Dammar resin, an ingredient in embalming, next to a bottle of the ancient scent recreated by perfumer Carole Calvez based on scientific analyses. Credit: Barbara Huber
Key points:
- Researchers recreated the scent of the ancient Egyptian process of mummification.
- The team used chromatography and mass spectrometry to highlight residues found in two jars in the tomb of the noble lady Senetnay in the 18th dynasty, circa 1450 BCE.
- The scent is on display in a unique olfactory experience at the Moesgaard Museum in Denmark.
Researchers at Max Planck Institute have recreated one of the scents used in the mummification of an important Egyptian woman more than 3,500 years ago. Coined “the scent of the eternity,” the ancient aroma will be presented at the Moesgaard Museum in Denmark in an upcoming exhibition.
The team’s research centered on the mummification substances used to embalm the noble lady Senetnay in the 18th dynasty, circa 1450 BCE. Analyzing balm residues found in two canopic jars from Senetnay’s mummification equipment, the team found a blend of beeswax, plant oil, fats, bitumen, Pinaceae resins (most likely larch resin), a balsamic substance, and dammar or Pistacia tree resin.
“Our methods were also able to provide crucial insights into balm ingredients for which there is limited information in contemporary ancient Egyptian textual sources,” said lead study author Barbara Huber of the MPI of Geoanthropology.
The work also highlights the trade connections of the Egyptians in the 2nd millennium BCE.
“The ingredients in the balm make it clear that the ancient Egyptians were sourcing materials from beyond their realm from an early date,” said Nicole Boivin, senior researcher on the project. “The number of imported ingredients in her balm also highlights Senetnay’s importance as a key member of the pharaoh’s inner circle.”
Among those imported ingredients were larch tree resin, which likely came from the northern Mediterranean, and possibly dammars, which come exclusively from trees in Southeast Asian tropical forests. If the presence of dammar resin is confirmed, as in balms recently identified from Saqqara dating to the 1st millennium BCE, it would suggest that the ancient Egyptians had access to this Southeast Asian resin via long-distant trade almost a millennium earlier than previously known.
In creating this smell for museum display, the team hopes to help provide an immersive, multisensory experience to visitors, allowing them to connect with the past in a uniquely olfactory way, while bringing the mystique of Ancient Egyptian mummification to the modern day.
“'The scent of eternity’ represents more than just the aroma of the mummification process,” said Huber. “It embodies the rich cultural, historical, and spiritual significance of Ancient Egyptian mortuary practices.”