Exhibitions: The Mummy Chamber

Cartonnage and Mummy of Gautseshenu

Cartonnage and Mummy of Gautseshenu. Egypt, probably from Thebes. Third Intermediate Period, Dynasties 25 to 26, circa 700–650 B.C.E. Linen, paint, gesso, organic materials; 64 3/16 x 14 15/16 x 11 1/2 in. (163 x 38 x 29.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 34.1223

This cartonnage shows, on the right, Anubis, the jackal-headed god, weighing the heart of the deceased, an important test for entry to the afterlife. In the center are the Four Sons of Horus, who protected specific mummified organs of the body. On the left, the deceased kneels and plays musical instruments before the symbol of the god Osiris.

This mummy’s name, Gautseshenu, means “bouquet of lotuses.” The Egyptian word seshen (“lotus”) is the origin of the name Susan.