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Mummy coffin of Petisis

Unknown-0710/-0680

Rijksmuseum van Oudheden

Rijksmuseum van Oudheden
Leiden, Netherlands

Egyptian mummy coffins are frequently painted with texts and images from the Book of the Dead, a collection of magic spells for use in the afterlife. Here, one of the horizontal scenes is depicted on the front of the outer coffin of Petsis, an official who worked at the Temple of Amon of Karnak. The scene depicted is the illustration accompanying proverb 151 from the Book of the Dead. The mummy lies on a bier in the shape of a standing lion. Under the bier stand the four canopic jars in which the entrails of the deceased are preserved. Anoebis, the god of mummification, takes care of the mummy. Hovering around his head is the Ba-bird (the soul of the deceased). Seated at the head end is the goddess Isis, followed by two sons of Horus, Duamutef and Qebehsenuef. At the foot end sits the goddess Nephthys, followed by Amset and Hapi.

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Rijksmuseum van Oudheden

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