing, wigs, hairdressing supplies and assorted tools, depending on the occupation of the deceased. Often model tools rather than full size ones would be placed in the tomb; models were cheaper and took up less space and in the after-life would be magically transformed into the real thing. Things might include a headrest, glass vessels which may have contained perfume and a slate palette for grinding make-up. Food was provided for the deceased and should the expected regular offerings of the descendants cease, food depicted on the walls of the tomb would be magically transformed to supply the needs of the dead. Images on tombs might include a triangular shaped piece of bread (part of the food offerings from a tomb). Other images might represent food items which the tomb owner would have eaten in his lifetime and hoped to eat in the after-life. http://www.crystalinks.com/egyptafterlife.html http://www.crystalinks.com/egyptafterlife.html *

How did the Egyptians make mummies? The mummification process took seventy days. The steps involved are presented in the following slides. *

Step 1: Remove internal organs The first step in the process was the removal of all internal parts that might decay rapidly. The brain was removed by carefully inserting special hooked instruments up through the nostrils in order to pull out bits of brain tissue. It was a delicate operation, one which could easily disfigure the face. The embalmers then removed the organs of the abdomen and chest through a cut usually made on the left side of the abdomen. They left only the heart in place, believing it to be the center of a person's being and intelligence. The other organs were preserved separately, with the stomach, liver, lungs, and intestines placed in special boxes or jars today called canopic jars. http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmnh/mummies.htm *

The liver, lungs, stomach, and intestines were mummified and stored canopic jars. These were buried with the mummy. In later mummies, the organs were treated, wrapped, and replaced within the body. Even so, unused canopic jars continued to be part of the burial ritual. http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmnh/mummies.htm http://www.seviour.fsnet.co.uk/egypt/mummies.htm *

Step 2: Pack and cover the body with natron Natron is a salt. The body was left for 40 to 50 days. All that was left was the hair, skin, and bones (no moisture). The embalmers next removed all moisture from the body. This they did by covering the body with natron, a type of salt which has great drying properties, and by placing additional natron packets inside the body. http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmnh/mummies.htm *

Step 3: Wash and stuff the body To make the mummy seem more lifelike, the body was stuffed with sawdust, or linen. It was then coated with oils and resins. When the body had dried out completely, embalmers removed the internal packets and lightly washed the natron off the body. The result was a very dried-out but recognizable human form. To make the mummy seem even more life-like, sunken areas of the body were filled out with linen and other materials and false eyes were added. http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmnh/mummies.htm http://www.civilization.ca/civil/egypt/images/reli16.jpg *

Step 4: Wrap the mummy Next the wrapping began. Each mummy needed hundreds of yards of linen. The priests carefully wound the long strips of linen around the body, sometimes even wrapping each finger and toe separately before wrapping the entire hand or foot. In order to protect the dead from mishap, amulets were placed among the wrappings and prayers and magical words written on some of the linen strips. Often the priests placed a mask of the person's face between the layers of head bandages. At several stages the form was coated with warm resin and the wrapping resumed once again. At last the priests wrapped the final cloth or shroud in place and secured it with linen strips. The mummy was complete. http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmnh/mummies.htm http://library.thinkquest.org/C0116982/HTML%20page%20folder/hwrapping.htm *

Step 5: Place the mummy in the coffin http://www.crystalinks.com/mum.html

Step 6: The funeral The mummy and the canopic jars were transported from the embalming tent to the tomb. As part of the funeral, priests performed special religious rites at the tomb's entrance. http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmnh/mummies.htm http://www.stencilgirl.com/Egyptian_funeral.jpg *

Step 7: “Opening of the Mouth” The most important part of the ceremony was called the "Opening of the Mouth". A priest touched various parts of the mummy with a special instrument to "open" those parts of the body to the senses enjoyed in life and needed in the Afterlife. By touching the instrument to the mouth, the dead person could now speak and eat. He was now ready for his journey to the Afterlife. http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmnh/mummies.htm http://www.seviour.fsnet.co.uk/egypt/mummies.htm *

Step 8: Place important things in the tomb with the mummy Things placed in the tomb: The Book of the Dead Furniture Weapons Jewelry Food There was much to be placed in the tomb that a person would need in the Afterlife. Furniture and statuettes were readied; wall paintings of religious or daily scenes were prepared; and lists of food or prayers finished. Through a magical process, these models, pictures, and lists would become the real thing when needed in the Afterlife. http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmnh/mummies.htm http://www.upenn.edu/museum/Collections/bookofthedead.gif *

Step 9: Seal the mummy in the sarcophagus. The mummy was placed in his coffin, or coffins, in the burial chamber and the entrance sealed up. http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmnh/mummies.htm http://www.shaav.com/travel/egypt/giza/giza-chefren-inside-sarcophagus.jpg *

Now let’s look at Modern Egypt!

Modern Egypt Population: Area: Egypt – 74,718,797 USA – 290,342,554 Mississippi – 2,844,658 Area: Egypt – 2,593,744 sq. mi. USA – 24,939,231 sq. mi. Mississippi – 48,434 sq. mi.

Egypt vs. the USA http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/rjseago/world.gif *

Modern Egypt Religion: Egypt USA Muslim – 94% Christian and Other – 6% None – 10% Other – 4% Jewish – 2%

Now its time to make your own mummy! Do the activity! *