What age would you find it appropriate to show a child an Egyptian Mummy in a museum

[wishuponastar25]

Bit of a strange question but just as the title says really!

I don't think there's any inappropriate age (unless like a PP says, there's a reason they might be sensitive about death). I used to love seeing the mummies when I was little, it's one of my earliest memories!

We have a fairly large display of mummies in our local museum, I've been taking my children since they were tiny. I do encourage them to be quiet and respectful in the rooms with the mummies in. Although when my oldest was about 2 she did shout out That ones got dirty toes!!! On a particularly busy day

Any age. I think allowing children to know about the life cycle is really important from a young age.

I do think there are issues about respect for the dead but that's a whole other thread.

Never. It's not appropriate for the actual bodies to be on display. They were buried respectfully in Egypt and usually made their way out of Egypt through theft. It's grossly disrespectful for them now to be exhibits.

On the other hand kids will probably think it's fantastic.

My parents took me to museums from a very young age. I was especially fascinated by the mummies and the shrunken heads.

However I do agree with pps who mentioned the disrespectful aspect of the displays.

Any age. I loved museums as a kid and still do!

I find the entire history of the Egyptians completely fascinating but equally fascinating is how barely anyone questions that they were real people who were buried according to their faith in their home country and now they’re in glass display boxes in museums all over the world for all to see.

Agree - it’s quite bizarre how we’ve all fenced off Egyptian mummies in our minds as somehow appropriate museum artefacts, when we would be utterly horrified to see a corpse right out on display in any other context.

I remember seeing a preserved peat bog body too on display at some point, before it started to dawn on people that this was entirely inappropriate and not really right for museum displays.

Any age.
Kids at the British Museum crowd at the desiccated corpse on display.
No blood or gore to be seen.

I loved museums from about nine onwards.

@LibrariesGiveUsPower

I wouldn’t. The Mummies belong in the graves in which they were buried in. Showing them in a museum is disrespectful and usually theft.

Completely agree. I have seen them and can't get over a human being as a museum object.

I took mine to museums from probably 3 ish.

Never. The very thought of it still freaks me out.

There's a brilliant virtual tour you can take at the British Museum that gives another perspective on the stolen artefacts. Its called the Unfiltered History tour.

Any age.

@Sprogonthetyne

There's one at our local museum, I've never thought to prevent my kids from seeing it, and we've been going since toddlerhood. They're still to young to really realise it's a dead person, to them it's just something we pass on the way to the dinosaur skeleton.

Ooh are you visiting the Hancock?

There’s no inappropriate age

This

why op?

Any age

Any age, but then we talk about death and where meat comes from very matter of factly.

Any age.

DD saw one on a school trip to the museum. Think it was perhaps year 2?

Ds is five and OBSESSED with Egyptian mummies! He’s had me read books to him about them at bedtime, has watched some documentaries that even put me to sleep, and has been to see two in person.

He has autism/very delayed speech and language.

Unless it’s about Egyptian mummies. His SALT lead at school nearly fell off her chair when he started talking about them 😁

If your dc is interested then I think it’s great to take them along to the museum.

Depends on the child ie if they are the anxious type I would be wary but any of my children would have been fine at any age.

DD and friends used to love the British museum mummies when they were around 8-9, especially the cat mummies

Our local public museum has a mummy but it also has a mummified cat. My little sister was obsessed from about age four!

I don't think there is an inappropriate age.

I do think there are issues regarding the theft of artifacts and respect for the people.