What is a Fruity Pharaoh?

That depends on who you ask. To the kids, a Fruity Pharaoh is a recently-deceased Egyptian king that has been properly mummified to ensure an eternal afterlife. To people with less active imaginations, it's a potato-headed orange that has been preserved by drying.

In this simulation, kids participate in all the stages of an ancient Egyptian mummification, from removal of the organs to placing the mummy in the tomb, and they reenact these funerary customs the same way (or extremely close, anyway!) that the Egyptians did it. While pretending to be ancient embalmers, masons, scribes, artisans, and mourners, students will:

• Remove the organs from the body
• Clease the body with spices and simulated wine
• Dry the body and organs in simulated natron
• Sculpt canopic jars, amulets, and shabtis for the mummy
• Create a copy of The Book of the Dead
• Make a senet game board for the mummy's afterlife entertainment
• Build a coffin from simulated cartonnage
• Make a funeral mask
• Decorate the coffin and mask with paints created using Egyptian techniques
• Wrap the mummy in bandages
• Participate in a funeral procession

Many supplies are needed. Some are one-time purchases, others may last a few years, and some need to be replaced yearly. You may want to send a letter home prior to the beginning of the unit asking parents to donate materials. So do some price checking and add what you need to next year's budget!

Like with any lesson, this one requires preparation.

Teach about mummification first...

Start by having your students read our All About Mummies pages to get background knowledge. You can either do this in a computer lab or print the pages and photocopy them so that each student has their own copy. I plan on about three days for this because as we read it in class, the kids start getting really excited about mummification and want to talk about it!

 

...Then start embalming!

The second part is the reenactment phase where the concepts discussed in class are reinforced. For the next several weeks, your students will find themselves role-playing several positions of Egyptian society.

Ready to make mummies? Then CLICK HERE to go to the first activity of the simulation!