The scariest mummies. The most famous mummies of the world and their mysterious stories. The Man from Grauballe
Egypt is a mysterious and beautiful country that attracts and surprises, makes you fall in love and frightens at the same time. Legends are made about her, films are made, songs and poems are written. Mummies remain the most majestic mystery to this day.
This article is intended for persons over 18 years of age.
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We all know about the curse of Tutankhamun or the mummy of Imhotep (who was a great scientist, architect and doctor) thanks to cult films and media publications. But what is a mummy? What is the difference between mummification and embalming? What frightens and impresses the researchers of ancient burials so much? Why were the dead in Egypt subjected to this procedure? We will try to find answers to all these questions.
A mummy is a human corpse treated with special agents, compounds and oils using ancient techniques and methods to maintain optimal conditions in order to stop the development of decomposition in the corpse. The very word "mummy", according to scientists, denotes a special resin, a kind of bitumen, which, according to most researchers, was used to process the body of the deceased.
Mummification is different from embalming in a number of ways. If in the first case the body of the deceased was treated with special drugs and dried, then in the second variant the main task was to stop the processes of tissue decomposition and leave the body as close as possible to that which a person had during his lifetime.
Many specialists from different fields are studying this phenomenon in world culture. This knowledge is of particular value for:
- archaeologists;
- historians;
- physicians;
- anthropologists;
- chemists.
They all explore different aspects of the same phenomenon (living conditions, social and political processes, chemical composition of substances, analysis of the DNA of the deceased, what processes underlie the cremation of the corpse) trying to clarify the dark sides and fill in the blank spots in the question of how cremated and the dead were buried in those days.
How and why did they do it in ancient Egypt
Mummification in ancient Egypt has a religious aspect, which is based on the belief that the pharaoh is of divine origin and his body must be preserved so that the soul can be reborn after death, find its body and recognize it.
It all started with the legend of the goddess Isis and her beloved Osiris, who was killed by Set, and parts of his body were scattered around the world. But the god Anubis (according to legend), with the help of Isis, found them, put them together, treated them with oils, wrapped them in a long cloth and breathed life into the dead body.
It was the belief in divinity, immortality, high social status and wealth that made it possible to mummify their bodies only to the wealthy classes in Egypt at that time. They belonged to:
- pharaohs and their relatives;
- approximate pharaohs (guards, advisers and assistants);
- priests.
As for ordinary people, for a long time there was an opinion that they basically have no soul, so they don’t need this procedure at all. However, over time, the common population could also mummify their deceased relatives if they had enough funds and opportunities for this.
Researchers of burials and sarcophagi in Ancient Egypt say that in addition to the mummy of the deceased himself, the bodies of girls and wives (who, according to some rites, could be buried alive), stocks of food and drink, money, jewelry, and weapons are also found in the burial. All this only confirms the religious basis of mummification, because the soul was given what it needed for a comfortable stay in the other world.
In addition, animal mummies are also found in burials. Especially often these are cats, which were especially honored in those days, were considered inviolable and lived at temples and palaces.
Mummification: stages and processes
Mummification as a physical phenomenon is a rather complex and long process, the secrets of which were known only to a certain number of people in ancient Egypt. In order to properly mummify a deceased person, knowledge of the structure of the human body, chemistry, physics and climatic conditions of a certain territory was needed, as well as the conditions necessary to bring the corpse into the desired state.
There are two types of mummification:
- natural (when the human body dries up, and does not decompose under the influence of certain climatic factors);
- artificial mummification (involves the use of special means to achieve the desired effect).
The first option took place when, after death, a human corpse was buried in the sand. It was the sand that absorbed all the moisture from the human body and did not give it the opportunity to decompose. And the constant high temperatures and winds dried the remains naturally.
As for the second option, here you need to more thoroughly understand all the processes and nuances in order to understand the meaning of how the whole process takes place. After death, the body of the deceased was taken to a special room, where the whole ceremony took place, which lasted 70 days. This figure is connected with the interweaving of religion and astronomy in the minds of that time: it is precisely this number of days that the star of Osiris is beyond the horizon and is not visible in the sky.
The most complete and reliable description of the process of cremation of the deceased can be found in the writings of Herodotus. He talks about all the steps and methods.
The first thing they did with the body was a special device (most likely it was an ebonite stick - a prototype of a modern scalpel, they made an incision in the inguinal zone in order to take out the insides). Everything was removed from a person, except for the heart, because it was in him, according to the beliefs of the Egyptians, that the soul lived. The removed parts of the body were washed with water and special compounds, oils and incense (most likely they did this in order to remove an unpleasant odor and destroy harmful organisms that could start the process of decay).
