Conservation of a crocodile mummy

Take an in-depth look at the conservation processes involved in getting a crocodile mummy ready for display for the first time in 75 years. You can see this mummy in Room 3 until 21 Feb 2016:
The Asahi Shimbun Displays
Scanning Sobek: mummy of the crocodile god.
10 December 2015 - 21 February 2016
The crocodile mummy is currently being displayed as part of the The Asahi Shimbun Displays: Scanning Sobek- mummy of the crocodile god.
10 December 2015 - 21 February 2016

[@ariglosser4469]

Me: coming from Baumgartner Restoration (painting restoration dude on youtube) Conservator: Japanese tissue paper Me: ayyyy wahshikozo

[@lizziejones8508]

yeeesssss, my thoughts exactly!

[@Snortimusgoutimas]

The fact i came from the exact same tuber. This one of them youtube binge things isn't it. Restorations.

[@poisonrose5731]

So glad I'm not the only one!!

[@tomaszlosinski875]

Me, coming from David bull then to baumgartner restoration: is that paper used in everything?

[@oo-ll4vi]

same lol just came from Baumgartner too lol

[@51WCDodge]

Must be the first time someone has said 'I was delighted when the Crocodile came my way'.

[@Widdekuu91]

HAHAHA I wanted to type the exact same, you beat me to it! Thumbs up ^_^

[@Wired_User]

I guess after years of working in conservation, Barbara Wellis developed legendary patience and a sort of stress-free air to her. She’s just amazing to watch and listen to.

[@MissLizzanna]

Blue 2003 Toyota Echo I could listen to her talk all day.

[@Anchored4]

Blue 2003 Toyota Echo Yes!! Watching this video I was like “she should do audio books and ASMR”

[@lolalola2323]

I really enjoyed listening to her

[@justintime112]

Me, chillin and vibing to Baumgartner Restoration: My youtube recommended: "Conservation of a crocodile mummy :) " Me: " a *W H A T* "

[@happyhoney2000]

Justin Time same!!

[@frxnkie.mp3]

YES

[@bleu2910]

literally

[@tracycuevas4626]

Lol me tooo

[@josefine635]

same lmaooo

[@chickendrawsdogs3343]

Baby croc: Hey Mum... Mama croc: Yes dear? Baby croc: We're much better cared for dead than alive. Mama: Yes we are, dear, yes we are. Now lie still, here comes the lady with the vacuum and cotton balls.

[@NikkiHoyland]

@Jacob Zondag a quick search suggests unfortunately it was most likely killed specifically for this process :(

[@georgeballard1134]

I can't breath

[@lolalola2323]

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@bepinkfloyd814]

There was An entire city were they worshipped them, i can't remember the name of the god with the crocodile head but It was a very important one. In a part of Egypt they worshipped crocodiles in other parts they didn't. Funny thing is that there was always one croc that was the "son" of this god, usually was the biggest one, they gave him always a lot to eat things like sweetcakes and wine... so It basically was massive and drunk xD

[@chickendrawsdogs3343]

@@bepinkfloyd814 Krododilopolis in Faiyum?

[@ernestturnage3653]

The patience, attention and skill that Barbara Wills brought to the table as a conservator is impressive.

[@angeloddrev]

What did you do today? 'Oh I vaccuumed a B.C mummified crocodile's cracks' Oh that's nice. normal day at the office, lol :)

[@jacobsack]

@@angeloddrev soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo boring

[@aaronjaben7913]

imagine going out into the street after being in that miniature reality all day

[@angeliqueoren2462]

@@jacobsack then don't watch it, idiot!

[@elkwolf2888]

@@aaronjaben7913 Right!? It can be a shock just to get up from doing a puzzle or cooking for hours and experience the hectic nature of modern living. But with a project like this there's so much pressure not to mess up and you don't have a recipe or picture on the front of the box to guide you, so to be able to get into the zone and stay there while just... calmly cleaning a square centimeter of ANCIENT CROCODILE at a time with a mouse vacuum and goop on a stick? Amazing. I felt the need to elaborate on this subject but wasn't sure where to start, I'm glad someone mentioned it in the comments! It was like a writing prompt, thank you.

