Maronite Mummies - Importance

Importance

1. These are the first (and perhaps the only) mummies of the Maronite people ever to be discovered. According to Guita G. Hourani, who has written about the discovery, "the degree of preservation of some of the mummified bodies" is "astonishing."
2. Strikingly, many similarities exist between the burial of the Maronite mummies and some present-day Lebanese burials. For example, one of the infants had long strands of its mother's hair between its toes. According to local tradition in some areas of Lebanon today, a mother whose child dies will pull out her hair in lamentation while kissing the feet of her deceased child. Clearly this practice seems to have carried through the centuries. Similarly, today in Lebanon, when the last member of a family dies, the key to the family house is thrown over the roof, indicating that no one will live in the house again. The presence of a key in the 'Asi-al Hadath cave may also indicate that the last member of a family had died there as well.
3. Perhaps the most interesting artifacts are the textiles. These were not only worn by the mummies, they were also scattered about the cave. Their robes, made from heavy cotton, are embroidered with squares and diamonds of crosses and flowers, which strongly resemble kilim patterns of Turkish nomads.