Each organ (lungs, stomach, liver, intestines) was cleansed, treated with certain oils and infusions, and then immersed in vessels - canopies, where these parts of the body were kept. The lid of each vessel was made in the form of a certain deity, who was responsible for this or that inside.
As for the brain, it was obtained by a special method. With the help of a long hook through the nostrils or a special hole in the nose, they penetrated into the cranium and extracted the contents in parts. Another option - with the help of the same hook, the brain was liquefied (blurred), and then the body was turned over and it was poured through the nostrils.
When the internal organs were removed, the corpse was smeared with salt, oils and soda compounds and left for 40 days to dry. Soda and salt took moisture from the body, oils had a bactericidal effect, and certain spice compounds were used to remove unpleasant odors.
After the allotted time had passed, the remnants of the means used were removed from the body, it was coated with special compounds based on oils and bituminous resin. To give the dried remains a shape and volume, sawdust, sand, salt were placed in the cavity and the holes were sewn up. To make the mummy look like a dead person, they could put on a prepared mask or make up, make an imitation of eyeballs and teeth.
The last step was wrapping the body with bandages or long strips of cloth. They were soaked in resin, which was instead of glue, incense and oils. In order for the human spirit to be able to successfully reincarnate, gold jewelry, coins, pieces of papyrus were placed between the balls of fabric with a prayer for resurrection. Having completed all these stages, the finished mummy was handed over to relatives, who laid it in a sarcophagus (like a modern coffin), made in the form of a man, who was placed in the family tomb.
As you can see, the process of mummification in ancient Egypt was a very long and complex process that took a lot of time and effort, required certain knowledge and skills. The most famous mummies that have survived to this day are the remains of the priest Pa DiIsta, Tutankhamun, Ramses II, Seti I. All of them were carefully studied in order to understand all the nuances of life, the social system.
No matter how many secrets and horror stories surround the mummies of Ancient Egypt, they will attract the eyes and attention of scientists, travelers and hunters for prey.
In ancient times, famous dead people were not buried in the ground, but on the contrary, they tried to keep them on the sinful earth. And if you think that it was thousands of years before our era, then you are mistaken.
Ice Man ÖtziThis Mummy has become the oldest European mummy, its age is about 5200 years. The body was found by tourists on September 19, 1991 in the Tyrolean Alps, and Ötzi was given to him.
About 57 tattoos of dots, lines and crosses were found on Ötzi's body. The tattoos on Ötzi's body were in those places and parts of the body that were especially important to him and, perhaps, caused him pain.
This mummy is covered with a halo of terrible stories, they even say that the mummy is cursed. Seven people died while examining the mummy. Each of them tried to tell the society about it, and each died. The first person to discover the mummy went missing, and his death was the beginning of a series of deaths.
Of course, hundreds of people were involved in the study of the mummy, and who knows, maybe the death of seven of them is just a coincidence.
Although the body of this "princess" is not very well preserved, scientists are still surprised by the tattoos, which have survived just fine, despite the fact that this beauty is 2500 years old. *hey, I would like that! And then every 5 years you need to update
At the time of her death, this girl was 25 years old. But scientists are not surprised at all. Mythical creatures are depicted on the girl's body. For example, on this tattoo you can see a mythical deer with the horns of a goat and the beak of a griffin.
The glass coffin with the imperishable girl is located in a small temple in Palermo.
Rosalia died of influenza in 1918. After her death, at the request of her father, the doctor gave her an injection that saved her body from decomposition. The content of this injection is still unknown. Locals even call the amazingly preserved mummy "sleeping beauty", so "alive" it seems.
Around the church where the girl rests, strange stories have been happening for 40 years. Death, disappearances and the feeling that she is about to open her eyes haunt the servants. One of the tourists even claimed to have seen the eyes of the "sleeping beauty" open for a moment, then close back. After that, church ministers refused to be alone near the incorruptible body.
This is Panochka Gogol!
In 1972, scientists found an Eskimo family near the northern settlement of Kilakitsoq. The find seems surprising because the bodies are surprisingly well preserved thanks to the cold. In total, there were nine people who died, but one of the corpses attracted the attention of scientists.
The mummy of a one-year-old boy still terrifies visitors to the National Museum of Greenland. He looks more like a doll than a child. Scientists have established that the boy suffered from Down syndrome.
This mummy also has creepy stories. Museum keepers said that they heard children's laughter and crying, and at first they did not understand where. After that, one of the caretakers died right at the place where the baby is.
This is one of the mummies that were found in 1952, in a peat bog in Denmark. The guy is about 30 years old, and he still has hair.
