18 | Harerem

This is the preserved body of Harerem, a male who was about 45 to 55 years old, who lived around 2,700 years ago.

The body is wrapped in a shroud of linen held in place by several straps.

A rectangular bead net, possibly partly reconstructed in modern times, is placed on top.

It is made of blue and yellow cylindrical beads of glass-like Egyptian faience.

Look to the centre to see the figures of the Four Sons of Horus fixed on top of the net, as if placed to protect the organs beneath.

Egyptians performed highly sophisticated techniques to preserve their dead.

These so-called ‘mummification’ techniques began to be developed around 6,300 years ago and continued to be practised until around the 3rd Century CE.

One of our most detailed accounts of mummification was written by the Greek historian Herodotus in the 5th Century BCE in his book The Histories.

According to Herodotus, mummification could involve many stages carried out by trained priestly embalmers.

One stage that was particularly important was to remove internal organs to slow down the decomposition process.

In different time periods these were placed back in the body, in jars, or in chests.

The heart was usually left in the body because of its importance, but the brain was removed.

The embalmers then washed the body and treated it with a special antibacterial mixture that included the mineral natron and resin to help dehydrate, preserve and protect the body, a procedure that took up to 40 days.

The embalmers might also close any incisions, plug the nose with resin or wax, anoint the body with oils and resins and then wrap it in layers of linen.

Another coat of resinous liquid could also be placed on top of the body.

While this account is generally considered to be accurate it is worth noting that Herodotus was not a scientist or an expert in the field of anatomy or preservation and only had second hand information, so some of his descriptions of mummification may not have been entirely correct.

And what does this word, ‘mummification’, really mean?

It is thought to come from a Persian or Arabic term mumia for ‘asphalt’ or ‘bitumen’ that was used to refer to a black substance believed to have medicinal properties.

Due to the process of preservation and the resins used by embalmers, the bodies tended to have a blackened appearance.

So, from around the Medieval Period, these bodies were believed to have the same properties as mumia and were used as medicinal ingredients until they themselves were called mumia or ‘mummies’.

You can understand, then, how this word is problematic. It is used to refer to human remains as objects, whether of medicinal ingredients, of Hollywood’s horror movies, or even of research.

The word dehumanises the remains of the individual you see before you.

This person once lived in the land of Egypt. This is not an object. This is Harerem.