Speaking to the Dead
The ancient Egyptians communicated with their dead relatives through letters, some of which still survive.
Menna fishing (right) and fowling (left) in the papyrus marshes (2009-03) by Katy DoyleAmerican Research Center In Egypt (ARCE)
The concept that life continued after death was central to the ancient Egyptian belief system. In the afterlife, the dead could enjoy food, drinks, and leisure activities. It was also believed they could influence the world of the living.
Deceased receiving offerings from their son (2009-03) by Katy DoyleAmerican Research Center In Egypt (ARCE)
One way the living could communicate with the dead was writing letters. Known as "Letters to the Dead" these texts ask for protection or support and were often presented at the tomb along with food offerings to deceased relatives or ancestors.
Asking for Protection
There are only a few surviving examples, but the letters are deeply personal. On this jar stand, the writer asks his father and grandmother for a healthy son. It seems the wife is ailed by some affliction, apparently the design of the two maid-servants.
Between the Living and the Dead
The letters describe a two-way relationship with expectations for both the living and the dead. On a bowl, a mother inscribed a letter to the dead asking her son, Mereri, for protection.
A mother speaks to her son, Mereri
The widow Dedi writes to her Husband
At times, the letters include some harsh words. In this letter, a widow writes to her dead husband, Antef, about a maid-servant who has fallen ill. She reprimands Antef for not looking after the maid and letting the household fall into disrepair.
Settling Disputes
Sometimes matters between the living and dead get complicated. The interior text on this bowl explains that Shepsi is having a property dispute with Henu. Shepsi writes to asks his parents, along with his deceased brother, Sobekhotep, to make a judgment on the matter.
Shepsi writes to his mother
Funerary cloth of IsetnefretBritish Museum
The letters to the dead provide an intimate glimpse into the everyday lives of ancient Egyptian people, their struggles, frustrations, and longing for their loved ones who were dead, but not gone.
Story by Tessa Litecky
This story was created in association with a museum exhibition and academic conference titled Exalted Spirits: The Veneration of the Dead in Egypt through the Ages, jointly organized by The American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE), The American University in Cairo (AUC), and the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (MoTA) in Egypt.
You are all set!
Your first Culture Weekly will arrive this week.