When we talk about mummies, we imagine a revived dead man, all in bandages, from some horror movie. However, mummies were once quite real, living people, just after their death their bodies were mummified. Mummies were found in different parts of the world, but the Egyptian experience of mummification was still unique. The pious Egyptians believed that the body of the deceased should be reunited with the soul in the afterlife, so they kept the physical shell. True, the pharaohs were most often honored with such an honor, apparently, this procedure was not cheap. So, we suggest you find out interesting facts about mummies.
1. Canopes, or ritual vessels, which were used to store the internal organs of mummies, were named after the character of ancient Greek mythology Canopa. Also a city in the Nile Delta - Canopus was named after him.
2. In Ancient Egypt there was a goddess named Meritseger who turned into a cobra. She defended the Valley of the Kings. According to legend, she blinded or poisoned everyone who tried to get into the tombs.
3. The oldest Egyptian pyramid, the step pyramid of King Djoser, was built around 2650 BC. Its shape represents a staircase that Djoser had to climb in order to join the sun god in the sky.
4. During mummification, all organs of the deceased were removed except for the heart. The reason for this was that the god of the afterlife, Anubis, judged people by weighing their hearts. An amulet called "heart scarab" was also used as protection.
5. The oldest of the European mummies is the "ice man", which was kept in an alpine glacier for 5300 years.
6. The mummy of Tutankhamun is the only one discovered intact and with all the treasures.
7. The ancient Egyptians also mummified animals. Mummies of cats, rams, ibises, falcons, crocodiles, mice, rats and lizards have been found. Especially many mummies of cats were found, which were revered as sacred animals and therefore deserved special respect for themselves.
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8. Tomb robbers in Ancient Egypt were brutally executed when caught. First, they broke the bones on their legs, and then impaled them.
9. The difference between a mummy and a skeleton is that a mummy retains a certain amount of soft tissue, muscles, hair and skin.
10. Mummies are not an exclusive invention of the Egyptians and have been found on all continents except Atlantis. 2000 years before the Egyptians, the Chinchorro people of South America had already mummified their dead, including children and embryos.
11. The word "mummy" comes from the Persian word mum, meaning wax and embalming substance bitumen.
12. In ancient Egypt, the main embalmers wore the mask of the god Anubis, thereby indicating their connection with the world of the dead. The mask was also placed on the face of the mummy itself. The chief embalmer received the honor of placing it, completing the mummification process. Often, masks were made in the form of the faces of the gods, and in this case there was a wide choice, because in Ancient Egypt there were more than 200 gods. The most famous of the mummy masks is the mask of Tutankhamun, found in 1922 and preserved in excellent condition.
13. A new species of wasps discovered in Ecuador is called "mummified wasps" due to the fact that they wrap their victims, as was done with mummies.
14. Some scientists suggest cloning mummies, they were able to find suitable DNA from a mummy dating back to 2012 BC.
15. In the middle of the Chinese desert, archaeologists have discovered a burial of nearly 200 mummies. It is surprising that the mummies have European features and the presence of signs denoting reproductive organs as "decorations" of this cemetery.