Egyptian belief and modern thought / by James Bonwick.

  • James Bonwick
Date:
1878
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Egyptian belief and modern thought / by James Bonwick. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    later days, the face was painted, to assume the rosy hue of health, but at other times was gilded over, waxed, or enamelled. There was a rapid decline in mummy treat- ment upon the conquest of Egypt by the Persians. After Christianity appeared, embalming gradually disappeared. St. Anthony did his best against it, by threatening eter- nal fires to all mummied persons. Dr. Birch says, “ It has been calculated that about 420,000,000 bodies have been thus preserved.” Mummies, during the Middle Ages, were in request for medicinal purposes. Even Lord Bacon admitted their use in the staunching of blood, A slight reference may be permitted to the funeral cus- toms of the Greeks and Romans, by way of contrast. None were buried within the city precincts during the historic era. According to Cicero, the Greeks buried in the time of Cecrops ; but they burnt in the age of Homer. Spartans and Sicyonians usually buried. Lucian writes. The Greeks burn, the Persians bury, the Indians anoint with the fat of swine, the Scythian eats, and the Egyptian embalms.” The burning took place on the pile, and the fire was quenched with wine. The tombs for the clay or glass coffins, or vases of ashes, were underground, in the hypogea, or Roman conditoria. Funeral monuments were pillars, columns, temple-like edifices, and menses or flat stone tables. The inscription gave name, trade, city, and prominent events of life. There were offerings to the dead, anniversary sacrifices at the tomb, and wakes or banquets after a funeral. Food was often presented to the ghost of the departed, and then solemnly burnt. The Romans at first buried their dead. Even Marius was so interred. But burning was known as early as the Twelve Tables, though only general later on in the Republic. A child that had not cut a tooth was pro- hibited the fire. During the burning, ornaments, clothing.