Mummifying--The Final Steps

Way, way back on Aug. 25, I posted about starting to mummify King Cluck. Well, I continued to faithfully change his salt/baking powder/baking soda/spice mixture until, after 4 weeks or so, the salt no longer got wet. By that time he was residing comfortably in his gallon ziploc freezer bag on top of the dryer, and I had started a second chicken mummy. That one is going to the demo one, the one which isn't wrapped, so everyone can see what a mummy looks like under the wrapping. Well, that mummy ("Am-Hen-Otep") is also finished, and I figured I had better get busy wrapping King Cluck, or he wouldn't actually be dry for the big 5th week presentation on Nov. 17!

Step 1: Dust off all the salt possible with a damp paper towel. Dry thoroughly with another paper towel. Here you can see what mummified flesh looks like, since I'm sure this has been a burning question in your mind.

Sterp 2: Rub with teriyaki marinade . . . just kidding! This is actually scented oil I made by filling a jar up with spices, adding oil, and letting it sit for over a week. I told the kids this was the sort of thing the ladies who went to Jesus' tomb on Easter morning would have been carrying, and they were wanting to prepare his body by rubbing oil on it. Of course, he would not have been a mummy, LOL.


Step 3: Fill cavity with cloth strips, and then dip other cloth strips in glue/water mixture. Wrap those around the chicken. You wrap the legs and wings first, separately, and then you wrap the whole thing up.

And finally, you display the finished product: a throw pillow! No, kidding again. This is actually King Cluck himself, all ready for his journey to the next world. In person, you would not really be tempted at all to lay your weary head down on him. He is quite smelly, not in an absolutely terrible way, but not in a good way either. In fact, Bob just walked in and suggested we move him out to the garage while his wrappings dry. And I will never be able to enjoy the smell of cinnamon and cloves in quite the same way that I did before.

So just another few weeks, and then I will be able to dislodge permanently both chicken mummies from the house. I am looking forward to that day, believe it or not. We need to make a little coffin and sarcophagus for King Cluck first though. We already have one shoe box picked out.