COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — This week, NBC4 Today anchor Monica Day learns about mummification from COSI’s Joe Wood.
You can try your own mummification project at home using a hot dog. You can read the instructions for the project by scrolling down.
To learn more about COSI and the Tutankhamun exhibit visit https://cosi.org/kingtut . Reserve your tickets to the King Tut exhibition now, tickets are separate from general admission.
ACTIVITY: Mummify a Hot Dog
People from all over the world are fascinated by mummification – a process that preserves a corpse. Some cultures have developed methods of mummifying their dead, perhaps most notably ancient Egyptians. An important part of the process they used was desiccation or drying out of the body. In this activity, you will use baking soda to desiccate a hot dog.
Materials
- Airtight plastic container such as Tupperware with a lid
- Fresh Baking Soda
- Hot dog
- Ruler
- String
Instructions
- Observe your hot dog. What does it look like? How does it smell? Measure its length and circumference. To find the circumference, wrap your string around the hot dog and measure the length of string needed to go all the way around. Write down all of your observations and measurements.
- Cover the bottom of your Tupperware container with about an inch baking soda.
- Place the hot dog on top of the baking soda in the Tupperware container.
- Cover the hot dog with another layer of baking soda.
- Place the hot dog in a dark indoor out-of-the-way location – maybe in a cabinet.
- Leave it there without disturbing it for about 7 days.
- After 7 days, grab your notes from your early observations and take out your hot dog. Observe the hot dog. Take notes. What does it look like? How does it smell? Measure its length and circumference. What has changed? Why do you think that is?
- Optional: Allow it to mummify for another week or even two. Be sure to add fresh baking soda and observe the changes when the week is over.
- When finished, throw away the hot dog.
Some cultures have developed methods of mummifying their dead, perhaps most notably ancient Egyptians. Part of the process includes covering and stuffing the body with natron, a naturally occurring mixture that includes both salt and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda).
Natron is a desiccant – it removes the moisture from its surroundings. Why does a desiccant help out with mummification? It helps to create an environment that bacteria cannot live in, thus preventing decay. In this activity, baking soda absorbed the moisture from your hot dog, causing it to shrivel up and shrink in size.
You also probably noticed a change in color and a bad smell coming from the hot dog. Mummification is not always intentional. Under certain conditions, mummification of bodies can occur naturally. For example, mummification can occur in cold, dry caves. It also happens naturally in acidic peat bogs, which lack oxygen.
