IDAHO FALLS — Mummies have returned to the Museum of Idaho as hundreds of community members gathered on opening day to learn more about those who came before and how they were preserved.
The Mummies of the World exhibit will run until Jan. 6, providing community members with ample time to view the mummies and learn about their history. The Museum of Idaho is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays.
Camille Thomas, director of marketing for the museum, told EastIdahoNews.com the exhibit features one of the largest collections of human and animal mummies, along with related artifacts. The mummies come from Europe, ancient Egypt, South America and here in the United States.
One of the most unique parts of the exhibit is Mumab, a project conducted in the 1990s by the University of Maryland, using a cadaver donated to science to create a mummy, Thomas said.
“His body is wrapped and is on display at the exhibit. There are canopic jars that contain his organs, and the original tools that they use to do that practice are also on display,” Thomas said.
Museum Executive Director Jeff Carr said they’ve been looking forward to this exhibit for a long time and that it’s a big deal.
He said the mission of the Museum of Idaho is to ensure Idahoans in eastern Idaho have access to these exhibits and education about cultures from around the world.
“It’s just one of those sorts of things that you don’t normally get in a city of our size,” Carr said. “This is just a testament to what makes Idaho Falls and east Idaho such a wonderful place to live.”
Looking at the exhibits, Thomas said one of the interesting interactive exhibits is a wall that demonstrates what it feels like to touch a mummy.
Carr said one of the intriguing exhibits for him is the mummy bundles from the Inca Empire, dating back to the 15th century.
He said these mummies were buried in the fetal position and placed into baskets that allowed family members to bring their passed loved ones with them.
“It’s a really interesting look into how different cultures look at life and death… in some ways very different from ours. There’s a lot that is also relatable to,” Carr said.
A community member visiting the exhibit, Laron Johnson, told EastIdahoNews.com that it’s interesting how real people, like those depicted in these mummies, can become souvenirs.
“Yet we see the ones that were painstakingly preserved in love and memory,” Johnson said.
Still teaching at Rigby High School and a former history teacher, Johnson said he’s always been a supporter of the museum and was there to scout for other history teachers.
He said what was interesting to him was the salt mummy of a blowfish, which sparked his interest in learning more about the use of salt in mummification.
“This is an excellent tool for education,” Johnson said. “Who doesn’t want to see a mummy.”
For more information or to purchase tickets for Mummies of the World exhibit, visit museumofidaho.org/mummies.
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