Sarcophagus lid of Tjentwerethequa, “Priestess of Amun”

The Sarcophagus lid of Tjentwerethequa, “Priestess of Amun”. Third Intermediate period, Early 22nd Dynasty, c. 1000- 901 B.C.

It is believed that Tjentwerethequa’s grandson, Lufenamun, a senior priest of Amun-Re, belonged to the priesthood entrusted with the reburial of Egypt’s ancient kings. Their sacred duty was to conceal the rulers of old within hidden caches, safeguarding them from tomb robbers who had, regrettably, already inflicted considerable damage upon the resting places and treasures of past royalty and nobility.

The Egyptians hoped to be able to continue to enjoy their lives, even after death, through their belief in an afterlife. To ensure this happened, a person needed to be given a proper burial and provided with food, drink and other provisions for the afterlife.

Wealthy individuals sought to ensure their survival for eternity by having their body preserved through the process of mummification and their likeness and name preserved through monuments like statues and decorated tomb chapels. Funerary beliefs and practices did not stay the same however; they changed over thousands of years of Egyptian history.

The National Museum of Scotland writes;

“The royal pharaohs reburied by Iufenamun were rediscovered in 1881. The story is told in Egyptian director Shadi Abdel Salam’s 1969 film Al-Mumiyaor The Night of the Counting Years.”

Both Tjentwerethequa’s sarcophagus and her grandson Iufenamun’s sarcophagus were donated to the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, and are currently on display there.

Photograph by peterdin