Scientists believe that he was sacrificed, as evidenced by a deep cut on his neck.
The most amazing thing is that no one specially embalmed these mummies. They were not affected by frost and other forces of nature. They just put them in a coffin and that's it.
Some were buried alive. This woman was placed in a coffin when she was alive. She woke up already in the coffin, scratching its lid, screaming, trying to escape from captivity. When she began to run out of air, she tried to tear her own mouth out in pain.
The open mouth of mummies does not always indicate torment. The mouth can also open from the fact that the jaw was not tied up and simply fell off. This museum also has mummies of "angels"
All these mummies are the youngest "natural" mummies, they are only about 150-200 years old.
The pharaoh's mummy is the most famous mummy in the world. Although, according to historians, during his lifetime, Tutankhamun did not stand out among other rulers, it is with his tomb that the story of a terrible curse is connected.
In 1922, two Americans found a tomb containing a double coffin. Having opened it, archaeologists found a golden sarcophagus. Inside, even the flowers are well preserved, so their discovery was truly unique.
But the worst thing happened after the opening of the sarcophagus. All the scientists who studied Tutankhamun died. One way or another, death overtook them.
Now the body of Lenin is kept in the mausoleum. But this is not a mummy, and it requires constant care. For this, at the end of 1939, a research laboratory was established at the Mausoleum as part of the USSR Ministry of Health.
Employees of this laboratory monitor the temperature and humidity in the sarcophagus, change the impregnating solutions, measure the circumference of the arms and legs to avoid drying out. It is also washed periodically.
But the most interesting thing happened to Lenin's sarcophagus. Throughout the time, they tried to destroy him, and damage the body. Hammers, stones and even bombs were thrown into the sarcophagus. Even terrorist attacks took place in the mausoleum. In September 1967, a certain Krysanov blew up a belt filled with explosives near the entrance to the Mausoleum. As a result, the terrorist himself died, as well as several people.
In early September 1973, when Lenin's sarcophagus was already covered with armored glass, inside the Mausoleum a man blew up an improvised explosive device. The attacker, as well as 1 married couple were killed.
Probably, all of you have watched horror films about reanimated mummies attacking people. These sinister dead have always excited the human imagination. However, in reality, mummies do not carry anything terrible, representing an incredible archaeological value. In this issue you will find 13 real mummies that have survived to our time and are among the most significant archaeological finds of our time.
A mummy is a body of a dead creature specially treated with a chemical substance, in which the process of tissue decomposition slows down. Mummies are stored for hundreds and even thousands of years, becoming a "window" to the ancient world. On the one hand, the mummies look creepy, some goosebumps run from just looking at these wrinkled bodies, but on the other hand, they are of incredible historical value, keeping the most interesting information about the life of the ancient world, the customs, health and diet of our ancestors. .
1The Screaming Mummy From The Guanajuato Museum
The Guanajuato Mummies Museum in Mexico is one of the strangest and most terrible in the world; 111 mummies are collected here, which are naturally preserved mummified bodies of people, most of whom died in the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century and were buried in the local cemetery " Pantheon of Saint Paula.
The exhibits of the museum were exhumed between 1865 and 1958, when a law was in force requiring relatives to pay a tax for the bodies of their relatives to be in the cemetery. If the tax was not paid on time, then the relatives lost the right to the burial place and the dead bodies were removed from the stone tombs. As it turned out, some of them were naturally mummified, and they were kept in a special building at the cemetery. The distorted facial expressions on some of the mummies indicate that they were buried alive.
At the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century, these mummies began to attract tourists, and cemetery workers began to charge a fee for visiting the premises where they were stored. The official date of formation of the Museum of Mummies in Guanajuato is 1969, when the mummies were exhibited in glass shelves. The museum is now visited by hundreds of thousands of tourists every year.
2. The mummy of a boy from Greenland (Kilakitsok township)
Near the Greenlandic settlement of Kilakitsok, located on the west coast of the largest island in the world, in 1972 an entire family was discovered, mummified by means of low temperatures. Nine well-preserved bodies of Eskimo ancestors who died on the territory of Greenland at a time when the Middle Ages reigned in Europe aroused the keen interest of scientists, but one of them became famous all over the world and beyond the scientific framework.
Belonging to a one-year-old child (anthropologists who suffered from Down's syndrome), it looks more like some kind of doll and makes a lasting impression on visitors to the National Museum of Greenland in Nuuk.
