Up next in 10
The Mummy franchise traces its roots to the 1930s, when Boris Karloff portrayed the historic embalmed character at the height of the Universal Classic Monsters heyday. The first film, made in 1932, framed Imhotep as a mummy carrying an ancient curse. But Imhotep was a real-life priest in ancient Egypt, and he wasn't anything like his character in The Mummy movies.
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
Since the golden age of Hollywood, movies have presented Imhotep as a mummy carrying an ancient
0:05
curse. But the real Imhotep, who lived around 2600 BC, was an engineer, a physician, a politician
0:13
and a priest. In fact, he was one of the first recorded geniuses in world history
0:18
So today we're going to take a look at Imhotep, the real-life Egyptian polymath
0:23
who was the exact opposite of the villain from the movie The Mummy. The Mummy film franchise traces its roots to the 1930s when Boris Karloff, most famous for
0:34
portraying Frankenstein, played the embalmed and bandaged baddie at the height of the Universal
0:39
classic monster's heyday. This first film, made in 1932, set the tone for all future Mummy stories
0:46
to come by presenting the titular mummy as the ancient Imhotep who was suffering from an evil
0:51
curse. In 1999, Universal remade The Mummy with Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz. This time
0:59
instead of a horror movie, the film was an adventure picture, very much in the vein of the
1:03
Indiana Jones movies. Imhotep, The Mummy, played by Arnold Vosloo, was presented as a lovesick
1:09
megalomaniac who plotted against the pharaoh due to his love for the queen. Thousands of years later
1:15
he rises from the grave to wreak havoc on the world and bring his love back to life
1:20
Along the way, he causes plagues, levels cities, and defies the afterlife
1:25
It was a movie, and that's about the best thing we can say about it. While the historical Imhotep was impressive, he wasn't quite capable of such supernatural feats
1:34
The real Imhotep worked his way through the Egyptian ranks to hold a key position in the
1:39
governments of two different pharaohs, and was the mastermind behind the first pyramid
1:44
Sure, it's not really as awe-inducing as turning yourself into a living sandstorm
1:48
but we think he's much more impressive. Ptah was the god of craftsmen, and Imhotep became his high
1:55
priest during the reign of King Zoser. As such, Imhotep was responsible for the construction of
2:00
the king's burial place. Prior to this, royal tombs had been simple rectangular structures
2:06
but Imhotep decided to think outside the box and create a new and unique type of final resting place
2:12
for King Zoser. Using a number of architectural innovations, Imhotep built the step pyramid of
2:17
King Zoser, which was the tallest structure in the world at the time of its construction
2:21
The king was so pleased with Imhotep's work that he allowed the priest's name to be inscribed on
2:26
the pyramid along with his own. In comparison, the Imhotep of the mummy franchise isn't so much
2:33
interested in building pyramids as he is in looting them for artifacts and exploiting their ancient supernatural qualities In The Mummy Returns Imhotep does travel to the pyramid of the Scorpion King
2:44
but not for architectural reasons. He goes there to face off against the ancient leader
2:49
and gain command over the ghastly legions of Anubis. As the god of craftsmen and architects
2:58
roughly ogous with the Greek god Hephaestus or the Roman god Vulcan
3:02
Pata was an important god in the ancient Egyptian pantheon. However, he was also the patron god of Memphis
3:09
So when that city became the seat of government, Pata's followers grew numerous and powerful
3:14
Imhotep quickly worked his way through the ranks to become high priest of Pata
3:18
earning a place in the highest government councils. At that point in Egyptian history, a priest's role was both religious and civil
3:25
This meant that Imhotep's priestly position gave him oversight over earthly matters
3:29
such as the construction of the First Pyramid. In the movies, Imhotep is indeed a high priest
3:35
They got that part right. But the movie Imhotep's ambitions aren't limited to this world
3:40
After being entombed in a sarcophagus, he is awakened in the modern world and sets out to become a god himself
3:46
first by resurrecting his lost love and then by trying to defeat the Scorpion King
3:51
However, Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz kept getting in the way of his plans
3:56
And the Scorpion King is played by The Rock. So that part was never going to be easy
4:04
Everyone gives the Romans a hard time for co-opting the Greek gods
4:08
But not surprisingly, the Greeks weren't above a little deity plagiarism themselves
4:13
For example, Thoth, the Egyptian god of the moon, became identified with Hermes
4:18
while Imhotep himself was associated with Asclepius, the god of medicine. Of course, this is in contrast with the evil Imhotep of the mummy franchise
4:27
who's out there trying to become a different kind of god entirely. In the movies, Imhotep is identified constantly with Anubis
4:34
the jackal-headed god of embalming. In the climax of The Mummy Returns
4:38
Imhotep even struggles for control of Anubis' jackal-headed troops that guard the Scorpion King's pyramid
4:44
The film version of Imhotep initially meets his end after plotting against the pharaoh
4:49
He's then sealed in a sarcophagus with flesh-eating scarab beetles and buried alive under a giant statue of Anubis
4:55
In real life, Amhotep followed a different and decidedly less horrific path to immortality
5:01
Almost 2,000 years after his passing, around 525 BC, he was deified by the Egyptian people
