Mummification Explained: Why the Mummies Look the Way They Do

In the classic method, mummification took about 70 days. The brain was removed through the nose, the main internal organs were taken out through a cut in the left side and preserved in four canopic jars, and the body was dried in natron salt for around 40 days. It was then packed, oiled, wrapped in linen with protective amulets and placed in its coffins, while the heart was left in place for the judgment of the dead.

That process explains almost everything you notice when you stand in front of a mummy in a museum: the dark, leathery skin, the slim, compact shape, the arms crossed or laid at the sides, the linen packing visible at the cheeks. It also explains why some mummies look remarkably lifelike after more than 3,000 years. Ramesses II's face, with its prominent nose, is still recognizable today.

This guide walks you through the method step by step, explains why Egyptians went to such lengths, and tells you where in Egypt to see mummies and the objects that went with them.

Why the Egyptians preserved the body

Egyptians believed a person was made up of several elements that survived death, including the ka, the life force, and the ba, often shown as a bird with a human head, which could travel between the tomb and the world of the living. These elements needed a recognizable body to return to. If the body decayed, the person's existence in the afterlife was at risk.

The earliest Egyptians were buried in shallow desert graves, where the hot, dry sand sometimes preserved bodies naturally. As burials became more elaborate and moved into tombs away from the sand, bodies decayed, and embalmers developed artificial methods to achieve what the desert once did. Over many centuries those methods became the sophisticated process we call mummification.

The 70-day process, step by step

Ancient sources and modern study of mummies agree on the outline, though practice varied by period and by the price paid.

Purification

The body was taken to an embalming workshop, often a tent or structure near the river or the necropolis, and washed. Some accounts mention palm wine and Nile water, both associated with cleansing.

Removing the brain

A hook or rod was pushed through the nose to break into the skull, and the brain was removed in pieces or liquefied and drained. The Egyptians did not consider the brain important, so it was usually discarded.

Removing the organs

The embalmer made an incision in the left side of the abdomen and removed the liver, lungs, stomach and intestines. Each was dried, treated and preserved separately. The heart, regarded as the seat of thought and character, was deliberately left inside, because it would be needed when the dead person faced judgment.

Drying with natron

The body was packed inside and out with natron, a natural mixture of salts collected from places such as the Wadi Natrun, northwest of Cairo. Over about 40 days the natron drew out moisture and prevented decay. This drying stage is what gives mummies their light weight and dark, firm skin.

Packing, oiling and wrapping

The emptied body was washed again, filled with linen, sawdust or resin-soaked material to restore its shape, and rubbed with oils and resins to keep the skin supple. Sometimes false eyes were added. Then the wrapping began: many layers of linen strips and sheets, with amulets placed between them, a process that took around two weeks. Priests recited prayers at each stage.

Masks, coffins and the final ritual

A mask was placed over the head, a famous example being Tutankhamun's gold mask, and the mummy was laid in one or more nested coffins. At the tomb, the Opening of the Mouth ceremony was performed, symbolically restoring the senses so the dead could eat, breathe and speak in the afterlife.

Canopic jars and the sons of Horus

The preserved organs were stored in four canopic jars, each protected by one of the four sons of Horus. Their lids often show the guardian's head.

In some later periods, embalmers wrapped the organs and returned them to the body, but jars were still placed in tombs as a symbolic set. When you see canopic jars in a museum, check the lids: the four heads make the set easy to recognize.

Amulets and what they meant

Amulets placed in the wrappings were protective charms, each with a specific role.

• The heart scarab. A large scarab placed over the heart, often inscribed with a spell asking the heart not to speak against its owner at judgment.
• The djed pillar. A symbol of stability, associated with the backbone of Osiris.
• The eye of Horus (wedjat). A symbol of healing and protection.
• The tyet knot. Associated with the goddess Isis and protection.

X-rays and CT scans now let researchers see these amulets inside wrapped mummies without unwrapping them.

How methods changed, and the three price levels

The Greek historian Herodotus, writing in the 5th century BC, described three levels of embalming. The most expensive followed the full process. A cheaper method dissolved the organs with an injected oil rather than removing them by incision. The simplest just cleaned the body and dried it in natron.

Techniques also changed over time. During the Third Intermediate Period, around the 21st Dynasty, embalmers packed material under the skin of the face and limbs to give the body a fuller, more lifelike shape, and painted or added false eyes. In the Roman period, mummies often had painted portraits on wooden panels placed over the face, the so-called Fayum portraits.

Animal mummies

Egyptians also mummified animals, in vast numbers. Some were beloved pets buried with their owners, some were sacred animals living in temples, such as the Apis bull, and many more were offerings bought by pilgrims and dedicated to a god. Ibises and baboons were offered to Thoth, cats to Bastet, falcons to Horus and crocodiles to Sobek. Underground galleries at Saqqara and Tuna el-Gebel held these animal burials by the hundreds of thousands. Scans show that some offerings contained only part of an animal, or none at all.

Where to see mummies in Egypt

Tips for viewing

The Royal Mummies Hall is dimly lit and kept quiet out of respect; photography rules there are strict, so check before you raise your camera. Visit the Mummification Museum in Luxor before the Valley of the Kings if you can, because it explains the tools and materials you will see represented in tomb paintings. A good guide will connect the canopic jars, coffins and amulets in the museums with the scenes on tomb walls.

Frequently asked questions

Why was the brain removed but not the heart?

Egyptians believed the heart held a person's mind and character and would be weighed against the feather of truth at judgment, so it stayed in the body. The brain was considered unimportant and was usually discarded.

How long did mummification take?

The classic process took about 70 days, of which roughly 40 were spent drying the body in natron. The rest went on preparation, packing, wrapping and ritual.

What are canopic jars?

They are four containers for the liver, lungs, stomach and intestines, each protected by one of the four sons of Horus. Their lids often show human, baboon, jackal and falcon heads.

Where can I see royal mummies in Egypt?

Most royal mummies are in the Royal Mummies Hall at the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization in Cairo. Tutankhamun's mummy remains in his tomb in the Valley of the Kings, while his treasures are at the Grand Egyptian Museum.

Were ordinary people mummified too?

Yes, though the level of care depended on what a family could afford. Herodotus described three price levels, and the poorest burials might involve only simple drying and wrapping.

Plan it with Nourbelle

We can build a trip around the story of mummification, from NMEC and the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo to the Valley of the Kings in Luxor. Browse Egypt tours or plan your trip.