Egypt Museum ancient Egypt art culture and history

Mummy mask of Satdjehuty

Mummy mask of Satdjehuty

Daughter of king Senakhtenre Ahmose and his wife Tetisheri, Satdjehuty (Daughter of Thoth) was a sister-wife to her brother king Seqenenre Tao and held multiple titles including, “King’s Wife“, “King’s Sister“, and “King’s Daughter“. Sitdjehuti was also the sister of queens Ahhotep I and Ahmose-Inhapy, also sister-wives to their brother king Seqenenre Tao. Sitdjehuty and...

Statuette of Osiris as a Mummy with Erected Phallus

This baked clay statuette depicts the god Osiris naked, wears a tripartite wig and a divine beard. The penis and testicles are shaped separately and inserted into an oval recess. The black stone pupils are placed in a white stucco eyeball. The eye framing and eyebrows are inlaid sheet gold. Within the mummy case were...

Ushabti of a man with lappet-wig with incised ringlets

Ushabti of a man with lappet-wig with incised ringlets

This ushabti of a man only has its top half remaining and was purchased by the British Museum from Thomas Burgon in 1842. It is believed to date from the late 18th Dynasty, c.1388-1292 B.C. It showcases a male in a shoulder-length wig, usekh collar and holding two flails in each hand. It is made...

Alabaster figure of a woman

Alabaster figure of a woman

This calcite or Egyptian Alabaster figure of a woman dates from the Old Kingdom’s 4th Dynasty, c. 2613-2566 B.C. Read more about women in Ancient Egypt: Daughters of Isis, Women of Ancient Egypt

Serving girl cosmetic box

Serving girl cosmetic box

This wooden figure of a girl holding a trunk upon her head is actually a cosmetic box. The trunk the girl holds upon her head, would be filled with cosmetics of the owner’s choice, most likely pigments for make up, including eyeshadow and rouge for cheeks. The piece dates from the 18th Dynasty, of Ancient...

Woman baking bread

This painted limestone statuette depicting a woman baking bread was discovered at Giza within Tomb G 2415. According to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, where this piece currently resides, the statue was broken in antiquity and was fixed via a wooden peg, holding the base together. If you look closely, you can still see...

The boy Ptahneferti

The boy Ptahneferti

This painted limestone statuette of Ptahneferti (ptHnfrtj) as a boy, was discovered in Giza, Tomb G 2009. Dating from the Old Kingdom’s 5th Dynasty, c. 2465–2323 B.C., stands at 18 cm tall.In Ancient Egypt, children were often represented nude or partially dressed, with one long braided plait falling from the side of their head and...

Wooden face from a coffin

Wooden face from a coffin

This wooden face dates from around 1400 B.C. or later, making it of Ancient Egypt’s 18th Dynasty. It was originally a part of a coffin. Upon the top of the face is a large tenon, on which a wooden representation of a wig or headdress would have originally been placed. The face has a soft,...

Statuette of Amenemhab

Amenemhab and Huwebenef

These statuettes of brothers Amenemhab and Huwebenef were discovered in 1911 by Howard Carter’s Lord Carnarvon Excavations at El-Assasif, Thebes. The figures were found within Tomb CC37 (Hall C, burial 24), placed within the coffin of a woman named Ahhotep Tanodjmu (Ahhotep the sweet) presumed to be the boy’s mother. The figure of Amenemhab is...

Portrait of a woman, from Faiyum

Portrait of a woman, from Faiyum

The portrait was found by the archaeologist Albert Gayet during the excavation campaign of 1904 or 1905 at the necropolis of Antinoopolis in Middle Egypt. It entered the Louvre’s collections in 1905. A fragment of the right side of the board has been reglued. The paint has worn away on the nose, leaving a dark...