WRAPPING PROCESS

Hundreds of yards of linen were used to carefully wrap a mummy. The linen didn't just come in the well-known rolls of bandages. Mummies were also wrapped in shrouds, large sheets of material that were thrown over the body like a cape. Each shroud had to be long enough to be knotted at the top behind the mummy's head, and also underneath the feet. As many as 20 alternating layers of bandages have been counted on one mummy. (Murnane 67) The exact arrangements of the rolls and shrouds of linen varied a lot from period to period, and can be helpful in dating mummies. First the head and neck are wrapped with strips of fine linen. Then the fingers and the toes are individually wrapped. The arms and legs are wrapped separately. Between the layers of wrapping, the embalmers place amulets to protect the body in its journey through the underworld a priest reads spells out loud while the mummy is being wrapped. These spells will help ward off evil spirits and help the deceased make the journey to the afterlife. The arms and legs are tied together. A papyrus scroll with spells from the Book of the Dead is placed between the wrapped hands. More linen strips are wrapped around the body. At every layer, the bandages are painted with liquid resin that helps to glue the bandages together. A cloth is wrapped around the body and a picture of the god Osiris is painted on its surface. Finally, a large cloth is wrapped around the entire mummy. It is attached with strips of linen that run from the top to the bottom of the mummy, and around its middle.

SHROUD

Numbers had many meanings to the ancient Egyptians. Traditionally, mummies were wrapped in 7 shrouds, as this was the magical number. The outer shroud was often painted with magical writings and spells to protect the mummy within. A board of painted wood is placed on top of the mummy before the mummy is lowered into its coffin. The first coffin is then put inside a second coffin.



The funeral is held for the deceased and his family mourns his death. Next came the very important Opening of the Mouth ceremony, based on the Osiris legend. A priest wearing a jackal-headed mask representing the god Anubis held the mummy's coffin upright while another priest touched the mouth of the mummy with ritual instruments. (Hayes 13) The ancient Egyptians believed that their god of the dead, Anubis, was the inventor of embalming.
The Egyptians believed that from a person's death until the performance of this ceremony the body could not hear, see, or speak. Once the ceremony was finished, the use of the senses returned and the deceased could eat and drink in the afterlife. After the ceremony an offering of food, ointment, and clothing was given to the deceased. (26) This completed, the mourners enjoyed a large funerary banquet, with entertainment in praise of the dead provided by musicians and dancers. While the banquet was going on, the deceased was placed inside the tomb, and the footsteps of those who had been inside were swept away. Now the deceased's soul could return to the body.
Finally, the body and its coffins are placed inside a large stone sarcophagus in the tomb.
Furniture, clothing, valuable objects, food and drink are arranged in the tomb for the deceased. (27-55) Now his body is ready for its journey through the underworld. There his heart will be judged by his good deeds on earth. If his heart is found to be pure he will be sent to live for all eternity in the beautiful 'Field of Reeds'.

MUMMY MASKS

A beautiful mask did more than protect the mummy's face- it could also act as a substitute head if the mummy's real head was broken or damaged. When the dead person's spirit returned to the tomb, it could recognize the mummy by its mask. One of the most famous works of art in the world is the stunning gold work on the mask of Tutankhamen's mummy. (Reeve 2) The masks of the pharaohs were mainly built with gold along with some inlaid decoration. The Egyptians believed that gold was connected with the sun god, with whom the mummy hoped to be united, had flesh of pure gold. Less important mummies wore masks of catronnage- a sort of paper of linen or scrap papyrus gummed together with plaster or resin. The wet catronnage was molded to fit the mummy. Once it had hardened it could then be gilded or painted in rich colors. Although wood was used at times in making mummy cases, it was rarely found and had to be imported from other places. An excellent alternative was catronnage, which was cheap, light and easy to shape and paint. (Rohl 66)

MUMMY CASES

Mummy cases were New Kingdom boxes that fit between the mummy and the coffin. They were made in two styles: a box and lid like a coffin, or a box with doors in the back that laced closed. Mummy cases were made of cartonnage, a lightweight material made from waste papyrus and linen covered in plaster. The cartonnage material allowed the case to be molded closely to the outline of the mummy; it was also a wonderful material to paint on. Mummy cases were elaborately decorated with a variety of religious elements.

COFFINS

Depending on the period and the wealth of the individual, it was fashionable to be buried in one, two, or three different coffins. Multiple coffins would be nested one inside the other. By the Middle Kingdom the coffin was considered a miniature tomb, and it was decorated with many of the items that had formerly adorned the walls of the tomb. The goddesses Isis and Nephthys were painted as guards at the head and foot of the coffin. The inside floor of the coffin was painted with Nut, Isis, Osiris, or the Djed pillar (Osiris's backbone). The sides bore the four sons of Horus and other deities. (50-54)

SARCOPHAGUS

A Sarcophagus is a coffin made of stone. Sarcophagus means "flesh eater" in Greek, for the Greeks believed that the stone would dissolve a dead body. Sarcophagi were expensive, and only pharaohs, noblemen, or important officials were buried in them. They were also incredibly heavy and had to be positioned in the tombs by gangs of workers. During the funeral, the mummy was carried into the tomb and sealed in the sarcophagus. The first sarcophagi were plain rectangular boxes, but the later ones were rounded to look like the mummy inside them. (Erman 66)