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WD_343/ 2007
(  Satoshi Kinoshita )
| Series: | Works on paper: Drawings 4 | | Medium: | oilstick on paper | | Size (inches): | 25.6 x 17.7 | | Size (mm): | 650 x 450 | | Catalog #: | WD_0343 | | Description: | Signed, date and copyright in pencil on the reverse.
Kahlbutz died at the age of 52 and was laid to rest in a double coffin in the family tomb.
-en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Friedrich_von_Kahlbutz
Christian Friedrich von Kahlbutz -
Christian Friedrich von Kahlbutz (born 1651 in Kampehl, Brandenburg; died 1702 in Kampehl) was a Prussian knight, who is today most famous because of the state of preservation of his body; no noticeable mummification process was used upon his death. Today the mummified corpse is a tourist attraction.
Background:
According to local legend, "Knight Kalebuz," as he was known, frequently exercised the right of droit de seigneur. He had eleven children of his own and at least thirty other illegitimate children. While exercising this "right" in July 1690, he chose the bride of a shepherd from Bückwitz. She refused him and because of the laws governing the right of first night, he murdered the shepherd. Although there were no witnesses, the shepherd's bride, Maria Leppin, accused Kahlbutz of the murder and took him to court in Dreetz (Brandenburg). As an aristocrat he had special rights and could swear an oath of innocence before the court in order to free himself. Kahlbutz did this and was immediately acquitted.
Kahlbutz died at the age of 52 and was laid to rest in a double coffin in the family tomb. In 1783 the last of the von Kahlbutz line died. While the church of Kampehl was being renovated in 1794 the coffins in the church were going to be buried in the cemetery like all the other coffins. When the coffins were opened it was discovered that all of the corpses except that of the Knight Kahlbutz had decayed.
Legend:
The local populace quickly found an explanation for the Mummy of the Knight of Kahlbutz. They said that it was God's punishment for the murder of the shepherd. It had been said that Kahlbutz had sworn before the court, "It was not I, otherwise after my death my body will not decay".
Natural mummification:
Several tests have been done on the mummy of the knight trying to figure out why a body that apparently was not embalmed has not undergone the natural decay process. Rudolf Virchow and Ferdinand Sauerbruch tested the mummy as well as Charitę, the largest university hospital in Europe, in the 1890's, but all without success. It remains a mystery as to why Kahlbutz' corpse has not decayed, but indeed there are a few other similar cases where the natural decay process has not affected the individual.
The natural decay process of a corpse can be stopped or retarded under certain circumstances, where the corpse becomes leathery. Air conditions surrounding the body as well as the condition of the ground in which it is buried are most often contributing factors. Absolute dryness, local radioactivity, or other ground factors such as acidity or salts. Also hermetically sealed coffins without steadily moving air can contribute. Likewise a small ingestion of poisonous medicines, i.e. very small quantities innocuous to an individual, during one's lifetime can aid in the mummification process after death. These kinds of substances are not readily detectable long after death though since the fat and water in the corpse changes and evaporates over the course of time.
The mummy today:
Today it is accepted that Kahlbutz suffered from some kind of illness, which caused an emaciation of his body. Possible diseases that he suffered from are Cancer, muscular dystrophy, and tuberculosis. There is evidence that he did in fact suffer from TB. According to several sources Kahlbutz suffocated on his own blood, this suggests that shortly before his death he had lost a great deal of blood. After his death he was buried in an oak double coffin. The decay of the corpse was prevented by the fact that prior to being hermetically sealed in the coffin, he had lost a great deal of blood. This combined with the lack of soil containing decay-accelerating materials led to the natural mummification of the corpse.
This article is based on a translation of an article from the German Wikipedia - (de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Friedrich_von_Kahlbutz).
-en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Friedrich_von_Kahlbutz
Egyptian Mummies -
The methods of embalming, or treating the dead body, that the ancient Egyptians used is called mummification. Using special processes, the Egyptians removed all moisture from the body, leaving only a dried form that would not easily decay. It was important in their religion to preserve the dead body in as life-like a manner as possible. So successful were they that today we can view the mummified body of an Egyptian and have a good idea of what he or she looked like in life, 3000 years ago.
Mummification was practiced throughout most of early Egyptian history. The earliest mummies from prehistoric times probably were accidental. By chance, dry sand and air (since Egypt has almost no measurable rainfall) preserved some bodies buried in shallow pits dug into the sand. About 2600 B.C., during the Fourth and Fifth Dynasties, Egyptians probably began to mummify the dead intentionally. The practice continued and developed for well over 2,000 years, into the Roman Period (ca. 30 B.C. - A.D. 364). Within any one period the quality of the mummification varied, depending on the price paid for it. The best prepared and preserved mummies are from the Eighteenth through the Twentieth Dynasties of the New Kingdom (ca. 1570 - 1075 B.C.) and include those of Tutankhamen and other well-known pharaohs. It is the general process of this period that shall be described here.
