Mummification Step by Step
Describe the step-by-step process of mummification: the body was washed, internal organs were removed and placed in canopic jars, the body was dried with natron salt for 40 days, then wrapped in linen bandages with amulets tucked between the layers, and finally placed in a decorated coffin (sarcophagus)
What a learner can do afterwards
- List the main steps of mummification in the correct order
- Explain the purpose of canopic jars and what was stored in them
- Describe why mummification was performed (to preserve the body for the afterlife)
The lesson
Ancient Egyptians believed a person needed their body in the afterlife. So priests worked for many weeks to turn a body into a mummy, following the same careful steps every time.
First, priests washed the body clean. Then they removed the organs: the lungs, stomach, liver, and intestines each went into its own canopic jar, so they could be kept safe. The heart stayed inside the body, because Egyptians thought it held a person's feelings and memories.
After the body dried out with natron salt for 40 days, priests wrapped it in strips of linen. They tucked small charms called amulets between the layers to protect the person in the afterlife. Finally, the mummy was placed in a decorated coffin, called a sarcophagus.
Making a mummy took careful steps: wash, remove organs into canopic jars, dry with natron, wrap with amulets, then rest in a sarcophagus for the afterlife.
Watch it
Where it sits
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.