Reflecting on the Past: The Display of Egyptian Mummies

Just over a year ago Swansea University launched its annual Research as Art competition. At the time I was writing an assignment on the ethical issues relating to the display of ancient Egyptian human remains as part of my MA in Museum Studies at Leicester University. Therefore, I decided to submit an image I took the previous year of my good friend Mohamed Shabib gazing into the face of the mummy of Ramesses I, which is displayed at Luxor Museum. The photo (fig. 1) was submitted under the title Reflecting on the Past: The Display of Egyptian Mummies, with Mohamed listed as a collaborator. Because of the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic, the results of the competition were delayed until this past week. We were both absolutely thrilled to have been announced as the overall winner for the 2021 event and are most grateful to the panel who selected our entry!

Fig. 1: Mohamed Shabib gazing into the face of Ramesses I

The winning photo was taken when Mohamed and I visited Luxor Museum to see the recently displayed temporary exhibition called South Asasif Necropolis: Journey Through Time, a project we have both been involved in for many years (fig. 2). While at the museum we looked around the permanent displays, including the mummy room. For Mohamed, this was his first time seeing the mummies of Ahmose II, Egypt’s great liberator, and Ramesses I, the grandfather of Ramesses the Great. I noticed Mohamed gazing into the face of the latter ruler, his back slightly bent as if showing his humility (a pose well-known from the reign of Seti I, the son of Ramesses I). Additionally, Mohamed’s reflection on the glass case appeared as if the spirit of Ramesses was rising from the corpse to communicate with Mohamed. I quickly took out my mobile phone and captured the image. A split second later and the opportunity would have been lost, for as soon as I snapped the image Mohamed had turned to me smiling. Upon seeing the photo, Mohamed was delighted and bursting with pride. We also discussed how he felt about seeing the mummies of his ancestors displayed in the museum.

Fig. 2: South Asasif exhibition at Luxor Museum

There is no doubt that the display of mummies, human remains, and skeletons is popular with museum visitors.  The naturally mummified body of the Gebelein man, commonly referred to as “Ginger” due to his colour, is one of the most popular attractions in the British Museum.  Schoolchildren in particular have a deep fascination for Egyptian mummies, perhaps emanating from their curiosity. Day (2014, 34) notes that this curiosity is likely the result of mummies being the first dead body that many people see. The display of mummies can create a variety of emotions, including awe and wonder. Human remains can be inspirational and have the ability to shape future career choices. In fact, my own career as an Egyptologist was shaped by regular visits to the Ulster Museum at a young age to see the mummy of Takabuti (fig. 3).

Fig. 3: The mummy of Takabuti in the Ulster Museum

The public unwrapping of Egyptian mummies was a popular pastime amongst the British elite of the nineteenth century. These “performances” attracted large crowds of up to 3,000 people, with each attendee paying an entrance fee. This fee often included attendees receiving a section of the unwrapped bandages as a souvenir (fig. 4). Writing in 1998, Montserrat (1998, 182) noted that the unwrapping of Egyptian mummies still fascinated people despite the practice of public unwrapping no longer being acceptable. This is still the case, as can be seen by the sold-out 2016 enactment of a Victorian unwrapping “party” at Barts Pathology Museum in London, led by the Egyptologist John Johnston. Several years prior, in 2011, Channel 4 aired the award-winning documentary Mummifying Alan, which carried the sub-title Egypt’s Last Secret. The documentary followed Alan Billis, who was diagnosed with terminal cancer, in the last few weeks of his life. Following his death, Alan was mummified using ancient Egyptian techniques, with opinions divided as to whether it was a “genuinely fascinating scientific experiment or a macabre and tasteless example of TV sensationalism.” This fascination with Egyptian mummies and the lives they represent led Montserrat (1998) to term them “erotics of biography.”

Fig. 4: Mummy cloth from an unwrapping party

The Egypt Centre’s policy on human remains is as follows:

10.1. As the Museum holds one item of human remains possibly under 100 years old (EC3445), it is listed on the database of the College of Medicine, Swansea University who has obtained the necessary licence under the Human Tissue Act 2004 and any subordinate legislation from time to time in force.

10.2. As the Museum also holds human remains from any period, it follows the procedures in the “guidance for the care of human remains in museums” issued by DCMS in 2005. Moreover, the Museum does not display any unwrapped human remains.

 

In total, the Egypt Centre holds twenty-two items that are catalogue as human remains. Point 10.2 of the Museum’s Collection Development Policy notes that the Egypt Centre does not display any unwrapped human remains, but does it really matter if they are wrapped or not? One of the highlights of the collection is the cartonnage mummy of a child (W1013), which is on display in the House of Death gallery (fig. 5). A recent CT-scan revealed that the cartonnage contained a 12–16 week old foetus. This begs the question, is it acceptable to display human remains if they are fully covered or concealed within their wrappings or coffins? Additionally, what is likely to be more upsetting to visitors, an unwrapped adult mummy or fully wrapped or enclosed mummified baby? Moreover, how does the Museum balance the views of its visitors, most of whom have no objections to the display of human remains? What the Egypt Centre strives to do is present appropriate interpretation labels next to objects identified as having the potential to cause distress. Additionally, the new Egypt Centre online catalogue includes a graphic stating “images depicting human remains only available on request” in place of a photograph of the object (fig. 6).

