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Coffin and Mummy of Pa-ankh-en-Amun

The outer hard case of an Egyptian mummy is painted with a gold face, a blue geometric wig, a colorful bird across the chest, and various scenes across the lower portion featuring figures of gods and goddesses.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • The outer hard case of an Egyptian mummy is painted with a gold face, a blue geometric wig, a colorful bird across the chest, and various scenes across the lower portion featuring figures of gods and goddesses.

Date:

Third Intermediate Period, Dynasty 22, reign of Osorkon I (about 924–889 BCE)

Artist:

Egyptian; Thebes (modern Luxor), Egypt

About this artwork

Mummification is the ancient Egyptian funerary practice of drying out a corpse for preservation. Anointed with oils and spices and protected with amulets, this linen-wrapped body was placed in a series of nesting coffins; the vividly painted cartonnage was the innermost shell. Across the surface of the mummy case, inscriptions and painted scenes and symbols identify the deceased— Paankhenamun (The One Who Lives for Amun)—and proclaim his wish to live well in the afterlife. Another inscription records that he was the doorkeeper of the temple of Amun. The names and titles on the coffin suggest that he lived at Thebes. The central scene depicts the presentation of the deceased by the falcon-headed deity Horus to Osiris, the ruler of eternity (shown, as was common, as a mummy). Other divinities help the deceased in his journey to the afterlife. Despite the youthful features of the gilt face, X-rays reveal that Paankhenamun was middle-aged.

Status

On View, Gallery 50

Department

Arts of Africa

Culture

Ancient Egyptian

Title

Coffin and Mummy of Pa-ankh-en-Amun

Place

Thebes (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

c. 924 BCE–889 BCE

Medium

Cartonnage, gold leaf, pigment, and mummified human remains

Dimensions

170.2 × 43.2 × 31.7 cm (67 × 17 × 12 1/2 in.)

Credit Line

W. Moses Willner Fund

Reference Number

1910.238

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/64339/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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