Photos from the Quest for Immortality

Here are some photos from my visit to the special exhibition Quest for Immortality - The World of Ancient Egypt in the National Museum of Singapore. 

There were a number of statues showcased in the exhibition. Some of their faces looked so life-like. Could not really remember what the statues are called!




Some of the statues are tiny, like this one here...

 

There were also some smaller pieces, dedicated to beauty. This is a tiny piece, probably less than 1.5 inches in height, that was used to apply kohl to the eyes. 


And of course, all ladies need jewelery no matter which year you were living in.


There are carvings...

 

...and stelae. Stalae are stone slabs with carvings for funerals. I guess they are probably like the tombstones that we know today.


From the exhibition, I had a sneak peak of the Ancient Egyption's extremely elaborate burial customs. They will go through the mummification process performed by a priest, where they removed internal organs, removed the brain through the nose, and cover the body with some form of chemicals. The body would then be wrapped in linen and burried in a stone or wooden sarcophagus or coffin (like the one below).


The internal organs are preserved in canopic jars, like this.


Scarabs or dung beetles are considered sacred in Egypt. They are sometimes put on the mummy before burial.


Most of the ancient Egyptians are also buried with the Book of the Dead. It is a book that describes the afterlife, and provides instructions on overcoming obstacles in the afterlife! It is written on papyrus and placed with the body. 


It was an interesting exhibition that provides insight to all things related to death in the Ancient Egypt. After the visit to the museum, we went for a walk around Fort Canning Park.


After seeing so much of the Egyptian's burial custom, it is only natural to snap a photo of the tombstone we saw in Fort Canning Green. I found out that the area used to be a Christian graveyard! I have been there various times for concerts and plays without knowing that. There are now only a few graves left (shown below) and some of the tombstones were set into the walls surrounding the area. No wonder they said that the place is haunted!


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