Embalming - History

History

Embalming has been practiced in many cultures. In classical antiquity, perhaps the ancient culture that had developed embalming to the greatest extent was that of Egypt, which developed the process of mummification. The Ancient Egyptians believed that preservation of the mummy empowered the soul after death, the latter of which would return to the preserved corpse.

According to Herodotus, the Macrobians, a people related to the Ancient Egyptians who inhabited parts of the Horn of Africa during the 1st millennium BC, also practised an elaborate form of embalming. This, in turn, suggested a knowledge on their part of anatomy and, at the very least, a grasp of the basics of chemistry. The Macrobians preserved the bodies of the dead by first extracting moisture from the corpses, then overlaying the bodies with a type of plaster, and finally decorating the exterior in vivid colors in order to imitate the deceased as realistically as possible. They then placed the body in a hollow crystal pillar, which they kept in their homes for a period of about a year.

In addition, the Incas and other cultures of Peru, carried out embalming rituals, as they lived in a climate which favoured a form of mummification.

Some of the best preserved bodies in the world are from Han dynasty China. It was thought that a special liquid in which the bodies were embedded (solutions containing mercury and antimony salts amongst others), may have been of a certain influence. The actual cause of the preservation—which started declining rapidly once the bodies were unearthed—was the very exceptional low temperature conditions obtained at the depths at which the tombs were located, under several layers of charcoal and clay, permitting ideal temperatures and humidity levels which were maintained throughout the seasons for centuries. These mummies are nowadays stored in special refrigerated chambers which simulate the original conditions in which they were discovered to prevent further acceleration of putrefaction.

Embalming in Europe has become much more common in the more industrialized regions. It was attempted from time to time, especially during the Crusades, when crusading noblemen wished to have their bodies preserved for burial closer to home. Embalming began to come back into practice in parallel with the anatomists of the Renaissance who needed to be able to preserve their specimens. Arterial embalming is believed to have been first practiced in the Netherlands in the 17th century by Frederik Ruysch but his liquor balsamicum preservative was kept a secret to the grave and his methods were not widely copied.

Contemporary embalming methods advanced markedly during the height of the British Empire and the American Civil War, which once again involved many foreign officials, business- and service-men dying far from home, and their families wishing them returned for local burial. Dr. Thomas Holmes received a commission from the Army Medical Corps to embalm the corpses of dead Union officers to return to their families. Military authorities also permitted private embalmers to work in military-controlled areas. The passage of Abraham Lincoln's body home for burial was made possible by embalming and it brought the possibilities and potential of embalming to a wider public notice.

In 1867, the German chemist August Wilhelm von Hofmann discovered formaldehyde, whose preservative properties were soon discovered and which became the foundation for modern methods of embalming, replacing previous methods based on alcohol and the use of arsenical salts.

In the 19th and early 20th centuries arsenic was frequently used as an embalming fluid but has since been supplanted by other more effective and less toxic chemicals. There were questions about the possibility of arsenic from embalmed bodies later contaminating ground water supplies. There were also legal concerns as people suspected of murder by arsenic poisoning could claim that the levels of poison in the deceased's body were a result of embalming post mortem rather than evidence of homicide.

Embalming is distinct from taxidermy. Embalming preserves the human body intact, whereas taxidermy is the recreation of an animal's form often using only the creature's skin mounted on an anatomical form.

Modern embalming is most often performed to ensure a better presentation of the deceased for viewing by friends and relatives – as everything else being equal, an embalmed body will look better than one that is unembalmed and putrefying. A successful viewing of the cadaver is considered by many credible authorities to be helpful in the grieving process. It allows the mourners to form a memory picture of the deceased. Embalming has the potential to prevent mourners from having to deal with the rotting and eventual putrescence of the corpse. This view has been challenged, however, by authors such as Jessica Mitford, who point out that there is no general consensus that viewing an embalmed corpse is somehow "therapeutic" to the bereaved, and that terms such as "memory picture" were invented by the undertakers themselves, who have a financial interest in selling the costly process of embalming to the public. She also points out that in many countries, embalming is rare, and that the populace of such countries are still able to grieve normally. Embalming is also a general legal requirement for international repatriation of human remains (although exceptions do occur) and by a variety of laws depending on locality, such as for extended time between death and final disposition or above ground entombment.

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