[@liukang85]

Pretty sure the two metal objects are the hands of a clock once swallowed... ;)

[@altarush]

As long as it isn't Captain Hook, it is okay.

[@teddysalad8227]

Probably jewelry from someone it ate.

[@IamHighAf]

lol

[@lordgoddrid1555]

Doctor looking at the CT scan: "Hmmmm we see to have spotted human remains in this Crocodile". Me: "Is it Captain cook? The clock hands are in there right?"

[@F0nkyNinja]

@@lordgoddrid1555 Captain cook?

[@MarcelTeugels]

Great video. It would be nice to see some kind of digital reconstruction of what it might have looked like when it was just mummified. I imagine the resin which covers the crocodile wasn't always this dark, if it's just conifer resin and beeswax. Maybe clear and golden..

[@Shanshan12988]

this isnt nat geo wild lol

[@ottogobey3462]

is the black not bitumen?

[@legobunny]

great point

[@lazygardens]

she mentions "bitumen surface", which is asphalt. So the final form was always black like that.

[@lazygardens]

my bad ... but beeswax will oxidise to a dark color within a few years ... as people who use "granny's polish" of beeswax and linseed oil discover.

[@gumiho8352]

I could listen to Barbara Wills talk forever. Such a soothing voice and very detailed explanations.

[@zafarmonier2927]

1:56 the guy in the DOMO t-shirt is my hero

[@Paulamdz]

Omg they liked this 😂

[@whatzittooya9012]

@@Paulamdz Well now we know which one of their staffers runs the YT account

[@ashleyparson5305]

I could listen to Barbara Wills talk for hours. Her voice is so soothing. The best unintentional ASMR on the internet that I’ve ever experienced. And such fascinating subject matter! @thebrithishmuseum more Barbara Wills, please!!! 😍😍😍

[@lucye8381]

I agree completely! Barbara's voice is incredibly soothing, I'd listen to her for hours.

[@ariesgirlkara2603]

I thought I was the only one who noticed her soothing voice;).

[@aliciadear]

The C Word S01E02: Human Remains has some of her talking! Yes I totally searched her! starts at 24 : 20 in that video!

[@tanjaridder8277]

She sounds like she is talking in REM sleep.

[@hazzastxles7873]

I read the title as *"Conversation with crocodile mummy"* Kay, I'll sleep now.

[@louise-yo7kz]

😂😂

[@AndreasKienle]

Thank you so much for putting so much effort into your videos. It's so inspiring to see how committed your conservators and curators are. Keep it up! Greetings from Germany

[@ragnkja]

Thank you, this is exactly the kind of behind the scenes video I love, where we get to learn about the science that goes on within a working museum.

[@joniallen6880]

What a wonderful world we live in! I love that there are people who are so passionate about their work!

[@ThatLayanKid]

I will be starting a conservation Ba in London this year- so very inspiring, thanks a lot!!

[@charlieguy6872]

Fancy running into you here lol

[@iLitAfuseiCantStop]

Layan Harman Hope it’s going well. You are absolutely living my dream.

[@ljjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj7877]

Thats cool

[@sydneygrace2665]

@@iLitAfuseiCantStop you could do it too !!

[@somniumisdreaming]

How did your BA go?

[@thatgreengirl7791]

Let's take a minute to appreciate how adorable Barbara is.

[@angeloddrev]

The babies stuck to mommy's back for all eternity is both tragic and adorable at the same time. I wonder what happened to them to all die like that.

[@Oialca]

Angel sorry did you actually watch this video in its entirety?

[@corndog4ever]

They didn't die on the mom's back like that. They were just mummified that way.