3. Two-year-old Rosalia Lombardo
The Capuchin Catacombs in Palermo, Italy is an eerie place, a necropolis that attracts tourists from all over the world with many mummified bodies of varying degrees of preservation. But the symbol of this place is the baby face of Rosalia Lombardo, a two-year-old girl who died of pneumonia in 1920. Her father, unable to cope with grief, turned to the famous physician Alfredo Salafia with a request to save his daughter's body.
Now it makes the hair on the head of all, without exception, visitors to the dungeons of Palermo move - amazingly preserved, peaceful and so alive that it seems as if Rosalia had only dozed off for a short while, it makes an indelible impression.
4. Juanita from the Peruvian Andes
Whether still a girl, or already a girl (the age of death is called from 11 to 15 years), named Juanita, gained worldwide fame, being included in the ranking of the best scientific discoveries according to Time magazine due to her safety and terrible story, which, after finding the mummy in the ancient Inca settlements in the Peruvian Andes in 1995, scientists told. Sacrificed to the gods in the 15th century, it has survived to this day in almost perfect condition thanks to the ice of the Andean peaks.
As part of the exposition of the Museum of Andean Sanctuaries in Arequipa, the mummy often goes on tour, exhibiting, for example, at the headquarters of the National Geographic Society in Washington or at many sites in the Land of the Rising Sun, which is generally distinguished by a strange love for mummified bodies.
5. Knight Christian Friedrich von Kalbutz, Germany
This German knight lived from 1651 to 1702. After his death, his body turned into a mummy in a natural way and is now on public display.
According to legend, the knight Kalbutz was a great lover to use the "right of the first night." The loving Christian had 11 children of his own and about three dozen bastards. In July 1690, he declared his “right of the first night” regarding the young bride of a shepherd from the town of Buckwitz, but the girl refused him, after which the knight killed her newly-made husband. Imprisoned, he swore before the judges that he was not guilty, otherwise "after death, his body will not crumble to dust."
Since Kalbutz was an aristocrat, his word of honor was enough for him to be acquitted and released. The knight died in 1702 at the age of 52 and was buried in the von Kalbutz family tomb. In 1783, the last representative of this dynasty died, and in 1794, a restoration was started in the local church, during which the tomb was opened in order to rebury all the dead of the von Kalbutz family in a regular cemetery. It turned out that all of them, except for Christian Friedrich, had decayed. The latter turned into a mummy, which proved the fact that the loving knight was still a perjurer.
6. The mummy of the Egyptian pharaoh - Ramses the Great
The mummy shown in the photo belongs to Pharaoh Ramses II (Ramses the Great), who died in 1213 BC. e. and is one of the most famous Egyptian pharaohs. It is believed that he was the ruler of Egypt during the campaign of Moses. One of the distinguishing features of this mummy is the presence of red hair, symbolizing the connection with the god Set, the patron saint of royal power.
In 1974, Egyptologists discovered that the mummy of Pharaoh Ramses II was rapidly deteriorating. It was decided to immediately take her by plane to France for examination and restoration, for which the mummies issued a modern Egyptian passport, and in the column "occupation" they wrote "king (deceased)". At the Paris airport, the mummy was met with all military honors due to the visit of the head of state.
7. The mummy of a girl 18-19 years old from the Danish city of Skrydstrup
The mummy of a girl aged 18-19, buried in Denmark in 1300 BC. e. The deceased was a tall, slender girl with long blond hair styled in an intricate hairstyle somewhat reminiscent of a 1960s babette. Her expensive clothes and jewelry suggest that she belonged to a local elite family.
The girl was buried in an oak coffin lined with herbs, so her body and clothes are surprisingly well preserved. Preservation would have been even better if, several years before this mummy was discovered, the layer of soil over the grave had not been damaged.
The Similaunian Man, who was about 5,300 years old at the time of discovery, making him the oldest European mummy, was nicknamed Ötzi by scientists. Discovered on September 19, 1991 by a couple of German tourists during a walk in the Tyrolean Alps, who stumbled upon the remains of a Chalcolithic resident perfectly preserved thanks to natural ice mummification, he made a splash in the scientific world - nowhere else in Europe have they found the bodies of our distant ancestors.
Now this tattooed mummy can be seen in the archaeological museum of Bolzano, Italy. Like many other mummies, Ötzi is allegedly shrouded in a halo of curse: over the course of several years, under various circumstances, several people died, one way or another connected with the study of the Iceman.
The girl from Yde (Dutch. Meisje van Yde) is the name given to the well-preserved body of a teenage girl found in a peat bog near the village of Yde in the Netherlands. This mummy was found on May 12, 1897. The body was wrapped in a woolen cape.
