NARRATOR: Seti the first was the father of our friend Ramesses

the Great.

Just like his son, he was a hugely successful pharaoh.

But in father-son rivalry, there's one category where

he wins hands down, his mummy.

Because Seti the first boasts some

of the finest mummification work in all

of ancient Egyptian history.

Mummification is an incredible process

of drying out and embalming the body

to preserve it, ready for its journey to immortality

in the afterlife.

Key to it all was the preparation of the body.

Typically, your brain is pulled out through your nostrils

with an iron hook.

Next, all of your major organs are

removed apart from the heart.

Ancient Egyptians believed this was the center of your being.

These organs are then preserved in special jars,

so they can be reunited with their owner in the afterlife.

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Your body is then covered in a salt called natron and left

to dry for up to 40 days.

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Finally, the now mummified body is wrapped head

to foot in hundreds of meters of linen bandages attached

with a glue, and magical spells are cast to protect the mummy

and prepare it for safe arrival in the afterlife.

But Seti's mummy is unusual.

His face is incredibly well-preserved.

He looks almost perfect, not what you

might expect from a body over 3,000 years old.

But frankly, Seti's has had quite a lot of work done.

Unlocking the secrets behind Seti's youthful good looks

is professor of radiology Sahar Saleem.

I always looked at his mummy and I said, "This is no mummy.

This is a sleeping beauty," and I've always

wondered, what was his secrets?

The secrets revealed to me that the ancient Egyptians were very

efficient as plastic surgeons.

So was it really plastic surgery?

Yeah.

And they actually placed feathers around the nose

and the mouth, in this region, in the cheeks,

and even in the temporal.

What does this tell you about their ideas of ancient beauty

for men as well as for women?

The ancient Egyptian would like to look like his gods.

There is something very, very charismatic about him.

He was the most well-mummified person from ancient Egypt

that I've ever looked at.

I love the way you talk about him.

I bet you wish you'd met him.

Definitely.

We will meet one day.

Yeah, in the afterlife.

Brilliant. Brilliant.

Well, good luck.

[laughs]

NARRATOR: Egyptians beautified Seti's mummy

to make sure it was in the best possible shape

to travel to the afterlife.

Once there, Seti would need a stunning home for all eternity.