A Day in the Life of an Egyptian Embalmer

Here’s what a day looked like for an Egyptian embalmer… …during their darkest

rituals. Before sunrise, he washed the dead with Nile water…

Water believed to carry the souls of everyone who ever drowned. Then he’d slice

open the left side of the body. While priests chanted to keep the

spirit from watching. He removed the organs by hand… except the heart. That one he

feared. Egyptians believed it could judge him. By afternoon, he packed the

body with natron salt. He whispered a prayer, asking the dead

not to follow him home. At night, the worst part began: