Mummies of the World

This compelling book provides a historical, cultural and scientific look at mummies and mummification and proves that fact is as compelling as fiction. As the companion catalogue to the Mummies of the World exhibition, this book features mummies from a variety of natural environments and several cultures, including Asia, Oceania, South America, Europe and Ancient Egypt.

The book reveals not only many of the techniques that ancient cultures used to preserve the bodies of the dead, but also the many natural processes leading to the preservation of bodies in desert sands, ice or acidic bogs, or even in attics.

Nearly thirty scientific essays, with outstanding photographs and illustrations, bring together the latest research in mummy studies, with contributions from archaeology, anthropology, palaeopathology, biology and many other disciplines. With dignity and reverence, this volume shares the hidden information contained within the mummies.