Coffin Lid

Lid of a mid-18th Dynasty mummiform coffin, painted black with text and decoration in yellow. The dead appears with a yellow painted face and large black tripartite wig with yellow stripes. Below a broad collar of red, yellow and green beads supported by falcon-headed terminals is depicted the vulture-headed goddess Nekhbet with wings spread across the chest, holding shen-rings in her talons (hieroglyphic signs of protection). Below her is a single column of text with a prayer to the sky goddess Nut. The owner of the coffin remains anonymous, the spaces for the insertion of the name have been left blank. From either side of this column four pairs of evenly spaced bands of inscription contain utterances by various deities. Along each length of the lid is a single horizontal line of inscription, with an offering formula invoking Osiris. At the foot end of the lid are two djed-pillars painted in yellow, red and blue/green. Closely resembles many other black painted coffins with yellow decoration, which were in use from the reign of Hatshepsut-Thutmose III to the reign of Ramesses II. The decoration suggests a date around the reigns of Tuthmose IV and Amenhotep III (1428 - 1350 BC).