Final
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Preparing for the afterlife
The ancient Egyptians believed in life after death
and that without the body the spirit would cease
to exist. They also believed that the body had to
be preserved in order to pass Osiris’ Judgement of
the Dead. Therefore, they prevented the corpses
of the most important people from decomposing
by applying resins and balsams using physical-
chemical processes. They developed a sophisticated
embalming technique, although themost important
aspect of this ritual was the sacredness and magic
surrounding it.
Embalm
means to treat a dead body with balsams to preserve it. Do you know how they did this in ancient
Egypt? In this task you are going to research how this civilisation prepared for the afterlife. Then, you are
going to use what you have learned to write a horror story which includes an account of mummification.
A mummified corpse surrounded by the tools used for the embalming
process. Illustration from the
Book of the Dead
