Even after 5,000 years in a sarcophagus, mummified bodies from ancient Egypt still smell quite nice, scientists have discovered. Researchers who examined nine mummies found that though there was some difference in the intensity of their odours,

Researchers who sniffed mummified remains in the name of science were greeted more with a blessing than a curse.

Even around 5,000 years after their embalming, Strlič and collaborators described the bodies as smelling “pleasant.” This is largely thanks to the materials applied to the mummies, which included scented waxes, coniferous resins and oils made from pine, cedar, and juniper, as well as gum resins such as frankincense and myrrh.

Few visitors wandering through the mummy galleries at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo have the opportunity—or perhaps the inclination—to smell the aromas wafting off the gilded sarcophagi and elaborately wrapped bodies of ancient Egyptian elites on display in glass cases.

The team’s approach could inspire museums to entertain visitors with odorous features such as smellscapes. In fact, the researchers now plan to reconstruct the smell of ancient mummified bodies in order to share this nontraditional approach to studying Egyptian mummies, as well as highlight an ancient olfactory heritage.

Ancient Egyptian mummified bodies preserved for 5,000 years smell “woody”, “spicy” and “sweet”, according to scientists who used their own senses and electronic noses to examine them. Human “sniffers” were recited to describe the scent in terms of quality, intensity and pleasantness.

We know what they look like, and even sound like, but there’s one question you might not have pondered: what do ancient Egyptian mummies smell like? Whether you wanted to know or not, scientists have now given us an answer.

Scientists used an 'electronic nose' (and good old biological sniffers) to reveal the scents of ancient mummies.

Researchers who sniffed mummified remains in the name of science described them as "woody," "spicy," and "sweet," with floral notes.

Scientists sniffed ancient Egyptian mummified bodies for a new study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.