Mummies and the Mummy's Curse in Old Time Radio

After the spark of life leaves most organisms, the forces of the natural world usually act quickly to decompose the body. Even if the body is buried, microscopic organisms and worms quickly dispose of the flesh and internal organs, it is just a matter of time before the bones themselves dry and crumble to dust. However, there are mechanisms, but nature and man-made, which serve to preserve the deceased. These include extreme dryness or cold, chemical treatments, or storing in a low-oxygen environment. This process is normally referred to as mummification.

One of the Earth's earliest civilizations arose in North Africa in the region where the Nile River brings fertility to the Sahara. This fertility gave rise to a people who would develop a complex writing system, the Great Pyramids, and a sophisticated religion based on an Afterlife. To make it through the Afterlife, the deceased's body needed to be protected and preserved through mummification.

Because of its importance to religion, ancient Egyptian priests became experts in mummification. The arid environment of North Africa certainly helped, but the real art of mummification came through preparing the bodies with herbs, spices, special chemicals, and elaborate wrappings. Supposedly, the mummies of important people were further protected with elaborate curses which would affect any who disturbed the mummy's rest.

The Mummy's Curse is usually written off as superstition run amok, although there are historical cases where the curse seems to have some validity. The most notable is Howard Carter and the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb in 1922. Most Egyptian tombs which had been previously discovered had been targeted by graverobbers, and therefore of decreased value to the scientific community. King Tut had been a lesser king, but his tomb was isolated enough that it had not been disturbed before Carter's discovery. However, the sudden and supposedly mysterious deaths of people associated with Carter and his work began to give credence to the Curse.

• The World Adventurers Club, 1932 Syndication, "The Living Mummy". Members need to endure a thrilling or blood-curdling adventure before being allowed to join the World Adventurers Club, but the tales shared at their meetings are for all of us to enjoy. Tonight's speaker is Arnold Manning who spent time in Arabia searching for the tomb of Egyptian King, Ptolemy Rai. The expedition is set upon by Mustafa's band of thieves and Manning is locked in the tomb with a mummy who turns out to be beautiful French Girl.
• Results Incorporated, December 30, 1944, Mutual. The mummy of an ancient Egyptian Queen is at the City Museum, but she seems to be taking the other mummies for a walk every night.
• The Weird Circle, March 25, 1945, NBC, "The Possessive Dead". The couple walks into an old curio shop looking for an interesting paperweight, and discover a decorative foot, which is from the mummy of an Egyptian princess. As hard as it is to believe, the foot is alive!
• Crime Club, May 28, 1947, Mutual, "Murder Makes a Mummy". Barney is the son of the police chief, but he wants to be an Egyptologist. While he is showing his girlfriend the relics in the local museum. They notice that the wrapping on a mummy has come loose and the mummy's shoes have rubber heels!
• The Halls of Ivy, May 28, 1952, NBC, Voice of America, "Mummy-napper". There was a replica of an Egyptian Mummy on display in the Ivy College Museum, but it has gone missing. Dr. Hall expects to see the Pharaoh-ess in line at graduation as part of a student prank, but the mummy turns up on the Dean's doorstep.
• The Cisco Kid, April 21, 1953, Mutual, ZIV Syndication. An Egyptologist in Chicago is informed of an Egyptian tomb discovered in the American Southwest. It sounds like a scam, except that the scientist has been informed by the Egyptian Government that a mummy has been stolen and may have been smuggled to America.
• The Hall of Fantasy, August 3, 1953, Mutual/WGN Chicago, "The Golden Bracelet of Amun-Iris". The Archeologists have a theory that there is a hidden tomb many miles from the Valley of the Kings, and they find it. Surprisingly, the tomb is not of a Pharaoh, but that of a mysterious Queen. Of course, there is a curse on anyone who disturbs the burial chamber and its treasures.
• Rocky Fortune, January 19, 1954, NBC/AFRTS, "The Museum Murder". Rocky is leading a New York City tour. While at the Museum of Ancient History, one of the girls on the tour winds up dead in a sarcophagus. This episode has more than its fair share of Sinatra wisecracks.

See also: Monsters in Old Time Radio.