cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/26785902

If you were asked to describe the scent emanating from an ancient Egyptian mummy like you’d discuss a high-end perfume or the bouquet of a fine wine, you might mention fragrance notes of old linen, pine resin and citrus oils—with just a whiff of pest repellent.

These vivid comparisons stem from a new laboratory analysis of nine mummies from various social classes and historical periods. Researchers from Slovenia, England, Poland and Egypt collaborated with the Egyptian Museum in Cairo to identify more than 50 unique compounds from air samples taken around each mummy. The samples were chemically analyzed and then presented to specially trained human “sniffers,” who were asked to describe them in descriptive, sensory language such as “sour” or “spicy.” The team’s findings, recently published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, demonstrate how the study of smell can help to enrich our understanding of cultural artifacts such as mummies in a noninvasive way that includes local scientists.

Can we expect to grab a bottle of mummy perfume from the museum shop soon? The researchers say this might not be off the table. “Everyone would like to smell like ancient Egyptians: sweet, woody and spicy,” Elnaggar jokes. “What we’d like to do now is to share our experience with museum visitors so they can enjoy it in exhibition—and even take it home!”