[@kgrobinson007]

@@corndog4ever I think she meant in general why did they die. My thinking is that surely they didn't all just die naturally, especially if there were possibly 30 of them. What would cause all 30 of the hatchlings to die at once? Or did those in charge of the mummification decide that this crocodile needed servants in the afterlife, so they decided to round up some hatchlings to accompany it, which also makes me skeptical about them even belonging to the larger crocodile. Did they even confirm that the crocodile was female? There are a lot of questions that this brought up for me.

[@corndog4ever]

@@kgrobinson007 my vote is that the hatchlings were killed for burial purposes

[@13gladiusToTheKnot]

This crocodile is male. The hatchlings were probably sacrificed. No big deal

[@Widdekuu91]

"And that it's _safe_ to be displayed.." My halfasleep brain at midnight; 'Yeah....duh.. ..ofcourse. It's a crocodile..."

[@nowgoawayanddosomethinggoo8978]

Lacoste called, they want their founder back.

[@misskwannie]

Now Go Away And Do Something Good Hahahah

[@jacobsadler2898]

I've used an SEM before for imaging prehistoric shark teeth (and also some random dead bugs laying around my university) but I would never have considered its applicability to crocodile mummies. What a wonderful machine

[@anomalyp8584]

i think you can use it for everything :p

[@fathallahelfatehy3279]

You can observe every biological material

[@Oldbmwr100rs]

You can buy parts to build your own! There's even kits and instructions, which sounds like an amazing project really.

[@faxezu]

The quality ist amazing, keep going! Thanks for sharing and greetings from Germany.

[@MissMisnomer_]

I remember the first time I ever saw a mummified crocodile, it completely blew my mind. What a fascinating piece of archeology! 🐊

[@robertschlesinger1342]

Excellent overview of many aspects involved in the conservation of a crocodile mummy.

[@gmuralid]

Super interesting. Nice to learn about the conservation techniques in such detail, while still thinking about how in the past someone cared enough about these animals to want to preserve them for thousands of years.

[@Angel_Billy4-30-23]

Wow, this was pretty cool to see. I have never seen a mummified crocodile before. This was so neat to see. Thank you for sharing this awesome/amazing video.

[@ignacio4841]

Imagine barbra reading a bedtime story. I would fall asleep after 2 words

[@TheMoldydog]

"By osiris where did I leave that crocodile jerky.... I even put my classic honey resin on it"

[@kurossilver7334]

Nobody is talking about that lady’s soothing voice

[@locksmithmuggle]

3000 years old and shes worrying about getting another 50 out of it

[@danielmcsween884]

300?

[@jackgreen4789]

3000, it’s from Ancient Egypt not the 17 hundreds

[@twistedtachyon5877]

Such is the curse of archaeology. If you find a thing, you've more than likely already lost what kept it intact for millennia. Plus, generally, the more degradation sets in, the more rapidly things degrade.

[@daretheclaw]

Sobek The Crocodile God sounds so epic

[@alextheasparagus6675]

I'm doing my BSc in conservation rn and I want her job.... (objects - organic in particular - are my main focus)

[@pinfotech9684]

These type work make a history for next coming generation..👍👍 🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳

[@bananakitofinternetclan8350]

I saw some ancient Chinese and native American art in a museum once. That was probably the coolest experience of my life so far.

[@jareypoohbears]

I watched this at 4 in the morning, and 10 hours later, here I am again. Also quitting 8 minutes, maybe I'll come back soon and watch it all.

[@MrPelafio]

The electron images of the age maintained fibers were amazing to see

[@Leelz247]

3,000 year old animal remains are just mind blowing. Someone living once came face to face with that creature and it is every bit as imposing today.

[@anomalyp8584]

❤️Barbara Wills...what a voice. With those steady, skilled hands she could be surgeon as well.

[@ericf7063]

She reminds me of uncle Colm from Derry Girls.

[@LuceroLucifer]

this sounds like a fun job. very precise and meditative

[@joeyacevedo5267]

Crazy to think you're staring at the exact same creature someone from thousands of years ago could've seen...

[@ashleymcdonald6748]

Who needs therapy when you have this. Watching this is so relaxing.

