The Role Of The Mummification In Ancient Egypt

When one thinks of Ancient Egypt they instantly think of mummies, pyramids, and Pharaohs. However the most important part to ancient Egyptians are the burial tombs and the mummification process. The whole time they were alive they thought about how to keep living in the afterlife and to prepare themselves for the extraneous journey. Mostly the wealthier Egyptians think of the afterlife and how to prepare for it. Mainly the royal court and always the Pharaohs and Queens have a plan for their burial tombs. Which usually will house all of their loved ones and themselves. This tedious process will be explored in this paper. The pyramids that have been excavated are seen as key to archeologist in understanding ancient egyptian lifestyle and the
These tombs are not only where the Pharaohs will spend the rest of their deceased life but how they present the tombs is what really matters. Once they finish building the outer layers they hire scribes and artist to decorate the inner layer. The scribes would write the steps to succeed in the afterlife for the test they have to take to get to eternal life. The scribes write in hieroglyphs which are the language of ancient Egypt stated by the history-world website. Hieroglyphs are symbols like an eye or bird which represent a certain phrase or word to the ancient Egyptians. Then these scribes are carved into the burial tomb walls with a chisel and hammer then painted over with paint made from berries and plants. Once the paint dries then comes the process of making and finding the gold pieces to decorate and correlate with what the pharaoh wants to resemble his life. These scribes were also written on scrolls and placed in the burial chambers next to the deceased to aid them in the underworld. The main scroll that was placed in that chamber was the book of the dead. Next skilled carvers will build the coffins which will house the pharaoh these coffins are also called sarcophagus. These coffins are usually carved to look like the pharaoh or what he wants to be represented as. It also is carved with hieroglyphs and usually painted and the main color would be a gold coffin. The pharaoh's favorite or most respected gods and goddesses are referenced on the coffin along with whatever he wants it to say to aid him in his afterlife journey. They also want certain pieces and people to aid him in his afterlife journey. Most burial tombs contained people the pharaoh loved and when he died so did they. Once these tombs are sealed they are not intended to be open ever again. Dartmouth college explains further on about tomb sealing, “It is ironic that the Ancient Egyptian tombs, once sealed, were