A noose woven from wool was tightened around the girl's neck, indicating that she was executed for some kind of crime or sacrificed. In the region of the collarbone, a trace of the wound was preserved. The skin was not affected by decomposition, which is typical for bog bodies.
The results of a radiocarbon analysis carried out in 1992 showed that she died at the age of about 16 years between 54 BC and 54 BC. e. and 128 AD. e. The corpse's head was half-shaved shortly before death. The surviving hair is long and has a reddish tint. But it should be noted that the hair of all corpses that have fallen into the swamp environment acquire a reddish color as a result of the denaturalization of the coloring pigment under the influence of acids found in swampy soil.
Computed tomography determined that during life she had a curvature of the spine. Further studies led to the conclusion that the cause of this, most likely, was the defeat of the vertebrae with bone tuberculosis.
10. Man from Rendsvuren bog
A man from Rendswühren, who also belongs to the so-called swamp people, was found near the German city of Kiel in 1871. At the time of death, the man was between 40 and 50 years old, and body examinations showed that he died from a blow to the head.
11. Seti I - Egyptian pharaoh in the tomb
The superbly preserved mummy of Seti I and the remains of the original wooden coffin were discovered in the Deir el-Bahri cache in 1881. Seti I ruled Egypt from 1290 to 1279. BC e. The mummy of this pharaoh was buried in a specially prepared tomb.
Seti is a minor character in the science fiction films The Mummy and The Mummy Returns, where he is depicted as a pharaoh who fell victim to a conspiracy by his high priest, Imhotep.
12. The mummy of Princess Ukok
The mummy of this woman, nicknamed the Altai Princess, was found by archaeologists in 1993 on the Ukok plateau and is one of the most significant discoveries in archeology at the end of the 20th century. Researchers believe that the burial was made in the 5th-3rd centuries BC and belongs to the period of the Pazyryk culture of Altai.
During excavations, archaeologists discovered that the deck in which the body of the buried was placed was filled with ice. That is why the woman's mummy is well preserved. The burial was immured in a layer of ice. This aroused great interest of archaeologists, since in such conditions very ancient things could be well preserved. Six horses under saddles and with harness were found in the chamber, as well as a wooden block of larch, nailed down with bronze nails. The contents of the burial clearly indicated the nobility of the buried person.
The mummy lay on its side with its legs slightly tucked up. She had numerous tattoos on her arms. The mummies were wearing a silk shirt, a woolen skirt, felt socks, a fur coat and a wig. All these clothes were made of very high quality and testify to the high status of the buried. She died at a young age (about 25 years old) and belonged to the elite of Pazyryk society.
13. Ice maiden from the Inca tribe
This is the famous mummy of a girl aged 14-15, who was sacrificed by the Incas more than 500 years ago. It was discovered in 1999 on the slope of the Nevado-Sabankaya volcano. Next to this mummy, several more children's bodies were also found, which were also mummified. Researchers suggest that these children were chosen among others due to their beauty, after which they traveled many hundreds of kilometers across the country, were specially prepared and sacrificed to the gods at the top of the volcano.
The impeccable art of mummification, which was owned by the worshipers of the cult of the sacred Amon Ra, especially excites the imagination. The ancient Egyptians radically differed from other peoples in the worship of death, its erection in a cult. Archaeologists are constantly finding new mummy burials, trying to study them with the help of computer equipment, because fragile remains turn into dust from contact with the sun's rays. Although no amount of research is being done, there are more and more mysteries of antiquity.
Preparing for the afterlife
According to the laws of modernity, people try to live here and now, to take only the best for themselves. For the ancient Egyptians, all life was considered a preparation for the main sacrament - death. Even weddings were not celebrated as magnificently as funerals. The better the mummification is carried out, the more integral the deceased will be able to appear before the gods. If earthly existence is only a moment, then one should prepare for eternal life with the utmost care. The mummy had to be escorted to the burial place with high-quality dishes, amulets, jewelry and figurines of the gods. And so that the dead man would not forget his good deeds performed during his lifetime, papyri were additionally placed in the funeral chamber, where all the good deeds were for certain stated. The walls of the chamber were also decorated with reliefs and paintings, although they were executed according to the strict rules of painting that existed in Egypt. A mask with wide open painted eyes, located in place of the mummy's face, looked at all this splendor.
Mummification methods
Thousands of years succeeded each other, but under optimal conditions, the imperishable mummies of the pharaohs of Egypt and the nobility rested in the huge tombs. Although even ordinary Egyptians could adequately preserve the remains. But only the priests reserved the honorable right to carry out embalming. This is connected with the legend of the god Anubis, who made a mummy from the body of the god Osiris in order to prepare him for eternal life in the afterlife.
