Coffinette for the Viscera of Tutankhamun
By STAN PARCHIN
May 2, 2010
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Egyptian, New Kingdom, Dynasty 18 (ca. 1332-1323 B.C.). Coffinette for the Viscera of Tutankhamun (lid). Gold, carnelian, obsidian, rock crystal and glass. L. 39.5 cm; W. 11 cm; H. 10 cm. Thebes, Valley of the Kings, Tomb of Tutankhamun (KV 62). Egyptian Museum, Cairo. |
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Egyptian, New Kingdom, Dynasty 18 (ca. 1332-1323 B.C.). Coffinette for the Viscera of Tutankhamun (trough). Gold, carnelian, obsidian, rock crystal and glass. L. 39.5 cm; W. 11 cm; H. 10 cm. Thebes, Valley of the Kings, Tomb of Tutankhamun (KV 62). Egyptian Museum, Cairo. |
In preparation for the funeral of Pharaoh Tutankhamun (r. 1332-1323 B.C.) in Egypt's Valley of the Kings, priests mummified the young ruler's viscera (internal organs) and body separately. Along the east wall of his modest tomb's Treasury were two nested canopic (funerary) shrines, each made of gilded wood and resting on a sledge. The four deep circular hollows of the dark linen-draped calcite chest within them were topped with carved stoppers in the likeness of the boy-king's head, their facial features' details painted in black and red. The Coffinette for the Viscera of Tutankhamun (ca. 1332-1323 B.C.) is one of four gold mummiform containers. When opened horizontally, they held the monarch's liver, lungs, stomach and intestines. Found inside a cylindrical compartment of the stone receptacle, one of these masterworks is on display in the special exhibition Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs.
The Coffinette's Design and Purpose
The beaten gold miniature coffin in the image of a king was discovered wrapped in linen and covered with a black resin. The subject's striped royal nemes headdress is surmounted by the protective vulture and uraeus (cobra). His eyes are inlaid with obsidian and rock crystal. Beneath the ruler's pleated and curled divine beard, his hands hold the crook and flail. These traditional symbols of royal authority are also associated with Osiris, the Egyptian god of the netherworld and judge of the dead. The beautifully colored wings of two vultures, one with the head of a cobra representing the goddess Wadjet and the other symbolizing the deity Nekhbet, gracefully embrace the serene effigy's crossed arms and shoulders. Their claws hold the shen, the hieroglyphic sign for infinity. A stylized rishi or feather pattern in cloisonne inlays of colored glass and carnelian decorates the body's lower part. In terms of overall design, the coffinette and its three companions imitate the second of Tutankhamun's three anthropoid sarcophagi from his Burial Chamber
The inside of the coffinette's lid reveals an image of Isis, Osiris' wife and the sky goddess of fertility, magic and healing. To protect the king's dried viscera, the container's trough is inscribed with spells, including the first one from the Book of the Dead. A single invocation on the object's front, spoken by Isis and calling upon Imsety, the son of the god Horus, indicates that the coffinette was intended to hold the deceased's embalmed liver.
The Subject's Identity
The faces of Tutankhamun's four canopic coffinettes strongly suggest that they were produced for another king. Their physiognomy (full cheeks, small chins, large eyes and fine noses) is distinctly different from the features of the pharaoh's Gold Mask, an idealized portrait. The miniature coffins' interior royal cartouches or oval outlines originally bore the name of Ankhkheprure, perhaps the enigmatic co-regent of Akhenaten (r. 1353-1335 B.C.). It was later replaced with that of Tutankhamun. Ankhkheprure is sometimes identified with Nefertiti, the heretic ruler Akhenaten's principal wife, and Smenkhkare, a mysterious successor who possibly preceded Tutankhamun to ancient Egypt's throne. Some scholars feel that the coffinettes' general facial resemblance to the boy-king indicates that he and Smenkhkare were perhaps brothers.
Sources
Edwards, I.E.S. Treasures of Tutankhamun (exh. cat.). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1976, 82-85, 156-157.
Hawass, Zahi. Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs (exh. cat.). Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, 2005, 218-221.
_____, et al. Tutankhamun: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs (ext. cat.). Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, 2008, 232-234.
James, T.G.H. Tutankhamun. New York: MetroBooks, 2000, 100-109.
Reeves, Nicholas. The Complete Tutankhamun: The King, The Tomb, The Royal Treasure. New York: Thames & Hudson Ltd., 1990, 119-122.