MUMMIFICATION

JOURNEY JOURNAL... Salt Lake City, Utah

A NEIGHBORHOOD ATTRACTION

Pretend you are standing in a residential district at the corner of Genesee Ave and S 700 W/S 7^th West, on a road alongside a major elevated highway.  What do you see? But, of course, a pyramid!  

Yes, contained on groomed property enclosed by a foliage-enhanced fence with colorful floral highlights, this imposing, triangular-sided structure dominates the landscape. 

Indeed, this is an unusual replica of stone versions from ancient times, but you may not want to forgo a trip to Egypt to observe the original pyramids that typically served as tombs for mummified bodily remains.  However, if a modern approach to mummification appeals to you, this is the place where you can send your body… right here in your own country.  

Operated by followers of the Summa religion and philosophy, the Summum organization's facility can be utilized for a unique preservation technique combined with rites of transference to the next plane of a soul’s existence. 

                                      

So far, pets have been the primary subjects, but the process is available for humans as well.  

Expect to leave your body here for a period of several months for physical and spiritual ministrations.  During this time it will be bathed and smothered in lanolin creams between soaking phases.  Submersion in a tank filled with a chemical preservative solution continues for extended time periods to achieve saturation. Also, in accordance with vestigial practices, organs are removed for cleansing before being readmitted to the abdominal cavity.   Many layers of gauze are wrapped around the body before polyurethane, fiberglass, and resin are used to effect an enclosed membrane that toughens and provides a permanent seal.

After the preparatory steps, a body may be placed in a molded shell (an art form casket) cast in bronze or stainless steel and made according to someone’s specifications, including options for creative embellishment.  Otherwise, a streamlined capsule can be used in conjunction with a commercially available stainless steel or bronze casket that conforms to certain requisites.    

The end result is a supple and lifelike body with retained pigments of skin, hair, and eyes, as opposed to the dried specimens of antiquity.  DNA purportedly remains intact.  The final resting place might be within a cemetery vault under controlled conditions or in an underground protective mausoleum.   

So if you do, indeed, travel to Egypt and upon being amazed by the wondrous pyramids you develop a case of mummy envy, let your thoughts get bound up in the possibilities back home!

The Process of Mummification

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