Funerals

After the body had been mummified, the opening of the mouth ceremony was performed. This ceremony was thought to let the mummy hear, see, eat, and drink in the spirit world. A few days after the opening of the mouth ceremony, the body was put in a wooden coffin and taken to a temple near the tomb on a fake boat called a bier.

Professional mourners commonly were hired to cry and yell during the procession to the tomb. Sometimes they would throw dust and ash. When a pharaoh died hordes of mourners were hired.

Magic spells were often painted on the sarcophagus to protect the mummy from grave robbers and anything else that might harm it. All the different gods and goddesses of the dead were assigned to protect the different parts of the body. The mummy was put in four coffins: the inner coffin, the middle coffin, the outer coffin, and the sarcophagus.

Shabti (see How) were put in the wrappings, but only if the person could afford mummification. Farming tools were also put in the wrappings to be used by the mummy in the next world.

The ceremony took close to five days from the last of the embalming to the sealing of the tomb. After that, the final blessings were performed on the tomb and the mummy before sealing it forever.