HERODOTUS’ AND PLINY'S EMBALMING MATERIALS IDENTIFIED ON ANCIENT EGYPTIAN MUMMIES*

Abstract

Unused ancient Egyptian embalming material unearthed at Deir el‐Bahari ( c. 1500 bc ) shed new light on the potential preparation methods for various embalming materials in Pharaonic Egypt. Analyses revealed the presence of phenols, guaiacols, naphthalenes and sesquiterpenoids. These components were attributed to a wood tar oil produced by a dry distillation or smouldering process from the true cedar tree. The preservation effects were elucidated at the molecular level. Bone alkaline phosphatase, an enzyme that is tightly bound in deeper regions of the bone mineral, served as a marker to reveal the efficacy of the investigated compounds. A very similar embalming material was extracted from a Ptolemaic torso (340 ± 170 bc ), showing powerful bactericidal and fungicidal activity on the mummified tissue and bones. Here, we show that both the unused and the used embalming materials are in striking accordance with Pliny's description of liquid ‘ cedrium ’, with the abundantly present guaiacol proving the most effective conserving compound.