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About Salt

Salt, for much of human history, has been a highly-valued commodity that served many purposes, but perhaps the most useful and powerful purpose is preservation. Salt has an uncanny ability to preserve just about anything—be it a vegetable or even a human cadaver!

We all remember learning in grade school about ancient Egypts mummies and the opulent tombs constructed for the pharaohs and other wealthy elite. But even before the time of ancient Egypts exalted era of pharaohs, the salt in the dry desserts helped to preserve corpses found in burial sites from 5000 years ago.

The Egyptians discovered a type of salt in a dry riverbed—an area they called Natrun—that they used in the mummification process. They named the salt netjry or, as we know it, natron—and referred to it as "the divine salt." Natron was used in mummification processes, and though it wasnt entirely composed of sodium chloride, some bodies from ancient Egypt do appear to be preserved with salt alone—likely due to not being able to afford the pricier natron.