Detecting the nature of the materials used in the mummification process

A team of researchers from Ludwig Maximilian and Tübingen Universities in Germany, in cooperation with the National Research Center in Cairo, succeeded in discovering some of the secrets of the ancient Egyptian mummification process and the materials used in it, by analyzing the organic remains that were found inside the pottery pots discovered in the mummification workshop. Discovered by the Egyptian-German archaeological mission headed by the late Dr. Ramadan Badri, in Saqqara in 2018, as part of the Sawi tombs project.
 
This was stated by Dr. Mostafa Waziri, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, indicating that the results of this research were published today, February 1, 2023, in the scientific journal Nature, indicating that the mission found during its work the names of the organic remains used during the mummification process written in the ancient Egyptian language on the surface of pottery vessels. In addition to the names of the organs and parts of the body of the deceased, in which these organic materials were used during the stages of the embalming process.
 
 
The work team of specialists and researchers studied and analyzed the organic remains in the utensils discovered from the workshop and reached their chemical characteristics in an attempt to reach the mechanisms and secrets of the mummification process in ancient Egypt, by knowing the materials that the ancient Egyptian used to preserve the human body, where they were able to identify each material According to the nature of the target part of the body, as it is for the first time that three important information about the mummification process are gathered in one place, which is the material used itself, its name in the ancient Egyptian language, and the place of its use, which made knowing the nature of the material very important.
 
Dr. confirmed. Mostafa Waziri stressed the importance of this discovery because it contributes significantly to re-reading the familiar texts about ancient Egyptian mummification, as the team was able, for the first time, after comparing the materials that were identified with what was written on the utensils, to determine the appropriate material for embalming a specific part of the body accurately.
 
Research and studies have revealed that a number of materials used in the mummification process were imported from abroad, such as the Mediterranean region, tropical rainforests, and Southeast Asia, which indicates the existence of links and communication between those regions in that early period.
 
On her part, Dr. said. Susanna Beck, deputy head of the mission, said that the research showed that the utensils used in the mummification process had written on them the names of the materials they contained, as well as how they were used, which contributed greatly to knowing the names of many mummification components, noting that the analysis of the remains that were found in the utensils were isolated Partially to determine its chemical components, pointing out that, for example, the substance "Antio", which was used and mentioned a lot in describing embalming processes, was translated as aromatic gum, but the results of the recent study showed that it is a mixture of cedar wood oil and juniper oil (cypress) and animal fats. This study was done by using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry of the discovered materials.