Mummies’ odour is a bouquet, not a curse

Despite being preserved for millennia and lacking perhaps in sartorial elegance, the preserved pharaohs and their surviving subjects do not appear to have the smell of death about them.

Researchers from UCL and the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia report that the remains smell variously ‘woody,’ ‘spicy’ and ‘sweet’.

Their work, published in Journal of the American Chemical Society, claims to be the first scientific study of its kind.

The data collected casts new light on Ancient Egyptian burial practices, including evolving techniques and materials employed.

Lead author, Professor Matija Strli? of UCL’s Bartlett School for Environment, Energy & Resources and the University of Ljubljana, said:

“The smell of mummified bodies has for years attracted significant interest from experts and the general public, but no combined chemical and perceptual scientific study has been conducted until now.

“This ground-breaking research really helps us better plan conservation and understand the ancient embalming materials. It adds another layer of data to enrich the museum exhibition of mummified bodies.”

Instrumental and sensory techniques, including an electronic ‘nose’ and trained humans were used to study nine mummified bodies on display and in storage in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Techniques such as chromatography are routinely employed in fine art conservation. As odours are chemical molecules suspended in air emitted by a substance, the archaeological researchers applied similar approaches.

A gas chromatograph was coupled with a mass spectrometer to measure and quantify chemicals emitted by the bodies. Additionally, trained human ‘sniffers’ described the smells in terms of quality, intensity, and pleasantness.

Using multiple technologies enabled identification of whether a chemical was emitted by either the artefact, conservation products, or resulted from natural deterioration over the years because of moulds, bacteria and other microorganisms.

The researchers said their work demonstrated the usefulness of odour as a “non-invasive and non-destructive method” to chemically categorise and analyse ancient remains.

It also showed that chemical analysis could be used to protect ancient artefacts and preserve their ‘olfactory heritage’ – and could help protect conservators carrying out potentially hazardous tasks.

Co-author, Professor Ali Abdelhalim, director of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, said: “To the ancient Egyptians, mummification was an important mortuary practice aimed at preserving the body and soul for the afterlife through a detailed ritual of embalming of the deceased using oils, waxes and balms.

“The practice evolved over time, and identifying different techniques and materials used offers insights into the era, location and socioeconomic status of the individual being mummified.”

The distinctive smells emitted from mummified remains after c5,000 years results from embalmers’ use of coniferous resins with pine, cedar, and juniper oils, waxes and gum resins such as those Biblical stalwarts myrrh and frankincense.

The research was conducted in collaboration between conservators and curators at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and researchers from Slovenia, Poland and the UK.

Pic: Narciso Arellano