Everyone knows the traditional way to wrap a mummy; Long strips of cloth wrap around the body from head to toe. But this mummy from the Louvre has an intricately woven square design on its face and a distinct overall wrapping style all over its body! The intricate décor begs the question, who is this person and why are they getting special treatment in their scarfing style?
The man behind the mask
The most striking feature of this mummy and what sets it apart from other mummies are the interwoven strips of linen that create a concentric square design on the mummy’s face. However, underneath the linen, the body was very well preserved. According to the Louvre, X-ray results showed that the mummy was an adult man who lived during the Ptolemaic period (305 BC to 30 BC). He was wealthy enough during his mortal life to be embalmed after death, which ensured survival into the afterlife. Museum researchers are unsure of the man’s name, but they believe it was Pachery or Nenu.
The mummy’s face has a novel concentric square effect made from strips of linen. ( CC BY-SA 3.0 )
Decorate carton boxes
In addition to the geometric twisted square pattern on the mummy’s face. The carton was placed over the remains of the mummy’s body, which had thick shoulders, a neck strap draped across the chest, and a decorative apron that crossed the legs and encircled the feet. Carton was a material used in funeral decorations and masks by the ancient Egyptians from 2181 BC to 400 AD. Similar to papier-mâché, it was made of layers of linen or papyrus covered with plaster and then painted.
Mask and apron
Above the square linen design is a mask (now next to the mummy) decorated with a winged scarab, a symbol of rebirth. The mummy’s necklace depicts the goddesses, sisters Nephthys and Isis, who protect the mummy. The neckband is also decorated with many rows of beads and has a clasp in the shape of a falcon’s head.
Masks and aprons are decorated with iconic images and designs. ( CC BY-SA 3.0 )
The mummy’s apron has various scenes arranged in rows along its length. Most notable among these registers is the depiction of the mummy lying in bed surrounded by the goddesses Nephthys and Isis again, along with the four sons of Horus, Imsety, Duamutef, Hapi and Qebehsenuef. The four sons of Horus are often seen as personifications of the four vessels containing the liver, stomach, lungs and intestines respectively.
Canopic jars
Along with the mummy, the man’s major organs were preserved in jars, except for the heart and brain. The heart was left outside the body and jars because it was believed to embody the soul and therefore needed to be easily accessible to enter the realm of death. The brain is believed to be the source of the mucus so it is turned into liquid, removed with a metal hook and discarded.
Foot shell
On the mummy’s foot shell there are two images of the god Anubis or Anpu, the god of cemeteries and embalming. This god is found on many mummies because he was the one who would weigh the deceased’s heart with the weight of a feather to determine whether the soul was allowed to enter the realm of the dead or not.
Make a mummy
Just like today, there were many different practices and prices associated with different embalming procedures. Around 450 BC, the Greek historian Herodotus wrote a detailed description of these various practices. He described “the most perfect process” as the removal of the brain through the nostrils and other easily decomposed internal organs. The internal organs are then placed in canopic jars, as detailed above. The body cavity was then cleaned with palm oil and filled with “the purest ground myrrh, cinnamon and every other spice except agarwood.” At the end of the process, the body was wrapped in linen and dipped in resin or gum and returned to the family who wrapped it in a wooden box. While all this was going on, the priests would place many protective amulets between the wrappings. Perhaps this is the type of mummification that Pachery/Nenu went through.
Mother A La Mode
From this man’s elaborate mummification and wrapping process, it is clear that he was a wealthy man. Not everyone in ancient Egypt was as lucky as him, many were simply buried in the desert with a few small offerings to the gods. When the mummification process began, mummies were not as complicated as this one. In fact, they were little more than bodies covered with linen and dipped in resin. Over time, this process and gift wrapping become more complicated. Entering the Greco-Roman period, mummies were often notable for their highly intricate designs of woven linen as well as decorations, masks, and containers. During the Ptolemaic period, all these elements were added to the mummy before it was placed inside the coffin.
