“I shall publish, as was communicated to me, this admirable process, in which I was formerly liberally initiated by Cl. Dn. Swammerdam, which is beyond all praise. It is necessary, then, to obtain a pewter vessel of sufficient size to contain the body to be embalmed; place at the distance of about two fingers depth of the bottom, a hurdle of wood, pierced with many holes; place the body on this hurdle, and pour on oil of turpentine to the height of three fingers, keep the vessel quiet, tightly, and less and less hermetically covered during a certain space of time; in this manner the oil, of a penetrating nature, will infiltrate by degrees into the body on which it is poured, and will expel the aqueous portions, the principal cause of the fermentation which tends to corruption. This aqueous portion descending by its specific gravity, and distilling through the flesh, will, in time, occupy the space between this and the bottom, and during this time the more subtle part of the balm will exhale, as the vessel is less closely covered; the more it evaporates, the harder the body becomes, and will imbibe the thick lees of the oil, the effect of which may be compared to that of a gummy marrow: it can then, consequently, remain out of the liquor and in open air without corrupting, without any fear of putrefaction, or of the worms. As to the time necessary to allow the body to remain in the balm, this varies according to the nature of the subject to be preserved. The following rules on this head must be observed: “The embalming of an embryon of six months, may be accomplished in about the same length of time. “The skeleton of the same embryon requires only about two months. “The membranes of the heart, three months. “The vessels of the liver, and of the placenta, cleared of their flesh, one month. “The vessels of the spleen, ten days. “The intestines, one month. “A certain time is thus assigned for other vessels, which would not be difficult to discover or determine by experiments. “It is always necessary to pay attention, that during this operation, the parts be a little contracted and compressed in an equable and convenient proportion; the coction of the body prevents the skin forming wrinkles, whether it be made before the deposition in the oil, or after it has soaked there for two months. In order that the subject may retain all its beauty and whiteness, it must be macerated for several days in alum before embalming it. In order that the members may retain a convenient form and position, they ought to be plunged into the balm on the commencement of winter, about the month of November, to expose them afterwards to the cold, not to freeze, but to harden them lightly. “In following this process, with care, we destroy entirely all the germs of putrefaction concealed in the body, to such a degree, that the entrails even are profoundly penetrated with this balm, and are able to resist the constant attacks of the air.