Know paid for expensive mummification
The relatives of the deceased Egyptian turned to the embalmers, and they offered a choice of one of the mummification methods based on the financial capabilities of the petitioners. After completing the formalities, the priests set to work. Mummification in ancient Egypt was an expensive pleasure. Therefore, for different strata of society, the process took place in different ways.
How were Egyptian mummies made? First of all, the brain was removed with iron devices through the nostrils, and its remains were dissolved with special drugs that were injected into the skull. In ancient Egypt, they did not know about the function of the brain, so they simply threw it away, although they tried to carefully conserve all other organs. After examining the left side of the deceased's abdomen, the chief scribe indicated the place for the incision. With a sharp stone, the paraschist (or ripper) made an incision in the abdominal cavity in the designated area. One of the priests penetrated the incision with his hand in order to get all the organs, while leaving the lungs and heart in place. It was believed that through the food organs, the flesh is contaminated, and subsequently the human soul. The extracted entrails were washed with balsam and palm wine. In no case were the organs thrown away, but carefully immersed in vessels filled with special balms. Such vessels were called canopes, each mummy had four of them. The heads of the sons of Horus were depicted on the lids of the vessels.
Embalming Secrets
It was time for the embalming. After washing the internal cavities of the deceased with wine, he was carefully rubbed from the inside with cinnamon, cedar oil, myrrh and similar embalming agents. Bandages made of linen fabric were soaked in special balms, with which the body was tamponed inside and wrapped around the outside. A little later, embalmers learned how to fill mummies with aromatic herbs infused with oils. After some time, the remaining oil was drained and the body was dried to remove the liquid and avoid decay. Drying lasted about 40 days. Now the priests filled the womb with incense and sewed up the hole, and the mummy was immersed in a concentrated solution of soda lye for 70 days. At the end of the term, the body was washed to begin the final process. The fine linen was cut into long ribbons and wrapped around the deceased, and the strips were fastened together with gum.
Desire for the afterlife among poor Egyptians
The poor could not afford to pay for such a laborious process, so they settled for cheaper mummification. In ancient Egypt, the deceased was injected with cedar oil into the abdominal cavity, without making an incision to extract the insides. After such a procedure, the dead man was lowered into the lye for several days. After a while, the filled oil was drained from the intestines, which has the property of dissolving the insides. Soda lye is known for its ability to decompose meat, therefore, subsequently, the relatives of the deceased received a withered mummy, consisting only of bones and skin. Although the poorest Egyptians could use an even cheaper way. It consisted in introducing radish juice into the abdominal cavity of the deceased and immersing the body in a solution of soda lye for 70 days.
The ruler in the afterlife has untold riches
In ancient Egypt, sacredly adhered to traditions. It was believed that the nobles after death should continue to live among the acquired wealth. A warrior will not be able to hunt after burial if he loses his weapon. The pharaoh will not take the high place among the gods due to his person if he appears at the court of Osiris without a supply of jewelry, gourmet food and many golden figurines. Therefore, untold riches were stored in the tombs, and "black" archaeologists sought to find a secret passage to them.
For the construction of impregnable tombs, various traps were invented, reliable locks that could be opened with special amulets. But all the efforts of the ancient rulers to save the jewels of the tombs were not crowned with success. Under the influence of human greed, many tombs were plundered, and spells and magic did not stop those who wanted to cash in on the objects of ancient civilization.
Artifacts from Tutankhamun's tomb
Almost completely intact, only the tomb of the nineteen-year-old pharaoh Tutankhamen, who ruled in 1332-1323 BC, has survived to this day. e. Its discoverers are two enthusiasts in the field of archeology Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon, who revealed to the world the extraordinary luxury of the ancient tomb.
For several years, archaeologists tried to find the burial place of the young pharaoh, and finally, in 1923, luck smiled at them. Crowds of onlookers and journalists rushed to the small town of Luxor to transmit essays and reports to all lovers of antiquity. On the steps, the archaeologists carefully moved deep into the hole in the rock, and in front they saw a walled wall, behind which was the entrance to the tomb. After clearing the passage, they moved along the corridor, but they had to take some more time to clear the passage from the blockage. Time passed, and, finally, again, scientists had to dismantle another walled entrance. Carter's heart thudded in his chest as he stuck his hand holding the candle through the hole in the masonry. A warm stream of air escaped from the burial chamber, causing the candle flame to flutter in the draft. In the semi-darkness, the outlines of the room gradually appeared, and the outlines of figurines of animals and statues of gold, flickering in the dim light, opened to the eye.
golden splendor
Archaeologists experienced a real shock when they were able to enter the first room of the tomb. The pharaoh was equipped for the afterlife journey with amazing splendor, although they did not have time to build a more spacious tomb for him. There were magnificent beds decorated with gold plates, chairs richly inlaid with gems and ivory, vessels, gloves for shooting, quivers for arrows, clothes and jewelry. Vessels with the remains of food and dried wine have also been preserved. In stone vessels, the researchers found expensive incense that retained a strong aroma. Even after death, the royal person had to lead a full-fledged existence, continuing to anoint the body with fragrant substances.
