decomposition", said brazilian archaeologist valdirene ambiel, responsible for the research. she added that another contributing factor was the casket, saying it was so hermetically sealed that there were no micro-organisms in it. before the reburial, scientists reembalmed amélie's mummified body using a method similar to the first one. the embalmed body of emperor pedro ii of brazil lying in repose before his state funeral in paris. post-mortem photograph by nadar, 1891 pedro ii of brazil died during his exile in france in 1891 at the age of 66. he was embalmed on december 5, the day of his death. during the process, six liters of hydrochloride of zinc and aluminum was injected into his common carotid artery. three coffins were used: an inner lead-lined coffin, which contained the body, and two outer coffins. according to julie anne taddeo, a research professor of history at the university of maryland, lead helps keep out moisture and preserve the body for longer and prevent smells and toxins from a dead body escaping. pedro ii was buried in the royal pantheon of the house of braganza in lisbon, portugal on december 12, 1891. the site had become a place of pilgrimage for brazilians arriving in the country at the time. in 1912, brazilian educator and archivist luís gastão d'escragnolle dória visited the royal pantheon late at night and went to the emperor's glass-topped coffin holding a candle that was giving to him by a local guard. he pulled away the flag of the empire of brazil that covered the coffin in order to see the late monarch. at the occasion, he had noticed the well-preserved state of pedro ii's body, along with the clothes which he was buried in (the court dress military uniform; the collar of the order of the rose; and a silver crucifix sent by pope leo xiii in his hands), although he did find the embalming left a lot to be desired. he wrote: "his face looks like old wax. his beard, once so fine, so silky, so white, has turned ugly and yellow, like old ivory . when i saw him in february 1912 i did find he was smaller than he had been in late 1909 . dom pedro ii's head rests on a pillow filled with brazilian sand . the emperor looks so different! how cruel is an imperfect embalming! where is that majestic head, crowned in past times with that silvery silky hair? where are his steel gleam blue eyes; the beautiful beard gilded by youthfulness and silvered by old age; his stately bearing? everything is gone, faded! involuntarily, i do compare the mummified sovereign, ugly, tiny, to the giant man who, in 1886, i saw entering the são paulo see , among a colossal wave of people, dominating it, seeming so many cubits taller." pedro ii's remains, as well as those of his wife teresa cristina, were returned to his native brazil in 1921. the emperor and empress are buried in the cathedral of saint peter of alcantara in petrópolis, a city pedro ii founded.