In ancient Egyptian mummification, the embalming workshop was called the per-nefer. The Egyptian phrase is commonly translated as “beautiful house,” although it referred to a practical place where embalmers prepared bodies for burial.
The per-nefer was associated with the purification, drying, wrapping, and ritual treatment of the dead. Embalmers removed internal organs, treated the body with natron, and applied linen bandages and protective amulets before the funeral.
The term is sometimes confused with other Egyptian funerary locations. The ibu, or purification tent, was connected with washing the body, while the wabet was a place associated with ritual purity. These facilities could form parts of a larger mortuary complex rather than being identical names for one workshop.
Anubis was closely linked with embalming because Egyptian tradition portrayed him as the divine protector of the dead and the patron of embalmers. His jackal form also evoked the desert cemeteries where Egyptian tombs were built.