ABSTRACT
Regardless of the extent of soft tissue preservation, mummies are categorized in two ways: the physical and/or chemical processes by which soft tissue is preserved, and the degree to which these processes result from either human action or environmental factors. A host of environmental factors can influence the progression of decomposition and subsequently increase the likelihood of mummification. Desiccation is the most common mummification mechanism and involves the removal of water from the body via evaporation, osmosis, or the application of heat and may be encouraged through both human/cultural intervention and environmental factors. Several different chemical processes can result in soft tissue preservation including the presence of heavy metals, chelation, smoking, and adipocere formation. Mummies are also categorized based on the degree of human intervention in the process of soft tissue decomposition. These categories include: anthropogenic or artificial mummification, spontaneous or natural mummification and spontaneous-enhanced mummification.