[@MicaRayan]

Oh my gwaddd... her hair was so funky. Love it

[@lobbiester]

Amazing! Thank you for this. Please do more of these!

[@RICDirector]

SEM is a SCANNING electron microscope, not a 'secondary electron microscope'.....unless they've renamed the blasted thing....

[@dimenerno]

Am I the only one who thought the thumbnail was a mummy sliding down on a bowling lane?

[@markymark5723]

Can you make a video about How dose some one become a curator for the British Museum or What they need to do to get there?

[@sarahb4356]

Mark Huicochea there isn’t really any set pathway for many museum positions, I’m pretty sure the KZbin channel ‘the brain scoop’ has a video or perhaps a couple that address various people that work in the field museum in Chicago and how they ended up in their current roles.

[@WardancerHB]

knowing spelling might help...

[@introverttaciturn4133]

Idk. Some Ph.D or master's in Archaeology, Biochemistry, Anthropology, or some odd science ish.

[@sydneygrace2665]

BA in conservation !

[@damonturnbull5903]

@@WardancerHB Well actually no. A lot of academics don't spell well. Not all obviously. That's why we have editors. Mark Huicochea you follow ur dream. Don't let wankers like this put you off

[@archaeodesigns3844]

Awesome piece of zooarchaeology!

[@rastafari8459]

One of the earliest examples of a proper surfboard. Pharaohs used to ride these mummified crocodiles and catch sick waves on ancient Nile waters.

[@happywhale1786]

my recommendation list is getting weirder.

[@tomweidler8910]

Nicely done indeed! 😎👍👍 Sincerely Tom Weidler in Las Vegas Nevada ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[@newkkl]

Fascinating! Please do another video about the role of sacred animals in Egyptian life and the purpose of their mummification.

[@lokodude28]

Great video! Fascinating to get a look behind the scenes! Hope you keep these videos coming :)

[@venusdoutzenparks8031]

Wow that is a great find .. and i am realy eager to see that soon in the british museum

[@nohahaggag]

I still do not get how this mummy ended up in the UK? You mentioned it was excavated in Kom Ombo, Egypt. in 1985, Khediwi Abbas II was ruling Egypt. Under what treaty or agreement was this mummy (and I am sure other antiquities as well) were transferred to the UK?

[@erikastronda100]

I'm sorry, but shouldn't this crocodile mummy found in Sudan be in Sudan?

[@ebutuoy0312]

4:22 和紙がティッシュ扱いされてる。使ってくれて有り難う。 It's not Japanese tissue paper, it's Japanese paper called "WASHI" which is mostly made out of mulberry trees,durable and long-lasting. Thanks for using our traditional paper though.

[@Grace-qu8bw]

After 4 years, have we found out what the 3 unidentified metals are?

[@horaciomillan4181]

As Mr. Spock would have said, fascinating!

[@TheGLpanda]

Thanks for delivering!

[@britishmuseum]

No worries, glad you like it!

[@swagfeller]

what a beast, imagine if they were still alive.

[@squirrel5809]

This is amazing, and also I find that crocodile really terrifying! Some primitive part of my brain maybe.

[@louise-yo7kz]

Me too😱😱😱

[@silverstuff182]

Great, I would do anything to work in that lab, I hope the croc will still be on display when I get to London again.

[@mozdickson]

From a frame at The National Gallery, to books at Kings College, to Egyptology. Education for the kids today is so accelerated and eclectic compared to my uni days, mastering the microfiche. I'm a Fossil.

[@celeanor7540]

This is absolutely amazing.

[@maybeitsalice]

"fragment of infant crocodile" sounds like a very specific ingredient to a witch's potion lol

[@sillystephys7123]

Barbara’s voice is so relaxing

[@lydiakies9053]

I wonder how one goes about catching a danger log and her clutch of babies. The mummification itself is amazing, but I'm super curious about obtaining the animal.

[@sharynleato5880]

Soo very informative. Thank you.

