Damage caused by insects during the mummification process: an experimental study
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ORIGINAL PAPER
Damage caused by insects during the mummification process: an experimental study Gomaa Abdel-Maksoud & Ezz Eldin Abed al-Sameh Al-Shazly & Abdel-Rahman El-Amin
Received: 23 June 2010 / Accepted: 13 May 2011 / Published online: 28 May 2011 # Springer-Verlag 2011
Abstract The process of mummification had been known since the Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom (ca. 2600 BC) and continued to develop throughout ancient Egyptian history. Although mummification protected the body from decay, especially by microbes, some mummification techniques left the body susceptible to insect attack. Certain types of insects have been detected in the mummies. In scholarly publications, most authors have dealt with microorganisms, while few have concerned themselves in depth with the effect of insects on the mummies. This study aims to discuss the significance of insects and the changes they affected to the mummies during embalming. To achieve this goal, experiments were carried out replicating various mummification techniques using albino Wistar rats. Analysis and investigative techniques used included visual observation, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, investigation of the surface morphology by a scanning electron microscope, and color change by a spectrophotometer. The following insects could be identified as being present during the second and third processes of mummification: Dermestes maculatus, Necrobia rufipes, Saprinus gilvicornis, Chrysomya albiceps, G. Abdel-Maksoud (*) Conservation Department, Faculty of Archaeology, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt e-mail: [email protected] E. E. Abed al-Sameh Al-Shazly Department of Economic Entomology and Pesticides, Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt A.-R. El-Amin Grand Egyptian Museum, Supreme Council of Antiquities, Giza, Egypt
Wohlfahrtia magnifica, and Attagenus fasciatus. In addition, the majority of our findings confirmed that the degradation by insects increased with the second and third methods of mummification. Finally, the experimental study conducted using the mummification techniques of the New Kingdom (ca. 1570–1070 BC) indicated that they were more resistant to insect attack than the other types. Keywords Mummification . Insects . Decay . FTIR . SEM . UV . Spectrophotometer
Introduction Mummification is the process of preservation of a body after death generally by the rapid removal of water from the tissues (Salter-Pedersen 2004). Although mummification was used to protect the body from decay, it could not provide complete protection against destruction (David 2000). In ancient Egypt, mummification was connected with the belief in life after death. The Egyptian religion made it necessary to preserve the dead, and what seems to be a preoccupation with death was actually the outgrowth of a love of life and an attempt to prepare for a continuation in the nest world of life as it is known in this (Peck 1980). Therefore, elaborate preparations were made for the treatment of the body after death. The mummification processes st
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