Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Lebanese Ministry of Health: Final toll from airstrike on car in Zebdine, Nabatieh District: Two martyrs, four injured
Egyptian media: Indirect talks between Hamas and Israelis begin in Sharm el-Sheikh.
AFP: France's new PM Sebastein Lecornu resigns just hours after unveiling cabinet.
Trump: Technical teams will meet again on Monday in Egypt to discuss and clarify the final details, and the first phase is scheduled to be completed this week
US President Donald Trump: Talks with Hamas have been very successful and are moving at a rapid pace
Local sources in Aleppo: Violent clashes erupt between the SDF and factions affiliated with the transitional authority on the Deir Hafer and Tishrin Dam fronts in the eastern Aleppo countryside
Israeli media: Interceptor missiles fired in an attempt to shoot down the drone
IOF Spokesperson: Sirens sounded amid suspected "enemy aircraft" infiltrating the Eilat area
Israeli media: "Israel" won the battle but lost the war strategically and politically
Israeli media: Ben Gurion Airport's airspace closed to air traffic following missile launch from Yemen

Researchers recreate balms used on ancient Egyptian mummy

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: The Guardian
  • 1 Sep 2023 14:20
  • 1 Shares
3 Min Read

Scientists name the perfume of the balm as "the scent of eternity."

  • x
  • Arts
    A canopic jar from the embalming of the noblewoman Senetnay (Museum August Kestner)

After experts discovered and replicated the aroma of balms used in the mummification of an ancient Egyptian noblewoman, museum visitors will be taken back more than 3,500 years, The Guardian reported.

Researchers analyzing the remains of balms used in the mummification of a noblewoman named Senetnay have not only discovered that many of their constituents came from outside Egypt, but they have also recreated their aroma.

"Senetnay’s mummification balm stands out as one of the most intricate and complex balms from that era," indicated Barbara Huber, the first author of the research from the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, as quoted by The Guardian.

According to the researchers, Senetnay lived about 1450 BC and worked as a wet nurse for Pharaoh Amenhotep II.

Howard Carter, the British archeologist who would later become famous for his part in unearthing Tutankhamun's tomb, uncovered Senetnay's canopic jars - vessels in which the deceased's mummified organs were housed - in a tomb in the Valley of the Kings in 1900.

Related News

Ancient village in Amazon possibly based on Pleiades star cluster

Homo naledi buried their dead in caves 100,000 years before humans

Huber and colleagues examined six samples of mummification balm remnants from within two jars that formerly housed Senetnay's lungs and liver, as indicated by Egyptian inscriptions.

The scientists discovered that the balms had a complex mixture of components, including fats and oils, beeswax, bitumen, resins from pine trees, coumarin, which has a vanilla-like aroma, and benzoic acid, which can be found in many plant sources, such as cinnamon and cloves. They noted that many of the ingredients would have had to be imported into Egypt.

However, not all of the components were present in both jars, suggesting that the balms were organ-specific, while the authors suggested that it was also possible that they were the same but were poorly blended or had deteriorated.

Huber went on to say that the team had reproduced the aroma of the balms with the help of a perfumer and that it will be featured in an exhibition at the Moesgaard Museum in Denmark this autumn.

The perfume of the balm has been dubbed "the scent of eternity."

On his part, William Tullett, a sensory history expert at the University of York who was not involved in the research, pointed out that recreating odors from history was critical to understanding the link between the past and the present, as cited The Guardian.

Read more: Ancient village in Amazon possibly based on Pleiades star cluster

  • ancient civilization
  • Ancient Egypt
  • Egypt
  • Mummies

Most Read

Iraq at a crossroads: A new war front?

Iraq at a crossroads: A new war front?

  • West Asia
  • 30 Sep 2025
A Hamas fighter in combat fatigues stands before the ceremony for the handover of Israeli captives to the Red Cross in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, February 22, 2025 (AP)

Hamas responds to Trump plan, backs Gaza withdrawal, exchange

  • Politics
  • 3 Oct 2025
Tucker Carlson speaks at a memorial for Charlie Kirk, Sunday, September 21, 2025, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona (AP)

Tucker Carlson: Israeli officers gave orders on Iran inside Pentagon

  • Politics
  • 2 Oct 2025
ap

'Israel' pays influencers $7K per post to whitewash Gaza genocide

  • Politics
  • 1 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Hezbollah's representative in Iran, Sayyed Abdullah Safieddine, during an interview with Al Mayadeen which aired on October 6, 2025 (Al Mayadeen)
Politics

Tehran never interferes in Hezbollah decisions: Representative in Iran

Smoke billows over the Gaza Strip following an Israeli bombardment, as seen from southern Palestine, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP)
Politics

Indirect talks for a ceasefire in Gaza begin in Sharm El-Sheikh: Egypt

Fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) prepare to attend a military parad in Qamishli, northeastern Syria, Tuesday, August 12, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Security forces seal Aleppo’s Sheikh Maqsoud, Ashrafieh districts

Amsterdam Captain Mohammed Ali Mohiuddin, who took part in the Global Sumud mission to Gaza, talks to Al Mayadeen on October 6, 2025 (Screengrab)
Politics

GSF captain says despite abuse, 'Israel weaker than spider's web'

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS