Ancient Egyptian mummified bodies preserved for 5,000 years smell “woody”, “spicy” and “sweet”, according to scientists who used their own senses and electronic noses to examine them. Human “sniffers” were recited to describe the scent in terms of quality, intensity and pleasantness.

A new, first-of-its-kind analysis of the scents of nine mummies detected woody, spicy, herbal and rancid notes, among other odors