The book provides essential windows into social strategies and adaptations employed during the Bronze Age collapse and subsequent Iron Age reconsolidation, with many Twentieth to Twenty-second Dynasty coffins showing evidence of reuse from other, older coffins and obvious marks where gilding or inlay have been removed. It also presents photo essays of annotated visual data for over sixty Egyptian coffins from the so-called Royal Caches, most of them from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Format: Hardback
Length: 476 pages
Publication date: 27 August 2024
Publisher: American University in Cairo Press

An absolute gem for specialists and students alike, abounding in full color throughout, by an excellent scholar at the height of her powers.—David Aston, The Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna A meticulous study of the social, economic, and religious significance of coffin reuse and development during the Ramesside and early Third Intermediate periods, illustrated with over 900 images Funerary datasets are the chief source of social history in Egyptology, and the numerous tombs, coffins, Books of the Dead, and mummies of the Twentieth and Twenty-first Dynasties have not been fully utilized as social documents, mostly because the data of this time period is scattered and difficult to synthesize. This culmination of fifteen years of coffin study analyzes coffins and other funerary equipment of elites from the Nineteenth to the Twenty-second Dynasties to provide essential windows into social strategies and adaptations employed during the Bronze Age collapse and subsequent Iron Age reconsolidation. Many Twentieth to Twenty-second Dynasty coffins show evidence of reuse from other, older coffins, as well as obvious marks where gilding or inlay have been removed. Innovative vignettes painted onto coffin surfaces reflect new religious strategies and coping mechanisms within this time of crisis, while advances in mummification techniques reveal an Egyptian anxiety about long-term burial without coffins as a new style of stuffed and painted mummy was developed for the wealthy. It was in the context of necropolis insecurity, economic crisis, and group burial in reused and unpainted chambers that a complex, polychrome coffin style emerged. The first part of this book focuses on the theory and evidence of coffin reuse, contextualized within the social collapse that occurred during the Ramesside period. The second part examines the evidence for reuse in the early Third Intermediate Period, with a focus on the development of the polychrome coffin style. The third part explores the social significance of coffin reuse and development during the Ramesside and early Third Intermediate periods, with a particular emphasis on the role of women in funerary practices. The final part of the book examines the impact of coffin reuse and development on the study of Egyptian social history and the development of new research methodologies. The book is lavishly illustrated with over 900 images, including photographs, line drawings, and color plates, and is accompanied by a comprehensive bibliography and index. It will be of interest to scholars and students of Egyptian history, archaeology, and cultural studies, as well as anyone with an interest in the social and cultural history of the ancient world.

An Absolute Gem for Specialists and Students Alike

An absolute gem for specialists and students alike, abounding in full color throughout, by an excellent scholar at the height of her powers.—David Aston, The Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna

A Meticulous Study of the Social, Economic, and Religious Significance of Coffin Reuse and Development During the Ramesside and Early Third Intermediate Periods

Funerary datasets are the chief source of social history in Egyptology, and the numerous tombs, coffins, Books of the Dead, and mummies of the Twentieth and Twenty-first Dynasties have not been fully utilized as social documents, mostly because the data of this time period is scattered and difficult to synthesize. This culmination of fifteen years of coffin study analyzes coffins and other funerary equipment of elites from the Nineteenth to the Twenty-second Dynasties to provide essential windows into social strategies and adaptations employed during the Bronze Age collapse and subsequent Iron Age reconsolidation.

Many Twentieth to Twenty-second Dynasty Coffins Show Evidence of Reuse from Other, Older Coffins

Many Twentieth to Twenty-second Dynasty coffins show evidence of reuse from other, older coffins, as well as obvious marks where gilding or inlay have been removed. Innovative vignettes painted onto coffin surfaces reflect new religious strategies and coping mechanisms within this time of crisis, while advances in mummification techniques reveal an Egyptian anxiety about long-term burial without coffins as a new style of stuffed and painted mummy was developed for the wealthy. It was in the context of necropolis insecurity, economic crisis, and group burial in reused and unpainted chambers that a complex, polychrome coffin style emerged.

The First Part of This Book Focuses on the Theory and Evidence of Coffin Reuse

The first part of this book focuses on the theory and evidence of coffin reuse, contextualized within the social collapse that occurred during the Ramesside period. The second part examines the evidence for reuse in the early Third Intermediate Period, with a focus on the development of the polychrome coffin style. The third part explores the social significance of coffin reuse and development during the Ramesside and early Third Intermediate periods, with a particular emphasis on the role of women in funerary practices. The final part of the book examines the impact of coffin reuse and development on the study of Egyptian social history and the development of new research methodologies.

The Book Is Lavishly Illustrated with Over 900 Images

The book is lavishly illustrated with over 900 images, including photographs, line drawings, and color plates, and is accompanied by a comprehensive bibliography and index. It will be of interest to scholars and students of Egyptian history, archaeology, and cultural studies, as well as anyone with an interest in the social and cultural history of the ancient world.

Dimension: 279 x 216 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781649031280