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 believed in life after death. They believed that they had to preserve their bodies so they could use them in 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.
It was called mummification.
It 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*. 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.
Natron is a natural salt, composed of sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate with traces of sodium chloride and sodium sulfate. It was used by the ancient egyptians to dry out the bodies.
The Egyptians thought the heart was the centre of intelligence and emotion.
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.
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!
Canopic Jars were used by ancient Egyptians to hold mummified remains.Find out more
The poor Egyptians were buried in the sand. Only the rich ones were buried in a tomb
In the Old and Middle Kingdoms (2628-1638 BC), 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 pyramids are the stone tombs of Egypt's kings - the Pharaohs. Find out more about pyramids
The Egyptians believed that if the pharaoh's body could be mummified after death the pharaoh would live forever. The tombs were designed to protect the buried Pharaoh's body and his belongings.
Further Information
Prepare a MummyA fun interactive online activity.
Interesting facts about Mummies
Making a Mummy Learn to make a mummy and prepare the pharaoh for his tomb.s
You wouldn't want to become an Egyptian Mummy - Disgusting things you'd rather not know!
All about Egyptian Mummies
MummificationSee the pictures of the materials and tools used in mummification.
Animal Mummies - Compass Site ( The British Museum )Why did the ancient Egyptians mummify their cats, dogs, crocodiles, birds, even eels? Follow this tour to find out.
Death and the Afterlife by Mark Telford, Aged 8yrs
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 - trained undertakers treated the body with chemicals and wrapped it in tight bandages to keep it in shape. Read more ....
Click able Mummy Click on different parts of the Mummy you will see, to view interesting facts and information about the mummification process.
Mummification In order to go to the underworld, you had to be mummified......
Make your own Mummy Instructions on how to make your own Mummy.
Mummies of Ancient EgyptWhat are mummies? How are mummies made? Who were the mummies?