Ancient Egypt is probably the most famous civilization of the ancient world. The people who lived on the banks of the Nile a thousand years before our era had their own distinctive pantheon of gods and a rich culture. In the philistine mind, the mummies of the pharaohs are most of all associated with Ancient Egypt, which attract interest with their mystery and belonging to the cult of death.
Meaning of mummification
The ancient Egyptians believed that after death a person goes to the afterlife. Therefore, the bodies of the richest and most influential residents of the country were necessarily mummified after death. This was done with pharaohs, high priests, aristocrats. The process of processing a corpse was full of various subtleties that were known only in ancient Egypt.
Superstitious inhabitants of an African country believed that the mummies of the pharaohs help their owners to freely go to the afterlife. In the mass consciousness, there was a strong opinion that the rulers were of divine origin, this made their connection with supernatural phenomena even closer. The mummies of the pharaohs were buried in special tombs - pyramids. This style of architecture was a unique Egyptian invention that became unprecedentedinnovation in the ancient world. Neither in the Mediterranean nor in Mesopotamia was anything like that built then. The most famous are the pyramids of Giza.
Mummification process
Mummification was considered the lot of the elite, but in fact it could be bought if a person wanted to ensure a peaceful stay in the afterlife, and also if he had enough money for this. But there were procedures available only to the pharaohs and their family members. For example, only their organs were placed in special vessels (canopies). For this, the body of the deceased was cut in a special way. The holes were filled with oil, which was drained after a few days. The masters who were engaged in mummification were privileged members of society. They knew the science of embalming, which was inaccessible to others. Over the centuries of the existence of the Egyptian civilization, these secrets did not become known to other peoples, such as the Sumerians.
Organs in vessels were kept next to the mummy's sarcophagus. The secrets of the pharaohs were buried with their bodies. All personal belongings were placed in the tomb, which, according to the religious conviction of the ancient Egyptians, also regularly served their owners in the other world. It was the same with the organs that were supposed to return to the pharaohs when they find themselves on the other side of life.
Mummy Processing
The processed body was subjected to drying, which could last up to 40 days. The procedure allowed him to survive for many years. In order for the body not to lose its shape from naturalprocesses, it was filled with a special solution, which also contained sodium. The embalmers mined the necessary substances on the banks of the Nile, which was the sacred river of all civilization.
The mummies of the pharaohs of Egypt were also processed by beauticians and hairdressers. At the last stage, the body was covered with a special oil made from wax, resin and other natural ingredients. Finally, the corpse was wrapped in bandages and placed in a sarcophagus, where a mask was put on it. In total, the mummification process took about 70 days and included the work of a dozen people. The secret craft was taught to the priests of the cult of the Egyptian gods. It was impossible to disclose it. Violators of the law were waiting for the death pen alty.
Valley of the Kings
Together with the mummy in the tomb, they also buried all the property of the deceased: jewelry, furniture, gold, as well as chariots, which were generally a symbol of belonging to the main social stratum. Members of the same family, as a rule, had their own tomb, which became the family crypt. Archaeologists find several mummies in such pyramids. There were sacred places where especially many pyramids were built. They were in southern Egypt. This is the Valley of the Kings, as well as the Valley of the Queens. Representatives of several dynasties that ruled the ancient state found their rest here.
The ancient capital of Egypt was the city of Thebes. It is in its place that the famous Valley of the Kings is located. This is a vast necropolis, which kept many of the mummies of the pharaohs. The valley was discovered almost by accident by the Rasul brothers during their expedition in 1871. Since then, the work of archaeologists is heredidn't stay for a single day.
Cheops
One of the most famous is the mummy of Pharaoh Cheops. He ruled Egypt in the 26th century BC. e. His figure was known to ancient historians, including Herodotus. This fact alone indicates that this pharaoh was indeed great even in comparison with his predecessors and successors, because the names of many pharaohs were not preserved at all in any historical source.
Cheops was a despot who severely punished his subjects for any oversight. He was merciless towards his enemies. Such a character was familiar to the rulers of Ancient Egypt, whose power, as contemporaries believed, came from the gods, which gave the pharaohs carte blanche to any whims. At the same time, the people did not try to resist. Cheops also became known for fighting in the Sinai Peninsula against the Bedouins.
Pyramid of Cheops
But the greatest achievement of this pharaoh is precisely the pyramid that was built for his own mummy. The rulers of Egypt were preparing for their death in advance. Already during the life of the pharaoh, the construction of his pyramid began, where he was supposed to find eternal rest. Cheops was no exception to this rule.
