Herodotus, in his Histories, described mummification. the dead person’s family approached an embalmer, who offered three levels of service. He displayed small models so the family could see how the mummy would look, and they agreed on a price. for top-of-the-line mummification, the skull was first cleaned by removing the brain through the nose using a long, thin iron hook. the skull cavity was then rinsed with chemicals.
Then, using a flint knife, the embalmer made a large cut in the abdomen. the lungs, liver, stomach, and intestines were removed and washed in a chemical bath. these organs were then packed, along with spices and natron (a sodium mineral used for drying), into four canopic jars. finally, the heart was removed and the emptied torso was cleaned with palm wine and fragrant spices. When it was ready, the heart was placed back into the chest cavity, along with a heart scarab. (often made of gold and jewels, this was a favorite target of tomb robbers, who hacked open mummies to get them.)
The mostly empty torso was now filled with rolls of linen, sawdust, and a mixture of myrrh, cassia, spices, and natron. the body was repacked and padded until the embalmer achieved what he felt was a natural look. for special corpses, such as kings, there were extra steps to be taken at this point. for example, when ramesses II was mummi-fied, his nose was packed with peppercorns to preserve its unique shape, his fingernails and hair were colored with henna a natural reddish dye, symbol of life and the cut in his abdomen was covered with a solid gold plaque. for all mummies, the next step was to stitch up the cut in the torso.
now the body had to be dried. the embalmer laid out the body on a six-foot-wide table covered with natron, and piled more natron over the body to cover it completely. After 70 days of drying, the body was uncovered, thoroughly washed, and rubbed with precious oils and fragrant ointments. then it was wrapped head to toe in several layers of fine linen strips soaked in gum. the fingers and toes were wrapped individually. for really expensive mummifications, solid gold toenail and fingernail covers were put in place, and the tongue was replaced with a solid gold artificial tongue.
During the wrapping process, amulets, charms, and scraps of papyrus with magical spells were placed between the layers of linen. for less-expensive mummification, the embalmer simply injected oil of cedar into the corpse and packed it in natron. the oil dissolved everything but the skin and bones. After 70 days, the oil was drained off, carrying away the dissolved flesh. the dried corpse was then returned to the family for burial, with no linen wrapping. In 1994, two scientists decided to test Herodotus’s mummy recipe.
American Egyp-tologist Bob Brier, and a colleague, the director of the maryland State Anatomy Board, prepared a modern mummy, using a body that had been donated to science. (Brier even recited ancient prayers as the body was tightly wrapped in linen strips.) But the team discovered some problems. for example, removing the brain through the nostrils proved much more difficult than Herodotus described. this first and only modern mummy, kept at room temperature for more than 15 years, shows no signs of decay. His afterlife has been busy, though.
Scientists all over the world have used samples of his body to learn about how these tissues look and behave when preserved, and to practice research techniques to be used on actual ancient mummies. In particular, the modern mummy has proved valuable in developing techniques for efficiently extracting DnA from the tissues of ancient mummies. this contributed to the identification of the mummy of the great Egyptian female pharaoh, Hatshepsut, in 2007.