[@demox4435]

I really wanna know what metal stuff that crocodile had in its stomach

[@chuggon7595]

Proabably Iron from a meteorite

[@bustedkeaton]

@Khadr Trudeau huh????

[@user-vu2yb1gy4l]

@Khadr Trudeau what??? of course there was metal 3000 years ago

[@JohnyG29]

@Khadr Trudeau Yes there was. It was called the Bronze Age for goodness sake lol.

[@highstepnightowl]

I could listen to Barbara Wellis talk all day

[@TheLolMasterOwner]

thought the thumbnail was a crocodile going down a bowling alley

[@iLitAfuseiCantStop]

Odd observation I know, but it’s interesting that the shape of crocodiles face at 5:22 & the lines of the chair at 5:32 are so similar 🐊

[@geiroveeilertsen7112]

0:27 Is Dr Julie Anderson from Canada? 😇 (It's the way she says "about" here, and a few other words later in the video that make me think that 😇)

[@francoandres6825]

this is one of the most beautiful things I have seen. I absolutely LOVE THIS!

[@davidcaldecoat7414]

Wow that's truly amazing what a job to have it would keep you busy

[@hahaimmmmmmm]

Great video! Greetings from singapore😀

[@rudman97]

Ancient Egyptians: You want fossils? Wait....We are specialists in making Mummies.

[@oneshotme]

I did really enjoyed it and gave your video a thumbs up

[@grace-qu9ks]

This is nice and all but why didn't she use gloves? It disturbs me.

[@gabrielhstockstill2854]

the chemicals from the gloves are to risky while working with something as ancient as this.

[@xavagriffith438]

Since you have the spot where the metal objects are how about you make presisiouse cuts and get one of the metal objects in the croc. At least if you know what one looks like it could help find out some weird procedure the croc went through to get mummified.

[@PixelOverload]

Any idea on why this croc in particular was so special? I don't imagine they mummified _every_ dead croc they happened across.

[@glorfindel.]

Ancient egyptians revered some animals as living representations of a deity. So, in this case, this crocodile was treated like a living version of Sobek, the crocodile goddess, and lived in a temple. When these divine animals died they were mummified and buried with all respect. (The Apis bull is the most famous example of this practice.) At the same time, there was also a cult of buying mummified animals and gift them as offerings to the god the animal was connected to (a mummified cat was gifted to Bastet). Hope this helped you :)

[@angeloddrev]

She must have been a special crocodile in some way to them, especially as they put her dead babies with her.

[@13gladiusToTheKnot]

@@angeloddrev It's a male crocodile

[@13gladiusToTheKnot]

@@glorfindel. That's amazing info; thanks

[@Tsumami__]

mike oak Not all the time. Over time it turned into a money making scheme, and people would mummify anything and pass the mummies off as cats or crocs to sell for a pretty penny. They've found tons of mummified animals that turned out to be nothing more than garbage or bits and pieces of other animals wrapped up.

[@JohnDoe-iv8of]

Man, ancient Egyptians were awesome. Who mummifies crocs?

[@emmarina3525]

Barbara's voice is so relaxing 😴

[@nakedeagle3828]

The British Museum has the largest collection of stolen goods.

[@GiveMeBackMyUsernameYouTube]

I invoke the right of finders keepers.

[@hanssteyr3621]

B o o t y

[@dbros2656]

I would rather these artifacts be stored in a stable country with the right facilities and preservation then some unstable country that could decide to destroy everything if their was unrest or a regime change. So much great history and artifacts have been destroyed in the middle east thanks to war and religious extremism. The British conquered much of the world so they did not really steal them and many seized artifacts have been returned.

[@nakedeagle3828]

@@dbros2656 Are you saying the stuff that's been buried for thousands of years on the other side of the planet had to be dug up by the British for preservation? and the only way for countries like Egypt to get them back is to conquer Britain? There is nothing British in the British museum, it's all stolen artifacts from other cultures, even the Queen's crown is from India, it's as if the entire society suffers from an inferiority complex.

