Burial Traditions
...ers and toes are individually wrapped. The limbs are wrapped separate from the body. Different amulets are such placed in between layers of wrapping to protect the body in its journey though the underworld. The Egyptians believed each amulet held a certain job that it would accomplish for the body. Two of the amulets are the ‘Isis knot’ which would protect the body, and the ‘Plummet’ amulet which would keep the person balanced in the next life. A priest then reads spells while the mummy is being wrapped. The spells would help ward off evil spirits to allow a safe journey to the afterlife. The hands and legs are then tied together and the “Book of the Dead” is placed between the wrapped hands. More linen strips are put around the body. The bandages are painted with resin to help seal the bandages together. A cloth is wrapped around the body and then a picture of the god Osiris is painted on its surface. Another large cloth is wrapped around the mummy. It is attached with strips of linen. The mummy is put inside a coffin and that coffin is put inside a second coffin. A funeral is held for the deceased, and his family mourns his death. A ritual called the 'Opening of the Mouth' is performed, allowing the deceased to eat and drink again. Finally, the body and its coffins are placed inside a large stone sarcophagus in the tomb along with furniture, clothing, and valuable objects. Food and drink are also arranged in the tomb for the deceased. Now his body is ready for its journey through the underworld into his afterlife. While in the underworld his heart is be judged by his good deeds on earth. If his heart is found to be pure he will be sent to live for all eternity in the beautiful 'Field of Reeds'. Ancient Greece According to ancient Greek belief, when a person died, his or her vital breath or psyche left the body to enter the palace of Hades, king of the dead. The spirit, once it had fled the body, existed merely as a phantom image. The wall separating the living from the dead was virtually impenetrable. Originally people did not believe that things you did on earth, good or bad, affected what your life after death was going to be like. Later, in Classical Times, different secret cults began to promise the people a life of goodness after death. Eventually the spirit or psyche became a true soul, which meant to them that it was separate from the body but still served as the source of personality and the head leader of life's important moral decisions. Burial rituals became very important because of what happened in the after life. Feasts were the main way of honoring the dead. Most Greek cities placed their cemeteries along the main roads outside the city walls in order to avoid disease and pollution to the spirit of the living. The bodies were cremated before burial or buried intact. Tombs grew complex over time. Multiple burials in underground rooms, hills, and stone-built tombs above ground appear by the Archaic Period. They were buried with g...