Fig. 5: Cartonnage containing a foetus (W1013)

The Egypt Centre staff frequently arrange tours of the museum store for volunteers, students, and occasionally members of the public. This is a unique opportunity for visitors to see those items in the collection that are not on display. What is most telling is that when given a choice of what to see, the majority of visitors request the mummified remains, both human and animal. Of course, when in groups, visitors are always warned in advance before viewing human remains in case they would rather opt out. This has been repeated during more recent virtual tours of the store via Zoom. Rather than complete mummies, these human remains largely consist of specific body parts, including heads, arms, and feet. Yet the most requested item amongst volunteers and students is a beautifully preserved mummified baby, which still has tufts of its hair. What does this tell us about the visitors? It is possible that the experience of many visitors seeing Egyptian mummies in museums has desensitised or normalised the idea that bodies of an ancient culture “belong” in museums.

Fig. 6: Restricted view of human remains on the Egypt Centre catalogue

If human remains are displayed, whether wrapped or unwrapped, what is the best practice? Antoine (2014, 7) notes that “the display of human remains in museums should, as far as possible, be informed and guided by current opinion as well as conceived with care, respect and dignity.” Unsurprisingly, “respect” is the most commonly used word to describe how human remains should be treated and displayed. Yet how does one determine what does and does not constitute respect? In 2008, Manchester University covered three unwrapped mummies with cloth, citing respect as their primary reason. Interestingly, Day (2014, 30) points out that the decision to cover the mummies was made without canvassing visitors’ views and that the majority of comments made after suggested that the public actually favoured them being uncovered. Marstine (2011, 19) raises an important point when she says that “an ancient Egyptian mummy is equally as deserving of respect as are human remains from the Second World War.” Interestingly, a 2002 survey (Kilminster 2003, 61) found that most people felt it would be disrespectful to display human remains that were less than 100 years old since they were “too close in time to us today” (Kilminster (2003, 61).

The Museums Association advise that museums should consult with the country of origin when displaying human remains. While the practice of displaying human remains in Egyptian museums has changed over time, the current policy is that mummies should be exhibited. This is certainly the case with the mummies of Ahmose II and Ramesses I at Luxor museum, which are displayed in a separate exhibition space. Visitors ascend several steps into a darkened room where labels and interpretation panels are minimal. This display creates a dignified and tranquil setting, which is befitting of these two great rulers (fig. 7). Just a few months ago the bodies of twenty-two kings and queens of Egypt’s New Kingdom (c. 1,550–1,100 BC) were relocated from the Cairo Museum to the newly built National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation (NMEC) in a spectacular “Golden Parade”. These actions show the upmost respect and honour afforded to the former rulers of Egyptian history by the current population. 

Fig. 7: The mummy of Ahmose II displayed at Luxor Museum

In formulating the decision as to whether museums should display human remains, various stakeholders should be consulted. This can include museum staff and officials, religious groups, researchers and students, people from the country of origin, and the general public. However, in the end the decision must be made by the individual museums, using their own judgement as to what best fits their museum. In the case of the Egypt Centre, the decision has been made not display unwrapped human remains since the Museum only has body parts rather than complete mummies. One group who has long been overlooked when discussing Egyptian mummies is the ancient Egyptians themselves. Would they have wanted their bodies to be displayed in museums for everyone to see? While this is somewhat impossible to answer, the following passage by Diodorus Siculus may suggest that the answer was probably yes.

“Many Egyptians keep the bodies of their ancestors in costly chambers and gaze face to face upon those who died many generations before their own birth” (Diodorus Siculus Book I, 91.7)

The Egyptians believed that it was of great importance for them to be remembered after death. The importance of the name to the ancient Egyptians is best illustrated in the Instruction of Papyrus Insinger, dating to the Graeco-Roman Period, which includes the line “the renewal of life for the dead is leaving his name on earth behind him” (Taylor 2001, 23). At the Egypt Centre, an interpretation panel is located in the House of Death, which contains the names of the ancient Egyptians that can be found inscribed on the objects in the collection (fig. 8). Visitors are encouraged to recite the offering formula (an ancient Egyptian prayer), thus ensuring that the named individual receive sustenance in the afterlife.

“To speak the name of the dead is to make him live again” (Desroches-Noblecourt 1963, 27)

Fig. 8: List of named individuals in the Egypt Centre

Bibliography

Antoine, Daniel (2014) ‘Curating human remains in museum collections. Broader considerations and a British Museum perspective.’ In Alexandra Fletcher, Daniel Antoine, & J. D. Hill (eds) Regarding the dead: Human remains in the British Museum, 3–9. British Museum Occasional Publication 197. British Museum Press: London.

Day, Jasmine (2014) ‘“Thinking makes it so”: reflections on the ethics of displaying Egyptian mummies,’ Papers on Anthropology 23 (1), 29–44.

Desroches-Noblecourt, Christiane (1963) Tutankhamen: Life and death of a pharaoh. London: The Connoisseur and Michael Joseph.

Diodorus Siculus (1933) Diodorus of Sicily, book I, Loeb Classical Library. Translated by Charles Henry Oldfather. London: W. Heinemann.

Kilmister Hugh (2003) ‘Visitor perceptions of ancient Egyptian human remains in three United Kingdom museums,’ Papers from the Institute of Archaeology 14: 57–69.

Marstine, Janet (2011) ‘The contingent nature of the new museum ethics.’ In Janet Marstine (ed) The Routledge companion to museum ethics. Redefining ethics for the twenty-first-century museum, 3–25. Routledge: London; New York, NY.

Montserrat, Dominic (1998) ‘Unidentified human remains: mummies and the erotics of biography.’ In Dominic Montserrat (ed) Changing bodies, changing meanings: Studies on the human body in antiquity, 162–197. Routledge: London; New York, NY.

Taylor, John H. (2001) Death and the afterlife in ancient Egypt. British Museum Press: London.