However, his pyramid amazed all contemporaries and distant descendants with its size. It was included in the list of 7 ancient wonders of the world and remains the only monument from this list that has survived to this day.
Cult complex in Giza
The lost mummy of an Egyptian pharaoh was kept inside a huge labyrinth of corridors inside a 137-meter-high structure. This figure was beaten only at the end of the 19th century, when the Eiffel Tower appeared in Paris. Cheops himself chose the place of his tomb. They became a plateau on the territory of the modern city of Giza. In his era, it was the northern edge of the cemetery of ancient Memphis, the capital of Egypt.
Together with the pyramid, a monumental sculpture of the Great Sphinx was created, which is known to the whole world as well as the pyramid itself. Cheops expected that over time a whole complex of ritual structures dedicated to his dynasty would appear on this site.
Ramses II
Another great pharaoh of Egypt was Ramses II. He ruled for almost his entire long life (1279-1213 BC). His name went down in history thanks to a series of military campaigns against neighbors. The conflict with the Hittites is best known. Ramses built a lot during his lifetime. He founded several cities, most of which were named after him.
He was the ruler who changed and transformed Ancient Egypt. The mummies of the pharaohs were often hunted by grave diggers. The tomb of Ramses II was no exception. The priests of Egypt ensured that the royal necropolises remained untouched. While the ancient civilization still existed, the body of this ruler was reburied several times. First, the mummy of Pharaoh Ramses was placed in the crypt of his own father. It is not known exactly when it was plundered, but in the end the priests found a new place for the body. They became a carefully hidden cache that belonged to the pharaohHerihor. Mummies from other tombs robbed by robbers were also placed there. These were the bodies of Thutmose III and Ramses III.
Fight against grave robbers
The cache was only discovered in the 19th century. It was first found by Arab grave robbers. It was a lucrative business in those eras, as the African sands still held many treasures that sold for good prices on European black markets. As a rule, robbers are interested in treasures and precious stones, and not in the mummies of the pharaohs of Egypt. Photos of devastated graves confirm this trend.
However, already in the 19th century, the Egyptian authorities created a special ministry that monitored the illegal trade in antiquities. Soon the source of the jewels was discovered. So in 1881, the untouched mummy of Ramses fell into the hands of scientists. Since then, it has been kept in various museums. By studying it, researchers around the world are still getting new information about mummification. In 1975, the remains were subjected to a unique modern conservation procedure that allowed the surviving artifact of the past to be preserved.
This case is an extreme stroke of luck for the scientific community. As a rule, when a new tomb is discovered, there is nothing left in it, including mummies. The secrets of the pharaohs and their riches have attracted adventurers and merchants for centuries.
Tutankhamen
Tutankhamun's mummy is best known in popular culture. This pharaoh ruled at a young age from 1332 to 1323 BC. e. He died at the age of 20. In lifehe did not stand out in a series of his predecessors and successors. His name became famous because his tomb was left untouched by ancient marauders.
Modern scientific research of the mummy made it possible to study in detail the circumstances of the death of the young man. Prior to this, it was widely believed that Tutankhamun was forcibly killed by his regent. However, this is not confirmed by the mummy of the pharaoh of Egypt itself. The pyramid in which it was kept was full of bottles of malaria medicine. Modern DNA analysis has not ruled out the version that the young man had a serious illness, due to which he died prematurely.
When a team of archaeologists discovered the crypt in 1922, it was full of all sorts of unique artifacts. It was the tomb of Tutankhamen that allowed modern science to recreate the environment in which the mummies of the pharaohs of Egypt were buried. Photos of the tomb immediately penetrated the Western press and became a sensation.
Curse of the Pharaohs
An even greater hype around the tomb of Tutankhamun began when Lord George Carnavon, who funded the study of the distant find, died unexpectedly. The Englishman died in a Cairo hotel shortly after the ancient tomb was opened. The press immediately picked up this story. Soon there were new dead associated with the archaeological expedition. Rumors spread in the press that there was a curse that fell on the heads of those who entered the tomb.
A popular point of view was the idea thatthat the mummy of the pharaoh was the source of evil. Photos of the dead were included in widely circulated obituaries. Over time, denials emerged that debunked the myth of the curse. Nevertheless, the legend has become a popular subject in Western culture. In the 20th century, several feature films were made dedicated to the curse.
To a large extent, thanks to them, the theme of Ancient Egypt gained popularity among the general public. Any news in which this or that mummy appears has become known. The tomb of the pharaohs, which would be intact and intact, has not been found since the discovery of Tutankhamun.
