Object name: Fragment from the coffin of an unknown woman
Accession no.: E.W.82
Other numbers and markings: “E.W.82” written in ink
Dimensions: H 7.7 cm
W 72.7 cm
D 2.8 cm
Brief description:
Fragment of a coffin, once belonging to a woman (according to the grammatical endings in the religious texts on the coffin inside). The inside is decorated with coffin texts (spell 203, 204, 574, 210). The fragment belongs to the lower end of a long coffin side.
Outside: The outside is painted yellow. There are double lines painted green with parts of biographical phrases: Hzt nt nw t.s mi qd.s (honoured of the whole town) and imaxyt xr rnnw tt nt pr. s (revered one of Renenutet of her house). Both phrases are also known from other Middle Kingdom coffins found at Asyut.
Inside: The inside is decorated with long religious texts. The same sequence of coffin texts as on this fragment is to be found on the coffin of Mesehti (S1C) from Asyut. Although the spells are only badly preserved, it is clear that they closely follow the versions on the better preserved coffin of Mesehti. Especially CT 203 has on the coffin of Mesehti an extension, which also appears on the Cambridge coffin. The coffin fragment is also decorated on the outside with double lines, only known from Asyut and Rifeh. The coffin fragment was ‘found’ in the museum store together with E.W.66.a, b which most likely comes from Asyut.
Date: About 2055–1985 BC
Eleventh Dynasty
Find spot: Unknown provenance, but probably from Asyut, Egypt
Acquisition: Unknown (the piece reached the museum before 1957)
Construction, decoration and materials:
Other information
Fragment from the coffin of an unknown woman, front view
Fragment from the coffin of an unknown woman, back view
Fragment from the coffin of an unknown woman, detail of patching with two pieces of wood dowelled through from the yellow side of the fragment