As a sign of special respect for the dead, their bodies were decorated with wreaths of seasonal flowers. It was in the tomb of Tutankhamen that scientists discovered a wreath of flowers that turned into dust when touched. A few leaves remained, they were lowered into tepid water to avoid destruction. After the analysis, it was possible to find out about the month of the burial of the pharaoh - from mid-March to the end of April. In Egypt, at this time, cornflowers bloom and the nightshade and mandrake ripen, which served to make a wreath.
To move the pharaoh through the afterlife, several golden chariots were hoisted into the chamber. The first room was followed by the second, which had no less stock of precious items.
Mummy of Tutankhamen
Several arks were found in the burial chambers, stacked one inside the other like a matryoshka. It was necessary to open the sarcophagi to get to the royal mummy. The remains were in the coffin, but they were so flooded with aromatic oils that they were firmly glued to it. The golden mask covered his face and shoulders; it completely repeated the lifetime features of the young pharaoh. They also tried to remove the mask, although it was attached to the coffin under the influence of resin. For the manufacture of the coffin of the pharaoh, a gold sheet up to 3.5 mm thick was used. During burial, the mummy of the Egyptian pharaoh was wrapped in several shrouds, and hands with a whip and a wand were sewn onto the uppermost shroud. After deployment, the mummies found many more treasures, the description of which amounted to 101 groups.
Curse or series of coincidences?
After the grand opening of the tomb of Tutankhamen, a series of unexpected deaths of members of the expedition stirred up the public. A year later, Lord Carnarvon dies of pneumonia in a Cairo hotel. His death was instantly overgrown with unimaginable details and fantastic conjectures. Some argue that the death was caused by a mosquito bite, although others talk about a razor wound that caused blood poisoning. One way or another, but for the next few years, the concept of the “curse of the pharaohs” was exaggerated in the press. One after another, 22 members of the expedition died suddenly, who were the first to be on the threshold of the famous tomb. The English newspapermen fanned the sensation, and the public was not interested in any reasonable explanations.
Unenviable fate
Only the mummies of the pharaohs of Ancient Egypt have survived to this day in fairly good condition. After all, the fate of the remains of the poor Egyptians remained unenviable. During the Middle Ages, there were many recipes for healing potions made from crushed mummies. Not without barbarism: in the 19th century, the bandages of the ancient dead began to be used as paper, and the mummies themselves became fuel. But the remains of royalty remained almost untouched to become silent witnesses of the former greatness of Ancient Egypt.
Surviving mummies of pharaohs
One of the greatest conquerors was Pharaoh Seti I. His reign dates back to the 19th dynasty. The great pharaoh led a tough policy, strengthened the borders of the kingdom to the territory where Syria is now located. He wisely ruled for 11 years, leaving strong Egypt to his successor, Ramses II.
The European press was shocked by the discovery of the grave of Seti I in 1817. Now the mummy of Seti 1 is on display in the hall of the Cairo Egyptian Museum.
Diagnosis of diseases of the ancient ruler
The legendary pharaoh of antiquity was Ramses II. He lived to a ripe old age and ruled Egypt for an estimated 67 years. His mummy was discovered in a cache among the rocks by scientists G. Maspero and E. Brugsch in 1881. The mummy of Ramses II can be seen in the Cairo Museum. In 1974, the museum staff sounded the alarm due to the destruction of the mummy. It was decided to urgently send her to a medical examination in Paris. I had to take care of an Egyptian passport for the dead king in order to cross the borders between states. During the research, Ramses was found to have injuries and fractures, as well as arthritis. After processing, the mummy was returned to the museum in order to preserve its greatness for future generations.
Each of us has ever heard of mummies, at least in the school lessons of the history of ancient Egypt, there are much more interesting stories about them than you can imagine.
The legendary wife of Argentine President Juan Peron died on July 26, 1952, when she was only 33 years old due to cancer. After her death, her remains were preserved so that they could be displayed during the funeral procession.
