S23E21 - Why Victorians Threw Mummy Unwrapping PARTIES | History For Sleep
Published: October 11, 2026
Duration: 5:48:07
October has arrived, and we're embracing the season with another wonderfully unusual piece of history. Picture a Victorian evening, a room filled with curious guests, flickering candlelight, and an invitation to something rather unexpected: a mummy unwrapping party. It sounds like something invented for Halloween, but gatherings like these really did take place in nineteenth-century Britain.
Tonight, we'll explore why Victorians became so fascinated with ancient Egyptian mummies, how Egyptomania swept through British society, and why certain collectors, scholars, and wealthy hosts turned mummy unwrappings into public demonstrations and unusual social events.
Along the way...