Objects As History (Week 6)

Burials in Egypt
It is really interesting how different civilizations had their own unique way of burial systems. I think Egypt was having the most distinct way of burial system in all the civilizations. It used to take them 70 days for the whole process of burial. They also believed in life after death, but they had a proper way to decide whether a person would live the afterlife or not. But for me, the most curious portion in all civilizations was why they believed in life after death. They developed the art of mummification in 2600BC. The dead body was brought to the Embalmer who wore the mask of Anubis (the Egyptian god of mummification and afterlife). The body was cleaned, all the inner parts were removed to embalmed separately. These organs were placed in an individual container called ‘Canopic jars.’ The brain was seen as having no use and was removed from the skull through the nose using a metal hook. According to me they only believed in physical power thats why they thought there was no use of the brain. The heart was removed from the body and wrapped in linen and replaced in the chest. Egyptians believed the heart to be the center of wisdom and good deeds. The body was then packed and covered with a powdery substance called Natron. Then stuffed with resin to maintain the body shape. then the body was carefully wrapped in the strips of linen. Many everyday items used to bury with them for their comfortable afterlife. Things like food, drink, clothing, utensils, and even servants were buried with them.
For both Egyptians and Royalty, sacred spells from the work known as the Egyptian Book of the Dead were recited in order to direct the soul toward the hall of truth and the judgment of the great god ‘Orisis.’ Orisis would then weight the heart of the deceased against the White feather of Ma’at (truth and harmony) and if one’s heart was found lighter than the feather, one was given passage to the field of Reeds, the Egyptian paradise which was an eternal mirror image of one’s life of Earth. If one’s heart was found to be heavier than the feather of Ma’at, however, it was thrown on the floor where it was eaten by the god Amenti (also known as Amut) and the soul of the individual then ceased to exist. They believed that there forever existence was their pride.