Who is the first Egyptian mummy?
The mummified body of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh has been studied for the first time in millennia after being digitally “unwrapped”. The mummy of Amenhotep I, who ruled from 1525 to 1504 BC, was found at a site in Deir el-Bahari 140 years ago.
What is the Egyptian mummy?
A mummy is the body of a person (or an animal) that has been preserved after death. Why did the Egyptians make mummies? The Egyptians believed in life after death. They believed that they had to preserve their bodies so they could use them in the afterlife.
Can you be buried as a mummy?
The body is encased within a bronze or stainless steel mummiform, which is then filled with an amber resin, completely surrounding and protecting the mummy. The openings in the mummiform are welded closed and it is enshrined within a mummy sanctuary or buried in a local cemetery.
Is this the only royal Egyptian mummy ever opened for study?
Decorated with flower garlands and a beguiling wooden face mask, the mummy was so fragile that archaeologists had never dared expose the remains, making it the only royal Egyptian mummy found in the 19th and 20th centuries not yet opened for study.
What is the Egyptian mummification process?
Egyptian Mummies. The methods of embalming, or treating the dead body, that the ancient Egyptians used is called mummification. Using special processes, the Egyptians removed all moisture from the body, leaving only a dried form that would not easily decay. It was important in their religion to preserve the dead body in as life-like
Can we see Ancient Egyptian mummies today?
So successful were they that today we can view the mummified body of an Egyptian and have a good idea of what he or she looked like in life, 3,000 years ago. Mummification was practiced throughout most of early Egyptian history. The earliest mummies from prehistoric times probably were accidental.
What animals were mummified in ancient Egypt?
Baboons, cats, birds, and crocodiles, which also had great religious significance, were sometimes mummified, especially in the later dynasties. Ancient writers, modern scientists, and the mummies themselves all help us better understand the Egyptian mummification process and the culture in which it existed.