Secrets of the Pharaohs: How Mummies are Made

The pharaohs of ancient Egypt are remembered today more for the mummies and pyramids they left behind than for the shadowy history of their families and dynasties. Seldom do we recognize, however, that mummies were created as part of a lengthy religious ceremony – often lasting for several months – designed to carry the spirits of deceased kings into the afterlife. The mortuarial rituals were carried-out by priests of the highest order, and they performed these mummification ceremonies with the utmost gravity. Today, when we open the coffins of pharaohs who died three thousand years ago, we may be trespassing on hallowed ground.

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