Mummification In Ancient Egyptian Culture

Death, something we as humans will have to inevitably face, whether we accept it or not. It is due to that mortality that we have a much greater appreciation for life. Though when we have to eventually tell our loved ones farewell and our flame withers away, there is one more thing that needs to be done; the funeral. This, of course, isn’t something out of the ordinary for us since we reside in the U.S. where it is quite common, but there are a plethora of other civilizations that handle funerals much differently than us. Civilizations like the ancient Egypt, where they handle it with mummification. Though appearing to be quite the contrast, mummification has quite a lot in common with how we handle our dead bodies.

Around year 2600 B.C., ancient Egyptians are commencing their own ritual to honor the dead, mummification. Mummification was important to the ancient egyptians because they believed the body was a house for the soul, and without it the soul could be forever lost (Egyptians Mummies). To the ancient Egyptians death wasn’t an end, but instead a continuation of

According to the Australian Museum, Egyptians preserved organs as they, “allowed the dead person to breathe and eat in the afterlife”. The ancient egyptians your organs would continue to work, and be needed, well after death which is why it was important they were preserved. The process first involves removing all the body parts that are prone to rapidly decay, removing the the brain through the nose using “hooked instruments”, then removing the organs (stomach, liver, lungs, and intestines) and placing them in canopic jars (Egyptian Mummies). The canopic jars are filled with embalming fluid, which helps retain the organs in their original state. The only organ that isn’t removed during the process was the heart, as the ancient egyptians perceived it to be the center of one’s being and intelligence (Egyptian