Why an Atheist Thinks the Shroud of Turin is the Real Deal

The Manchester Museum

The Manchester Museum at the University of Manchester, England is “home to one of the largest and most important collections of ancient Egyptian artifacts in the United Kingdom. “The collection includes objects from prehistoric Egypt (c. 10,000 BC) to the Byzantine era, up to around AD 600,” says the museum website. It is also known to many as the museum of mummy controversy.

The museum’s most famous mummy controversy has to do with how mummies are displayed. Shall they be naked or not? Shall they be displayed in a way useful to student, scholars and the public or according to some perceived notion of being respectful to the dead? The mummies, as they were displayed were naked. They were naked because they had been unwrapped. Most unwrapping took place before the museum obtained them. In Victorian England, the unwrapping of mummies was all the rage when wealthy people brought home mummies from vacations in Egypt. The unwrapping took place at parties usually followed by tea or dinner. It was fun. They were creepy, goulash, fascinating. Where else in Victorian England could you respectfully see someone naked?

Come to Lord Longsberry's at 2 p.m., Piccadilly, for the unwrapping of a mummy from Thebes. Champagne and canapés to follow. (47)