What happens to people after they die? The Egyptians thought if they mummified a dead person, his spirit would live forever. At first nature did the job; the desert sun dried and preserved bodies buried in shallow sand-pit graves. Mummifying methods became more elaborate with time, as did after-life dwelling places. Eventually, the Egyptians built the largest known tombs - the pyramids - in which wealthy Egyptians were buried with food, household items, and treasure. The ancient Egyptian way of death has left us a rich legacy of information about a way of life of which there is no other record. Lila Perl's thoroughly documented account is as fascinating as it is revealing.

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