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Aug. 22, 2002--Visitors to Madeline Lambrecht’s office may be surprised to end up sitting in between an Egyptian blow-up mummy in the corner and a gold urn on the bookshelf.
In our culture, death is a topic that most people would rather avoid discussing. However, Lambrecht, professor of nursing and director of the University’s Division of Special Programs, said she believes an exploration of death can teach us much about living. The bond between the living and dead, explored in historical and cultural contexts, is intriguing, she said.
Her collection of Egyptian death artifacts, she explained, reveals how ancient Egyptians believed that the human body had to be preserved in order for the soul to live on in the afterworld.
Lambrecht said Egyptians believed strongly in a life after death and they had serious interest in rituals having to do with death and dying.
Her office, located in McDowell Hall, contains approximately 30 Egyptian death objects. There is everything from framed pictures on the walls to books on the coffee table to other little items displayed tastefully around the room. On her desk are two small jars. These containers, called canopie jars, Lambrecht explained, were used by Egyptians to hold the lungs, the liver, the stomach and the intestines, all of which were removed from the body during the mummification process. Each jar was inscribed with the name of the deceased and often was also inscribed with entreaties to the gods to protect the organs.
Even her lunch bag has Egyptian images printed all over it.
Lambrecht, who teaches courses on dying, death and bereavement, said she began collecting these artifacts about 10 years ago. She has Mexican “Day of the Death” dolls, which she has incorporated into her online course and books on African death masks as well. The items in her collection range in cost anywhere from around $10 to $150.
The majority of her artifacts were obtained from museums. Her most recent piece, from the Field Museum in Chicago, is a pin that she wears, representing a scene with the Egyptian sun god, which symbolizes rebirth and eternal life.
The item that holds the most significance for Lambrecht is a framed picture hanging on the wall. Entitled “Objects of the Afterlife,” the picture tells the story of mummification, gods and the afterlife. She purchased it at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.
“Whenever I visit a museum, I always look to see if they have an Egyptian exhibit of some kind,” she said.
Lambrecht recalled that the first item that began her collection is also a picture. It is a depiction on papyrus of an Egyptian judgment day. She bought it at a small shop in the Virgin Islands. It depicts the weighing of the heart in front of Osiris, god of the underworld, and his companions, 42 assessor-gods. Upon receiving a favorable judgment, the deceased ascends to Osiris’s kingdom where the soul rejoins the body and their existence continues in the afterlife.
According to Lambrecht, the students in her courses have no choice but to deal with death, as all are health care professionals. Although, she said she does not particularly focus on Egyptology in her classes, she does talk about death-related practices in various cultures.
One of her classes presented on WebCT takes students on a tour of the Museum of Mourning Art, located in Drexel Hill, Pa. She took a video crew to the site and the members filmed a narrated tour of the museum’s collection. Web technology, she said, enables her students to have the opportunity to experience the visit “virtually.”
“I believe you learn much about life through learning about death,” Lambrecht said. “Wherever I go, I inevitably find myself visiting a museum or cemetery.”
Article by Stacey Szluka
Photo by Kathy Flickinger
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