Egyptian Mummification Secrets Revealed Following Discovery Of Embalming Workshop

Researchers have now made some of the mysteries surrounding ancient Egyptian embalmers more apparent after studying the contents of an embalming workshop that was previously discovered. According to a study, Publiziert in Nature Wednesday.

The rare feat was achieved by an archeologist. Discover In 2016, an Egyptian embalming workshop was established where Egyptians prepare their dead. The chamber dates from the 26th dynasty (664-525 BC). The workshop was located near King Unas’ pyramid. It contained 121 bowls and beakers that contained residue that researchers were able to identify.

“I was fascinated with this chemical knowledge of ancient Egyptians,” Phillip Stockhammer, professor of prehistoric archeology, Max Planck Institute, and senior author of this study, . “They knew immediately they needed antibacterial, antifungal substances to keep the skin preserved, and this is without having any microbiology background.”

Stockhammer Notes Researches have had to guess at what Egyptians used during the mummification process. The instructions and ingredients were included on a lot of the pottery from the workshop. “to put on his head” “bandage or embalm with it.” Researchers selected the best-labeling beakers and 22 bowls from the find to study through an electron microscope. “organic residue analysis.”

Animal fats, beeswax resin from pistachio and cedar trees, as well juniper oils and cypress oils were some of the materials that were identified. Researchers found that certain mixtures of contents were not as described. Take care They can be either distilled or warmed. Most common were cypress oil or tar, and they were found in 21 of 31 vessels. According to the study, cedar oil or even tar was the second most popular material, and it was found in 19 of the 31 vessels. A bowl with animal fat and elemi was created for the study. “make his odor pleasant,” Other materials may be used reportedly They had antimicrobial properties.

Study found that the majority of ingredients were from countries far from Egypt. “an almost global network” The study also explains the history of Egyptian trade, and how it led to the development of the Egyptian trade network. The study shows that trade networks within the Mediterranean basin were not only well-known but also understood. “the Saqqara workshop provides additional evidence for long-distance trade networks via the vivid Indo-Mediterranean trade routes, which seem to have existed since the 2nd millennium BC.”

Scientists have been able to examine and study various materials used in embalmers’ past through historical texts and mummies, but this is not the case today. reportedly the first time they’ve had the opportunity to look at the materials found in the place where the mummification process occurred. It was difficult to link the previously available information on embalming. According Nature. Researchers can now match contents to labels and intended uses with this breakthrough.

“You might have the name of something, but you don’t know what the hell it is, except the hieroglyphics suggesting it’s an oil or a resin,” Salim Ikram (a mummy specialist at American University Cairo) told the journal “This is the first time you’ve got jars with labels of the contents.”