Big Question: Are there any modern mummies?

The practice of mummification isn't confined in history to ancient Egypt. Modern times have also seen a few mummies. After Howard Carter's discovery of King Tutankhamen's tomb in 1922, the practice of mummification piqued the curiosity of many. Shortly after Soviet leader Vladimir Ilyich Lenin died in 1924, his body was preserved by a secret process that requires ongoing maintenance, and his body was put on public view. Until the country's "de-Stalinization" process, Josef Stalin's corpse was also similarly preserved and displayed. (The former leader's corpse has since been moved to a less-conspicuous tomb.) The Russians periodically dip Lenin's body in preservatives and dress it in a waterproof suit to retain these fluids. Modern mummification isn't only for the men. Looking to preserve the corpse of his wife (Argentina's Eva Peron), Argentine dictator Juan Peron had its bodily fluids replaced with wax, resulting in a lifelike appearance.

Comments
Comments

Comments ( )