5:07
and worshipped as the god of healing. In fact he is only one of two common Egyptians to be given the honor of deification Strangely enough the other deified commoner Amunhotep was also a healer Now it makes sense why your mom wanted you to become a doctor
5:22
After his deification, the real Amenhotep was worshipped as a powerful god
5:26
and his followers traveled from all over the empire to the Saqqara Necropolis, his supposed final resting place
5:33
At Saqqara, worshippers would ask priests to let them stay overnight, as they believed
5:38
the dreams they had there would give them guidance and help heal sick family members
5:43
Pilgrims also mummified ibises and left them for Imhotep, since the bird was associated with wisdom
5:49
In the movies, on the other hand, Imhotep wasn't concerned with healing anyone
5:53
except his lost love, Anaxudamun. And not to split hairs, but even that was more necromancy than medicine
6:00
When Imhotep was deified, the priesthood needed to decide his place among the pantheon
6:06
Ancient Egyptian theology was focused on hierarchy, and certain gods were revered above others for a variety of metaphorical and symbolic reasons
6:15
Imhotep was considered the son of Pata, the god of craftsmen. Together with Pata and Sekhmet
6:21
the goddess of childbirth, Imhotep completed the great Triad of Memphis. While that might sound
6:26
like a country music trio from Tennessee, it was actually a group of three gods associated with a
6:32
powerful ancient Egyptian city. Fans of the Mummy franchise know the movie Imhotep wields some
6:38
impressive magical powers. He can transform himself into sand, control scarabs, and summon
6:44
plagues. You know, typical mummy stuff. He even has supernatural strength and agility
6:50
like Spider-Man. Now, the movie doesn't work too hard at explaining why Imhotep has these magic
6:55
powers, but if it's because he's the son of a god, it would actually explain everything rather nicely
7:00
Eminent Canadian physician Sir William Osler called Imhotep the first figure of a physician
7:09
to stand out clearly from the mists of antiquity. Imhotep was a prolific doctor and surgeon
7:15
treating over 200 patients in between, fulfilling his political, religious, and civic duties. He
7:20
treated everything from tuberculosis to gallstones, and may have even had a hand in founding the first
7:25
known school of medicine. And in the mummy movies, Imhotep is, in fact, a surgeon. Well
7:30
sort of. He's a surgeon in the sense he wants to vivisect a living human being in order to provide
7:35
a host body for his 3,000-year-old lover. We're unaware of any modern medical school which teaches
7:41
that particular technique, but the concept is undeniably surgery-like. In 1862, a dealer named
7:47
Edwin Smith bought ancient papyrus not knowing what he was getting The Edwin Smith papers as they came to be called are a compendium of medical wisdom The book covers all manners of cases including tumors fractures and infections
8:01
Considering the time it was written, which was roughly around the 27th century BC
8:06
it's a mostly accurate and sophisticated medical book and includes a fairly precise description of
8:11
human anatomy. While there is no definitive proof of its authorship, this document has been
8:16
attributed by many to Imhotep. Hollywood's version of Imhotep, however, has an entirely
8:21
different relationship to ancient scrolls. When someone accidentally reads from mystical Egyptian
8:26
scripts, they reawaken him so he can unleash his wrath on the world. It makes for a much better
8:31
story than scrolls about old world medical knowledge, but we're grateful Smith didn't
8:36
find anything like that. During the reign of King Zoser, Egypt was struck by a seven-year famine
8:44
the king asked Imhotep to find a solution. Historians say Imhotep consulted ancient books
8:50
and instructed the Egyptians to pray to Kenim, which allegedly alleviated the famine. However
8:56
we also know Imhotep created an irrigation system that allowed the fields to receive water
9:01
even when the river was low. While the prayers boosted the people's confidence
9:06
the irrigation system may have been the real solution. The fictional Imhotep definitely has
9:11
the power to end droughts. It's just highly unlikely he would be so benevolent with his
9:15
powers since he was, you know, a monster. But in The Mummy Returns, he does indeed summon an
9:22
enormous wall of water in order to wipe out his enemies. Such a power would arguably be as
9:27
effective as irrigation channels, and a whole lot more impressive. Throughout both The Mummy and
9:32
The Mummy Returns, Imhotep, at heart, is really just a misunderstood hopeless romantic. In fact
9:38
Everything he does in both films is motivated by his love for Anak Sanamun
9:43
The two of them conspire to take down the pharaoh, but their plot ultimately unravels
9:48
His love for her is so strong that when she abandons him at a critical moment in the film
9:53
Imhotep willingly throws himself into a chasm of hungry souls who tear him apart
9:58
Was it melodramatic and disgusting? Yes. Was it kind of sweet? Yeah, it kind of was
10:03
The real-life woman, however, lived in the 14th century BC. Z, about 1,000 years after Imhotep's time
10:11
She was the wife of Tutankhamun and was reportedly highly devoted to her pharaoh
10:15
When Tutankhamun abruptly passed at the age of 18 or 19, Anak-Sunamun became queen of Egypt
10:21
and ruled until her hand-picked successor took over. It was probably a better deal than being an object
10:27
of fixation for an all-powerful super evil sorcerer mummy guy, but it wouldn't have made for nearly as exciting a movie