Mummy In Popular Culture

Several well-known historical films such as The Mummy, Disney’s Pocahontas, Gladiator, Marie Antoinette and Shakespeare in Love are often portrayed based on stereotypes where historical people and events are altered for the sole purpose of entertainment. Take for example the film, The Mummy (1999), which was set in ancient Egypt. The mysterious and yet thrilling element of mummies associated with the belief of curses, along with the Egyptian culture, beliefs and architecture enthrall people to this specific genre. Although The Mummy (1999) teems with suspense and anticipation, it is embellished with false facts and distorts the ancient Egyptian culture to captivate the viewers. Not only did the film manipulate several ancient Egyptian facts

Various pieces of art found thousands of years ago depict characters based on certain events and legends. I will be analyzing two works of art: The Sound Box of the Great Lyre, a wooden music box (33 x 11 cm) found in present-day Iraq c. 2600-2500 BCE, and Lapith Fighting a Centaur, a high metope relief (1.42 m) on the side of the Parthenon in Ancient Greece c. 447-432 BCE. The former represents a bull with a low relief under its head, depicting animals mimicking the lifestyle of humans. The latter exemplifies a nude man struggling against a mythical creature that is half-man half-horse2. Although these works are from across the world with completely different cultures, they both have similar

Monsters are challenges that the human race must overcome. In Jeffrey Cohen’s essay “Monster Culture,” Cohen reasserts the presence of the monstrous within society, and its relation to different cultures in a specific time period. All of Cohen’s seven thesis makes sensible arguments that gives the audience a glimpse on what his purpose is. Each thesis are presented differently, but Cohen correlates his ideas to explain the monster’s true existence. The convergence of intellectualism makes a strong connection between Cohen’s appeal to pathos. Cohen utilizes emotion in his writing to mainly appeal to his audience, and give them an idea on what goes on behind the monster’s identity. The final thesis “The Monster Stands at the Threshold of Becoming”

On September 19, 2015 I visited the Blanton Museum of Art at the University of Texas in Austin, where I observed The Raising of Lazarus by Joachim Wtewael in the European Old Masters gallery. The piece recreates the biblical narrative of Lazarus’ resurrection and demonstrates the exorbitant style of Mannerism popular during the 16th century. Wtewael establishes the significance of the Christ with his application of form through the use of unrealistic contortions of the people, the lines following the exaggerated limbs of the congregation, and the abundant use of the color red on almost every article of clothing.

Some people out there would disagree with me. Some people would say that Digging out a lost cities secrets articles is better because it tells about history , and that it's better because of that it tells more. But the skeleton article tells more about the human body and its history as well. To me it's more interesting to learn about the hands that made the artifacts of history than the artifacts themselves. er than the others is that it shows the problems of studying bones from long ago. In the text it states, “‘ These early skeletons are so rare we have to really get as much information as we can from them.’” This shows that there is an problem in finding the historical

I was surprised because I never thought that cadavers were used for anything other than being buried, cremated, or for medicine. The most surprising thing that I read was that cadavers were used as art. This surprised me the most because I did not think that cadavers being put in poses on display could be popular or beneficial to people. Seeing all of the different ways that cadavers are used was both interesting and thought-provoking. Simply, the use of cadavers allows one to choose a more rewarding option that will allow him/her to serve and benefit fellow humans not only in life but death as well. After reading the book, I have reconsidered the options available to me when I

Mummification is an ancient egyptian burial rite that is centered around preparing the soul of the deceased for the afterlife. There are multiple steps involved in the process of mummification and several objects with different functions used to perform this burial rite. Mummification is centered around the thought that death was merely physical and your soul continued living, with the ability to take distinct action, in the afterlife. Everyone desired to be mummified, however the extent of the mummification depended on the wealth of the family involved. Mummification was also generally not a rite reserved for criminals and lawbreakers since the idea behind mummification is for the deceased to have an easier afterlife.

4. What is the first surprise that scholars find when they begin to excavate the skeletons? Why was this surprising?

Masks of deceased persons are part of traditions in many countries. The most important process of the funeral ceremony in ancient Egypt was the mummification of the body, which, after prayers and consecration, was put into a sarcophagus enameled and decorated with gold and gems. A special element of the rite was a sculpted mask, put on the face of the deceased. This mask was believed to strengthen the spirit of the mummy and guard the soul from evil spirits on its way to the afterworld.

Modern figurines of art stem directly from the hands of the ancient’s. The organic forms of modernly sculpted artifacts can most likely be directly referenced to the movements of prehistoric artworks. There seems to be an ongoing transition on how cultures no matter how stretched apart through time, contrasted by ethnicity or religious views; can all be somewhat related to each other by the methods or principles portrayed through their artworks. In fact, I saw that very transition; within two works in which are extremely different in meaning, craftsmanship, time, culture and so on. However, I was still able to find similarities within the artifacts. In this paper I will examine Venus of Willendorf, a Paleolithic carving in limestone; which can fit in the palm of one’s hand. As well as, The Sacrifice of Chacmool, which are a plethora of Mesoamerican statues emulating rituals of sacrifice.

However, it is still important to realize how taxidermy collections compare to new modern technology, which changed the way people are educated about nature and the wildlife it encompasses. “The process of preserving skins can be traced back to the beginnings of civilization, and despite changing social attitudes to the display and use of an animal's dead body, a great deal of information is gained annually by the study of this preserved material assembled in museum collections (“Types of Collections”, natsca.org).” Taxidermy collections are so diverse in subjects from game animals, to pachyderms, and even to the smallest of insects. The diverse collections hold within them great research potential, including a world of excitement and liveliness not expected from something dead. The advantages taxidermy has over growing technology not only lies in its overwhelming amount of information it provides, but the legitimate aura of realism it gives off. Mariel Carr said it best, “And I have to say even today when I can easily look up thousands of photographs of these animals online there’s something thrilling about standing inches away from a polar bear who could definitely kill me if alive.” When trying to educate people, captivation is key. It gets the audience to listen, recognize, and address the issues or themes trying to be expressed. Taxidermy

How does having land mean to you? How do you think of it? How do you treat it? Over what has seemed to have been an endless amount of years, humans have been around on this planet, opinions and perspectives on the meaning of land have reworked constantly. Not only do these opinions and perspectives rework over years, but they vary from group to group as well. People who lived in the Mummy era have a monstrous chance of having a different view than people who might have grown up in the Roman Empire era. In the pictures depicted on the previous pages, we see that there is a definite change in the use of land due to spiritual beliefs and human evolution.

For thousands of centuries, Japanese artists had been breaking the boundaries with their relentless creations of shocking pieces that made people question if there was a life after death. The popular subject of restless spirits or dark beings drove many artists from the Heian Period to modern-day times to express their stylistic techniques and narrative stories through woodblock printing and other alternative forms of art. Unlike most Western art, Japan’s disturbing representations of decaying bodies and death did not promote unrealistic, commercial expectations of death that commonly exists in art today. While handling such abstract ideas of the afterlife alongside the uncensored authenticity of death, each piece arouses fear and empathy for

The mummies curse did not simply originate from one rumor or one story, it originated from a conglomeration of a variety of different sources each with a different version of the tale. One story that was influential in the establishment of the curse was the story of Douglas Murray and his mummy case, with the painting of the image of a priestess of Amen-Ra in the 1860s, that brought death and misfortune to all that came into contact with the story retaining its notability through the Victorian era to the early twentieth century. The second rumor originated from the death of Walter Ingram whose father founded the Illustrated London New in 1842 where, soon after his death, the newspaper became one of the most influential media outputs

Throughout history, the mummy has been stereotyped as no more than an egyptian deceased wrapped in cloth, whose spirit returns from the dead in order to haunt mankind. However, as literature and mythology present, Mummies exist in modern context promptly as scorned lovers, scientists, past rulers, wronged souls, or a combination of all. In deconstructing the Mummy, the statement of “We are creatures that require social interaction” often comes to mind. After all, even in death we are infrequently capable of surviving without the companionship of family, loved ones, friends, or the presence of another soul.