Ancient Egyptians and the Afterlife

All Egyptians were concerned with life after death. The bodies of kings and queens were preserved and buried in huge tombs and pyramids.

Wealthy tombs were painted and filled with: pottery, sculptures, jewellery, furniture, clothing, and musical instruments. Chariots have been found in some tombs as well. It was believed that all of these things would be needed in the afterlife.

In certain cases, such as with a pharaoh, it was expected for the living to accompany him/her as well; slaves, pets, horses.

The poor were buried in shallow graves in the desert sand. Their bodies were not preserved although they were usually wrapped in linen or covered with straw. Because the desert is so hot and dry the bodies would not decompose but harden, this created “natural” mummies. The poor were buried with their belongings as well. Ginger the Mummy

Egyptians preserved bodies for the afterlife, and priests developed embalming, or the preservation of corpses, to a fine art. Step One:

Step Two

Step Three

Step Four

Step Five The body was cleansed with oils and spices.

Step Six

The preserved body is called amummy.

Natron is a salt that occurs naturally in Egypt, it was used to help during the drying process. The body being mummified would be covered in Natron, inside and out, and left to dry.

Organs would rot quickly if left inside the body because of the high water content; they were removed and placed into canopic jars. The jars were placed beside the sarcophagus in the tomb. Inside the body was filled with sawdust and linen. Hapi – baboon-headed god, lungs Duamutef – jackal-headed god, stomach Imseti – human-headed god, liver Qebehsenuef – falcon-headed god, intestines

Finally the body was wrapped in bandages that had been soaked in beeswax. A Mummy’s Story: