How Mummies are made

over 3,000 years Egyptians turned out more than 70 million mummies but what was the reasoning behind this surprisingly complex practice the ancient Egyptians believed that when you die you go to the afterlife but in order for you to exist there your mortal body must be preserved in this world that’s why they were driven to create the most effective preservation technique possible and it’s not for the squeamish the procedure is as meticulous as it is gruesome but it’s also a race against time after death a body begins to decompose, to stop the decay the embalmer needs to deprive the corpses tissues of moisture and oxygen the first step is to remove the internal organs only the heart is left in place which according to belief would be weighed in the presence of the god Thoth to measure the Dead’s worthiness of an afterlife a hooked instrument is used to extract the brain through the nostrils next the body is packed in a mineral salt called Natron for 40 days which dries out the corpse then the skin is rubbed with perfumed oils and plant resins finally comes the part we know best the body is wrapped in strips of linen as many as 20 layers the deceased is now a mummy ready to leave the glory of ancient Egypt behind for a bold new adventure in the afterlife.