[@AnHeC]

Awww. I was looking for this stupid comment XD As opposed to all other nations that never ever did anything even remotely reprehensible... Nothing to apologize for here. It's the western countries that had the idea of preserving history, doing archeological digs, setting up museums etc. They saved things they took. Usually when something would get dug up by other various people it would get destroyed.

[@thesmilingmercenary937]

Me: conversation with a crocodile mummy. Hmm, should be interesting. Me, later: OH! Oh well, I'm all in now.

[@punkartwantstew]

This is fascinating and important that it is taken care of and kept clean, but when are they giving it back? It would be most interesting if the original owners were able to explain why THEIR crocodile was mummified. It is purposefully preserved, which means it doesn't sound like it was "excavated", it sounds like it was grave-robbed, which most of the "British" artifacts were.

[@Brandon_J]

B they found it. Their government also wouldn’t take care of something like this as much as the British do, they don’t really care for history like the English do. And why do you think the “original owners” will know? They’re dead. Nobody knows, just because someone is Egyptian, doesn’t mean theyre a pro in ancient Egypt

[@stephsmanicshenanigans8017]

Mr Goat Egyptians today are not even closely related to the ancient Egyptians. I’d rather these artifacts are out of Egypt to be preserved because egypt is still corrupt as hell, whatever even manages to make it out of there or in the public to be known is amazing at this point. Too many have been sold black market and I hate zahi hawass for how much he has ruined forever of ancient Egyptian history.

[@janetf23]

Don't get mad at me, but when I saw the thumbnail, I thought it was a croc in a bowling alley.😆

[@karenrobertson3379]

I'd love to know what Barbara studied to become an organic conservator. History? Art? Chemistry? Biology?

[@skoldpa]

Two years late, but just in case someone wonders the same thing: It depends on the countries, but generally speaking conservators have a bachelor's and master's in conservation-restoration. I also know some people who've studied both art history and chemistry and then passed some type of exam to be approved as a conservator.

[@forevergamer245]

I really wanted to know how old it really was

[@PyroX792]

Weird question, if this mummy was unearthed in Egypt why is it owned by the British Museum? Shouldn't it be in Egypt?

[@ianrobson9601]

Barbara seems like a lovely person

[@britishmuseum]

She very much is

[@zakkyummms]

But what does it smell like? Why can't you smell exhibits?

[@streamoflillies2345]

Generally they have them in a controlled air environment (low humidity, certain temperature, etc) I also imagine that some of the items have a smell that's not exactly pleasant. And most people probably don't want to be looking at king tuts death mask and be smelling musty mummy.

[@bellacapulet1933]

I wonder what it would smell like, I have a petrified alligator gar. And it's always had a small scent.

[@danielgreen2788]

shouldnt all that beautiful pieces be like you know in Egypt? if it was found in Aswan whta is it doing over there?

[@romanpixie]

The British have a bit of a habit of colonizing areas and stealing things from those places.

[@petergambier]

It would be interesting to know what a conservator's hourly rate is.

[@nimi539]

Why is it in a British museum though?

[@nimi539]

@Phynchen shouldn't it be in the country it was found?

[@Johncook1649]

@@nimi539 Why? Modern Egypt has no real connection to ancient Egypt, different borders, religion, culture, politics and genetics. French and British archaeologists like Jacques de Morgan discovered these artefacts when there was no real interest from modern Egyptians so took them back to Europe where they could be displayed.

[@men_del12]

May I ask if this is relating to Egyptian mumification? Is there also other mumufication for other animals beside human?

[@men_del12]

@WookDizz18 Oh wow, so they also bury animals by mummification them? oh wow, ok and thanks. that must be lots of works if there are more humans and animals to get mummy.

[@harrypotterfanman1]

I was watching a chess tutorial...How did I end up here?

[@ansuman8149]

From where you have stolen it??

[@ttrendxyz]

How old is it? It was discovered over 100 years ago but no mention of its age :(

[@Brandon_J]

Gerald Samms about 2,600 years old. 650 BC around