Process:
The mummification process took seventy days. Special priests worked as embalmers, treating and wrapping the body. Beyond knowing the correct rituals and prayers to be performed at various stages, the priests also needed a detailed knowledge of human anatomy.
The first step in the process was the removal of all internal parts that might decay rapidly. The brain was removed by carefully inserting special hooked instruments up through the nostrils in order to pull out bits of brain tissue. It was a delicate operation, one which could easily disfigure the face. The embalmers then removed the organs of the abdomen and chest through a cut usually made on the left side of the abdomen. They left only the heart in place, believing it to be the center of a person's being and intelligence. The other organs were preserved separately, with the stomach, liver, lungs, and intestines placed in special boxes or jars today called canopic jars. These were buried with the mummy. In later mummies, the organs were treated, wrapped, and replaced within the body. Even so, unused canopic jars continued to be part of the burial ritual.
The embalmers next removed all moisture from the body. This they did by covering the body with natron, a type of salt which has great drying properties, and by placing additional natron packets inside the body. When the body had dried out completely, embalmers removed the internal packets and lightly washed the natron off the body. The result was a very dried-out but recognizable human form. To make the mummy seem even more life-like, sunken areas of the body were filled out with linen and other materials and false eyes were added.
Next the wrapping began. Each mummy needed hundreds of yards of linen. The priests carefully wound the long strips of linen around the body, sometimes even wrapping each finger and toe separately before wrapping the entire hand or foot. In order to protect the dead from mishap, amulets were placed among the wrappings and prayers and magical words written on some of the linen strips. Often the priests placed a mask of the person's face between the layers of head bandages. At several stages the form was coated with warm resin and the wrapping resumed once again. At last the priests wrapped the final cloth or shroud in place and secured it with linen strips. The mummy was complete.
The priests preparing the mummy were not the only ones busy during this time. Although the tomb preparation usually had begun long before the person's actual death, now there was a deadline, and craftsmen, workers, and artists worked quickly. There was much to be placed in the tomb that a person would need in the Afterlife. Furniture and statuettes were readied; wall paintings of religious or daily scenes were prepared; and lists of food or prayers finished. Through a magical process, these models, pictures, and lists would become the real thing when needed in the Afterlife. Everything was now ready for the funeral.
As part of the funeral, priests performed special religious rites at the tomb's entrance. The most important part of the ceremony was called the "Opening of the Mouth". A priest touched various parts of the mummy with a special instrument to "open" those parts of the body to the senses enjoyed in life and needed in the Afterlife. By touching the instrument to the mouth, the dead person could now speak and eat. He was now ready for his journey to the Afterlife. The mummy was placed in his coffin, or coffins, in the burial chamber and the entrance sealed up.
Such elaborate burial practices might suggest that the Egyptians were preoccupied with thoughts of death. On the contrary, they began early to make plans for their death because of their great love of life. They could think of no life better than the present, and they wanted to be sure it would continue after death.
But why preserve the body? The Egyptians believed that the mummified body was the home for this soul or spirit. If the body was destroyed, the spirit might be lost. The idea of "spirit" was complex involving really three spirits: the ka, ba, and akh. The ka, a "double" of the person, would remain in the tomb and needed the offerings and objects there. The ba, or "soul", was free to fly out of the tomb and return to it. And it was the akh, perhaps translated as "spirit", which had to travel through the Underworld to the Final Judgment and entrance to the Afterlife. To the Egyptian, all three were essential.
Who Was Mummified:
After death, the pharaohs of Egypt usually were mummified and buried in elaborate tombs. Members of the nobility and officials also often received the same treatment, and occasionally, common people. However, the process was an expensive one, beyond the means of many.
For religious reasons, some animals were also mummified. The sacred bulls from the early dynasties had their own cemetery at Sakkara. Baboons, cats, birds, and crocodiles, which also had great religious significance, were sometimes mummified, especially in the later dynasties.
The Study of Mummies Today:
Ancient writers, modern scientists, and the mummies themselves all help us better understand the Egyptian mummification process and the culture in which it existed. Much of what we know about the actual process is based on the writings of early historians such as Herodotus who carefully recorded the process during his travels to Egypt around 450 B.C. Present-day archaeologists and other specialists are adding to this knowledge. The development of x-rays now makes it possible to x-ray mummies without destroying the elaborate outer wrappings. By studying the x-rays or performing autopsies on unwrapped bodies, experts are learning more about diseases suffered by the Egyptians and their medical treatment. A better idea of average height and life span comes from studying the bones. By learning their age at death, the order and dates of the Egyptian kings becomes a little clearer. Even ties of kinship in the royal line can be suggested by the striking similarities or dissimilarities in the skulls of pharaohs that followed one another. Dead now for thousands of years, the mummy continues to speak to us.
© 1996 SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
-www.si.edu/Encyclopedia_SI/nmnh/mummies.htm
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