Judaism has traditionally disapproved of cremation in the past, as a rejection of the respect due to humans who are created in the image of God. It was the traditional means of disposing the dead in many of the neighboring pagan Bronze Age cultures surrounding the early Hebrews. Judaism has also disapproved of preservation of the dead by means of embalming and mummifying, as this involves mutilation and abuse of the corpse. Mummification was a practice of the ancient Egyptians, among whom the early Jews lived as slaves.