This piece (EA24906) is now in the British Museum, London, England.

This piece (EA24906) is now in the British Museum, London, England.

Upper part of the plastered and painted anthropoid wooden coffin lid that belonged to Pensenhor, a Libyan who settled in Egypt. He probably lived in Thebes some time during the time of the 22nd Dynasty (circa 945-712 BCE).

“The Egyptian origins of the coffin are rooted in the myth of Osiris, central to the ancient Egyptian belief of the hereafter. The story goes that Seth had made an elaborately carved and decorated box that would only fit his brother, Osiris.

He then planned a banquet to which he invited Osiris, among others. At the end of the banquet the chest was produced and offered to whoever fitted it perfectly. Naturally, this was Osiris.

Once Osiris was safely in the box, Seth slammed down the lid, and with the help of his henchmen, tossed it into the Nile.

This was thus the first coffin ever made, and subsequent ones could be regarded as owing their design to it.”

— Ikram, Salima and Aidan Dodson, The Mummy in Ancient Egypt: Equipping the Dead for Eternity, Thames and Hudson Ltd, London, England, 1998.

This piece (EA24906) is now in the British Museum, London, England.

Photo (edited for size) © The Trustees of the British Museum