Reviews

The Mummy Congress: Science, Obsession, and the Everlasting Dead by Heather Pringle

ehmannky's review

4.0

A fascinating overview of humanity's global fascination with mummies told by the scientists, anthropologists and researchers who dedicated their lives to the study and care of the ancient dead. Going in, I thought this book would focus on Egyptian mummies only, and be more of a general overview of the world's (though mostly white Europe and America's) obsession with them. I was so wrong--the book spends surprisingly little time in Egypt for a book about mummies. Pringle goes from Egypt to China to Chile and to dusty attics in America to find out why these ancients were preserved. But more importantly, she turns a critical eye on what these ancient dead mean to us religiously, culturally, and personally. It was a fascinating book, and I was glad she spent a significant time detailing the western imperialism and colonialism that has dominated so much of the world's understandings of mummies.

The only reason it wasn't a five star book for me is that I object to the way that the process of natural decay is portrayed as a violent act. I don't believe in romanticizing natural processes, but it made me vaguely uncomfortable as someone who believes humans should embrace their mortality read. But that's what Caitlin Doughty's books are for, I suppose.