A naturally occurring mixture of sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate, historically used in mummification, glassmaking, and soap production. It forms as a white crystalline deposit in dry lake beds.
From Arabic naṭrūn, which came from Greek nitron, referring to this naturally occurring sodium compound found in Egyptian salt lakes. The word entered Latin as natrum, then passed into various European languages and English by the 17th century. The Arabic preservation of this term reflects Islamic scholars' continuation of ancient Egyptian and Greek chemical knowledge.
Natron was the secret ingredient that made Egyptian mummification possible - it literally preserved pharaohs for thousands of years! Arab chemists studied ancient Egyptian techniques and kept this knowledge alive when Europe had forgotten these chemical processes.
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