3,500 year old balm unearthed in Egyptian mummy offers “sensory bridge to the ancient past”

04 Sep 2023 --- Researchers have recreated a scent used in mummifying an Egyptian noblewoman who lived thousands of years ago. The found balms were the “richest, most complex” yet identified from the time period, and could serve as inspiration from the past for today’s perfumers.

By creating the smells, researchers hope to provide a multisensory experience to visitors exploring history, allowing them to connect with the past through a “uniquely olfactory day” that “bridges a deep temporal divide.”

“While the scent we recreated primarily serves as an ambiance scent, capturing the aura and essence of ancient burial practices, it does possess aromatic qualities that can inspire modern perfumers,” Barbara Huber, Doctoral Researcher at the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, tells Personal Care Insights.

Huber says that “it’s worth noting” that the mummification balms, though fragrant, weren’t used as perfumes in the way we understand them today.

“Nonetheless, their unique combination of ingredients can provide a spark of inspiration for creating contemporary fragrances that bridge the old with the new.” 

“Smelling the recreated scent was truly a unique experience. It was like being transported back in time. For me the scent wasn’t just a blend of ingredients; it was a story, a piece of history and a testament to the human desire for transcendence and remembrance.” 

Dammar resin, an ingredient used in embalming, next to a bottle of the ancient scent recreated by perfumer Carole Calvez. (Image Credits: Barbara Huber).The aroma will be presented at the Moesgaard Museum, Denmark, from October 13. 

Residues of an ancient aroma
Researchers took samples from two canopies, or jars, that used to contain some of the noblewoman organs – lungs and liver – and found they had residues of beeswax, plant oils, animal fats, bitumen (a naturally occurring petroleum product) and resins from the family of coniferous trees, including pines and larches. 

Moreover, aromatics coumarin and benzoic acid were found in both samples.

“Coumarin has a vanilla-like scent and is found in a wide range of plants, including cinnamons and pea plants, while benzoic acid occurs in fragrant resins and gums obtained from several types of trees and shrubs,” according to the researchers.

The new find harkens to a similar discovery last July, when Spain-based researchers unearthed a perfume dating back to Roman times, which they studied for its chemical composition.

French perfumer aid
The researchers worked closely with French perfumer Carole Calvez, who helped recreate the scent with sensory museologist Sofia Collette Ehrich.

“The ‘scent of eternity’ represents more than just the aroma of the mummification process,” notes Huber. 

“It embodies the rich cultural, historical and spiritual significance of Ancient Egyptian mortuary practices,” Calvez adds. 

The process to reach the recreated scent took months to get a historically accurate aroma. The results were a “sensory bridge to the ancient past,” according to Huber.

Far-reaching global ingredients
Ancient Egypt’s supply chains were more complex than one could think beforehand, with ingredients coming from as far as Southeast Asia’s tropical forest. 

“These complex and diverse ingredients, unique to this early time period, offer a novel understanding of the sophisticated mummification practices and Egypt’s far-reaching trade routes,” says Christian Loeben, Egyptologist and curator at the Museum August Kestner.One of the canopies that contained Senetnay’s organs. Senetnay was the wet nurse of Pharaoh Amenhotep II. (Image Credits: Nature).

According to the researchers, the work highlights the far-reaching trade connections Ancient Egypt had access to, from larch tree resin, likely from the northern Mediterranean, to dammars, which come exclusively from trees in Southeast Asian tropical forests. 

“The ingredients in the balm make it clear that the ancient Egyptians were sourcing materials from beyond their realm from an early date,” says professor Nicole Boivin, senior researcher on the project.

Scent of a woman
The research centered around the mummification substances used to embalm noble lady Senetnay in the 18th dynasty, circa 1450 BCE, which canopic jars were excavated over a century ago by legendary archeologist Howard Carter from the Valley of Kings – the jars are currently housed in the Museum August Kestner in Hannover, Germany.

Senetnay lived around a century before King Tut, the famous pharaoh whom Carter also excavated. She was the wet nurse of Pharaoh Amenhotep II and received an “extraordinarily privileged” treatment, according to the scientists, as being buried in the Valley of Kings was customarily reserved for pharaohs and powerful nobles. 

“When Senetnay died, only a small number of mummies received this kind of elaborate treatment,” highlight the researchers.

The researchers utilized advanced analytical techniques – including gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, high-temperature gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry – to reconstruct the substances “that helped to preserve and scent Senetnay for eternity.” 

By Marc Cervera