Three years later, anti-Peronist militants stole her mummified body, which was subsequently unknown for 15 years. later, her body, already in very bad condition, was returned to her ex-husband, who paraded her in his own home, and his second wife allegedly combed her hair and even lay down next to her in the coffin to absorb her greatness. Later, her body was interred and she now rests in her family's crypt.
La Doncella
This impeccably preserved mummy of a 15-year-old Inca girl was probably sacrificed over 500 years ago. She was discovered in 1999 along with two other children on the Llullaillaco volcano at an altitude of 6,700 meters above sea level in Argentina. While the girl looks like a victim of tragedy, there is evidence that she suffered from a deadly disease similar to tuberculosis, or a chronic lung infection. Her family did everything possible to ensure that the girl passed away less painfully, grain liquor was found in her system, and coca leaves were found in her mouth.
wet mummy
In 2011, Chinese construction workers were digging the foundations for a new road when they discovered in the ground the perfectly preserved mummy of a woman who lived about 600 years ago during the Ming Dynasty. It got its name due to the fact that it was in damp earth for a long time, and despite the high humidity, it was very well preserved. Her skin was practically not damaged, hair and even eyebrows were preserved on her body.
Precious accessories were also found on her, such as a jade ring and a silver barrette that still held her hair together. Mummification was rarely used in China, which makes this discovery more unique. Archaeologists believe that the mummification of the "wet mummy" was part of a natural process associated with a lack of oxygen in the moisture surrounding the woman's body, for this reason, there were no bacteria in the water that could contribute to the destruction of her body.
The Man from Grauballe
In 1952, several mummified bodies were discovered in a peat bog in Denmark, but the best-preserved guy was called the "Man from Grauballe." He was about 30 years old when he died over 2000 years ago, most likely his death was connected with a sacrificial ritual, judging by the deep wound on his neck. He retained red hair and facial features.
Ramses III
Unlike other mummies made in the era of Ramesses in Egypt, his found remains are proof that he did not die of natural causes, but fell victim to murder. His throat was deeply cut and many historians believe that he was killed by his own sons.
Princess Ukok
The body of Princess Ukok once again proves that tattoos are forever. Despite the fact that she died almost 2,500 years ago, tattoos are perfectly preserved on her withered body. She was about 25 years old when she died, scientists believe that she was a member of the Pazyryk tribe, which lived in the mountains of Siberia. Members of this tribe believed that tattoos would help them find each other in the afterlife.
Tutankhamen of Torquay
After dying of lung cancer, 61-year-old English taxi driver Allan Billis bequeathed his body to science. The body of the Englishman was mummified and he was nicknamed "Tutankhamun of Torquay". Thanks to Dr. Stephen Buckley, Allan Billis's body was the first mummified body in over 1,000 years to mummify using the methods of the ancient Egyptians. Allan's wife commented on this situation saying: "I am the only woman in the country who has a husband's mummy"
Dashi-Dorzho Itigelov
Itigelov spent his life as a Buryat Buddhist lama in the best traditions of Tibetan Buddhism. He began his spiritual journey at the age of 16 in 1927. Once he told his students that his time to pass into the other world had come, he also asked them to join him in meditation. He passed away peacefully in the middle of his meditation and was soon buried in a pine box, sitting in the lotus position. Since then, he has been exhumed twice, and despite the lack of an act of mummification, analysis of his body showed that he had died within about 36 hours, rather than the actual 100 years.
Mummies of the Franklin Expedition
Hoping to find the Northwest Passage, an expedition of over 100 men set sail for the New World in 1845. No one else heard of this expedition, but five years later, a separate expedition came across the graves of three men, John Torrington, John Hartnell and William Brain, who were buried on Beachy Island in the Canadian Arctic archipelago of Nunavut. In 1984, a group of anthropologists traveled to the icy island to exhume the bodies of the men, which are very well preserved due to the frosty tundra climate. They were able to determine the cause of death for the 138-year-old men, which, despite the bitter cold, was pneumonia and tuberculosis, and scientists were able to determine that each of them had a lethal amount of lead in their bodies, probably from the ship's water distillation system.
woman with petrified fetus
In 1955, a Moroccan woman named Zahra Abutalib was brought to the hospital to deliver her first child. When she was told that she would need to have a caesarean section, she was very frightened of the procedure and fled the hospital. Later, the unborn child died in her womb, and despite this, she refused to remove the dead fetus from her stomach. Almost 50 years later, she again ended up in the hospital, complaining of excruciating pain in her abdomen. Doctors discovered that what they thought was a tumor was the calcified remains of her dead unborn child. This happens extremely rarely, in history there are only about 300 such officially registered cases.