ILLUSTRATION: SOL 90 X1, GETTY X4
Ancient Egyptians believed that eternal life after death could be attained, but only if they had been properly prepared. So as early as the fourth millennium BC, the process of mummification transformed the dead into a vessel, which their ba (soul) could recognise.
Yet in sending a body to the afterlife, the Egyptians succeeded in preserving them on Earth until their civilisation was long gone. Just look at the ‘Boy King’, Tutankhamun.
HOW TO MAKE A MUMMY
To be done properly, the process of embalming and mummification t ook a while – 70 days to be exact. Yet the care and technique d emonstrated allowed mummies to survived for thousands of y ears.