Predynastic Egyptian man

This man died more than five thousand years ago and was buried at the site of Gebelein, in Upper Egypt. The reconstruction of his grave illustrates the custom during the Predynastic period (the time before the pharaohs, 3900–3100BC), of placing the body in a contracted position, usually on the left side, facing the west toward the land of the dead. Around him are all the things he might need in the afterlife, especially pottery to hold and serve food.

In Predynastic time, the dead were buried in shallow pits dug into the desert sand. The bodies were often covered with linen, skins or reed mats, and some, like this man, were covered with stone slabs. Occasionally, the arid desert environment, as well as contact with the hot sand, naturally preserved the bodies by inhibiting the enzymes and bacteria that usually cause decay. This sand-drying has naturally mummified the body of this man remarkably well, including his finger-nails and hair, which has probably faded with time.

Experiments with resins and wrappings to preserve the body began in Predynastic times. Further forms of artificial mummification developed later, after the introduction of coffins and deeper graves which separated the body from the natural drying effects of the sand.

The objects that surrounded this man in his original burial are unknown, but displayed are a selection of grave-goods typical of the middle Predynastic period (c. 3500BC), the time we believed he lived. CT scans show that he was only 18-21 years of age when he died and that his death was not natural. A cut in his left shoulder is from a stab wound that shattered his shoulder blade and punctured the left lung. This was probably the cause of death. The wound was possibly made with a metal dagger.