Ofterdingen and Kropotkin

The search for a reliable, less expensive alternative to rag, scrap as the raw material for paper had been unsuccessful - though not for want of effort [...] A particularly imaginative source for rag, itself, was found in the mid-nineteenth century in Egyptian mummies. Shiploads of mummies were sent from Egypt to paper companies in the United States, where the linen wrappings were taken off and recycled, so to speak, into paper. [...] The only competition the papermakers had for the mummies was from the new Egyptian railroad, which, reportedly, used them as fuel.
Mark Stefik, Internet Dreams, p.75

(thanks to Chris for the reference)