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Some of the earliest burial sites in ancient Egypt are of the Merimde culture, which dates to 4800-4300 B.C. [7] Located in the Nile delta, they are known for producing clay figurines, [8] but did not bury their dead with grave goods or offerings. [9]
One belief that was at the center of Egyptian beliefs about life after death was the belief in the ka. The ka was believed by the Egyptians to be one's life source, essence, and soul, which would live on in the afterlife. Egyptians also believed that the ka had to have a body to return to, and because of this belief, they would mummify their dead.
Mortuary house is any purpose-built structure, often resembling a normal dwelling in many ways, in which a dead body is buried. Mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to chemicals. Mummies of humans and animals have been found on every continent. [16]
The Maya dead were laid to rest with maize placed in their mouth. Maize, highly important in Maya culture, is a symbol of rebirth and also was food for the dead for the journey to the otherworld. Similarly, a jade or stone bead placed in the mouth served as currency for this journey.
All cultures have a different way of disposing of the dead. These differences can stem from the environment that populations live in and their beliefs. One well known phrase, “the dead do not bury themselves,” means that the living places their ideas of the deceased as well as death on the burial practices. [ 5 ]
The discovery of an unusual set of ceramic vessels has shed new light on the mummification process in ancient Egypt, according to a new study.
A hieroglyph depicting the mummy of the deceased Aztec ruler, Ahuitzotl, followed by his living successor. A mummy is the Aztec hieroglyph for death. [4] In Aztec written documentation of historical events, such as the death of a ruler or warrior, a mummy glyph will be connected to a glyph denoting the person's name and another glyph denoting the year of the event.
In particular, the color of the mummies changed, from a shimmering black produced by manganese to a later (around 2000 BC) red color of the mummies. After death, the flesh of the dead was removed and their exteriors were modeled using sticks and clay. The mummies were then embalmed with one of the above materials.