Odours of Egyptian embalming

[Duncan Head]

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/aug/31/scent-of-eternity-scientists-recreate-balms-used-in-ancient-egyptian-mummy

[Imperial Dave]

 

[Jon Freitag]

Fascinating find, Duncan.

[Ian61]

Our reaction to odours is a consequence of our experience. No one is born knowing the difference between good and bad smells it is learnt through our lives. The reaction of modern humans to the smells will be very different from that of ancient Egyptians. This is 'sort of' alluded to in the last few sentences.

[Nick Harbud]

After a lifetime building every type of processing facilities from oil refineries to baked bean factories, I have to disagree with the concept that smells are only good or bad because of what we learn rather than what they are. 

Some smells are simply awful and anyone who thinks differently should try working a shift unpacking dried onions, unblocking the drains on a cologne blending line or anywhere within 10 miles of a sugar beet factory.

 

[Imperial Dave]

I agree Nick. We are highly evolved animals with an ability to pick up scents and discern on balance whether they are good or bad. We apply context as we develop our experiences

[Ian61]

After a lifetime building every type of processing facilities from oil refineries to baked bean factories, I have to disagree with the concept that smells are only good or bad because of what we learn rather than what they are. 

Some smells are simply awful and anyone who thinks differently should try working a shift unpacking dried onions, unblocking the drains on a cologne blending line or anywhere within 10 miles of a sugar beet factory.
 

Of course you are right Nick when you add the dimension of real intensity or chemicals that actually start to do damage. I have been the wrong side of sulphur dioxide and ammonia in the past and still use glacial acetic on a regular basis. However, for instance, in the case of the latter a whiff of malt vinegar can bring thoughts of fish and chips or pickled onions to make your mouth water whilst more will indeed generate a very negative reaction as it begins to burn your nose. An ancient Egyptian would never have had the pleasure of fish and chips but might have enjoyed a pickle!  

I was actually quoting from a top perfumer on a radio program I heard discussing some of the very bizarre things that go into top end perfumes - again a whiff might be pleasant but a dropped bottle a nightmare coming back to your cologne reference there (sounds ghastly).

[Nick Harbud]

Some of the more devastating smells can arise from chemists' attempts to synthesize natural fragrances.  One instance I was told about involved synthetic green pepper essence.  Isolating the underlying molecule proved to be quite difficult as it is only present naturally in extremely low concentrations.  However, eventually they obtained enough for the mass spectrometers and other analytic gizmos to derive its chemical structure.  They then proceeded to manufacture a beaker of the stuff, which is about the same amount as one normally finds in a warehouse full of green peppers.

The smell was overwhelming, causing nearby staff to collapse and so permeating the laboratory that it proved impossible to remove it.  The building was rendered unusable and was subsequently demolished.   

Embalming of Egyptians and even glacial acetic acid seem mild by comparison.

[Imperial Dave]

diacetyl

we had to store it in a special fridge and then only unchain it when we needed it plus did a mega dilution for a working solution all week.

otherwise our lab used to smell of Angel Delight for weeks