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There are no existing Egyptian texts which tell us how mummification was carried out, and there are wall scenes in only two tombs which show some of the stages in preparing and decorating the mummy. However, two Greek writers, Herodotus (fifth century BC) and Diodorus Siculus (first century BC), have left written accounts describing the main stages of the procedure, and the mummies themselves also provide us with information about the various techniques. According to Herodotus, three main methods were available, depending on the clients ability to pay. The most expensive was the most successful in preserving the body, and involved several stages. At death, the corpse was taken by the family to the embalmer’s workshop which was situated in the cemetery area. The process apparently took seventy days to complete, although perhaps only forty days were needed for the actual mummification, and religious rituals would have occupied the remaining time. The embalmers and their assistants probably wore masks to impersonate the gods who attended the mummification of Osiris. A special funerary priest would have presided over the various stages, and recited the relevant religious texts. First, the body was stripped and placed on a boa