00:03Ancient Egyptians may have perfected the science of preserving human remains, but it turns out that was never the idea.
00:09In preparing for an exhibit at the University of Manchester's Manchester Museum in England, researchers shed some new light on
00:15the reason for mummification,
00:17suggesting that the intricate burial technique was only meant to guide the deceased into the afterlife.
00:21According to museum curator Campbell Price, the misconception stems from Victorian-era science, which compared Egyptian mummification with food preservation.
00:29As both processes use salt.
00:31However, this salty substance was later identified as natron, a mineral found in lake beds near the Nile, which was
00:37used in temple rituals for cleansing.
00:38Another key ingredient associated with mummies, incense, which in ancient Egyptian means to make divine.
00:44Price told Live Science, adding,
00:46When you're burning incense in a temple, that's appropriate because that's the house of a god and makes the space
00:50divine.
00:51But then when you're using incense resins on the body, you're making the body divine and into a godly being.
00:57You're not necessarily preserving it.
00:58Furthermore, Price believes the ritual of removing organs was less about preserving the body after death and more to do
01:04with turning the body into a divine statue.
01:06The exhibit called Golden Mummies of Egypt goes on display beginning February 18th, 2023.
01:11The exhibit called Golden Mummies of Egypt is behind the command of the
