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Ibis Mummy

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

Often, the more elaborate the wrapping, the less likely it is that the whole animal is inside, as the two CT scans shown here reveal. Perhaps the intricate wrapping substitutes for the animal.

This ibis is the most elaborately wrapped of all the animal mummies on display here. The herringbone pattern linen, the beak, and the elaborate crown all cover a mummy made only from ibis feathers. In contrast, the simple circular wrapping of this cat, with a head modeled in linen, conceals a complete cat mummy.
MEDIUM Animal remains, resin, linen
  • Place Excavated: Abydos, Egypt
  • DATES 30 B.C.E.–100 C.E.
    PERIOD Early Roman Period
    DIMENSIONS Ibis mummy with headdress: 30 5/16 x 5 1/2 x 8 1/4 in. (77 x 14 x 21 cm) a - Ibis mummy without headdress: 24 7/16 x 5 5/16 x 8 1/4 in. (62 x 13.5 x 21 cm) b - Headdress: 15 x 13 11/16 x 2 11/16 in. (38.1 x 34.8 x 6.9 cm)  (show scale)
    ACCESSION NUMBER 14.655a-b
    CREDIT LINE Gift of the Egypt Exploration Fund
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Large mummified ibis (a) wrapped in elaborately pleated brown and tan linen in the form of a human mummy. Separate Hem-hem crown (b) surmounts figure. Head attached separately with large projecting beak. Condition: General condition good. Crown considerably decayed and in fragile condition. Linen is elaborately pleated and interlaced and the specimen is quite outstanding. Partial skeletal remains of an ibis, along with a bone of a cat or a dog.
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
    CAPTION Ibis Mummy, 30 B.C.E.–100 C.E. Animal remains, resin, linen, Ibis mummy with headdress: 30 5/16 x 5 1/2 x 8 1/4 in. (77 x 14 x 21 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Egypt Exploration Fund, 14.655a-b. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.14.655_mummychamber.jpg)
    IMAGE installation, Egypt Reborn: Mummy Chamber Installation (2011), CUR.14.655_mummychamber.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
    "CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
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