Description of an Egyptian mummy, presented to the Massachusetts General Hospital : with an account of the operation of embalming, in ancient and modern times / by John C. Warren.

  • Warren, John Collins, 1778-1856.
Date:
[1824?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Description of an Egyptian mummy, presented to the Massachusetts General Hospital : with an account of the operation of embalming, in ancient and modern times / by John C. Warren. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

    9/37
    edoftwo pieces only, an upper and under, joined by pro- jecting parts, secured with cords, externally covered with a simple layer of plaster or varnish, and ornamented with hie- roglyphical figures. Belzoni says, that such as could afford it, probably had a case made to contain their bodies, on which was written a history of their life; while those in poorer circumstances had their lives written on papyri, rolled up and placed between their knees. In the appearance of the cases there is a great difference; some are plain, others very much wrought, and richly adorned with painted figures. The cases were gene- rally made of sycamore, and always bear a human face, male or female. A few contain a second within them, of wood or plaster. The inner cases are fitted to the body of the mum- my; though some of them appear to be merely covers, in form of a man or woman, easily distinguishable by the beard or breast. The wooden case is first covered with a layer of plaster or cement, not unlike plaster of Paris; and on this are sometimes cast figures in basso relievo, for which they made moulds. The whole case is painted, the ground generally yellow, the figures and hieroglyphics blue, green, red, and black, but the last colour is rarely used. Some of the colours appear to be vegetable, as they are evidently transparent; and the whole of the painting is covered with a varnish which preserves it effectually. This traveller found, in some of the mummies, lumps of as- phaltos, weighing two pounds. The entrails he saw bound up in linen and asphaltos; but Porphyry says, that after the entrails were removed from the body, the embalmer held them up to the sun, addressing to him a prayer, in the form of invocation; he declared, u that the body had not committed any crime during life; but that what faults might be imputed to it, ought to be charged to the bowels, which' were then thrown into the Nile. For this account Porphyry has the support of Plutarch. The mummies of the priests are supposed, by Belzoni to be distinguished by the peculiar care with which they 'are arranged. The bandages are strips of white and red linen intermixed, covering the whole body, and forming a curious effect of the two colours. They have sandals of painted lea- ther on their feet, and bracelets on their arms and wrists He found eight mummies in their cases, in the state in which they were originally deposited. The cases lay side by side flat on the ground, facing the east, in two equal rows, imbed-