Collection
/
Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

Shrew Coffin

664–30 B.C.E.

1 of 5

Object Label

The Egyptians venerated the shrew, a mouse-sized nocturnal creature, because they believed it to be the counterpart for the ichneumon, with full vision during the night.

Caption

Shrew Coffin, 664–30 B.C.E.. Bronze, animal remains, 1 5/16 x 3/4 x 2 1/2 in., 0.2 lb. (3.3 x 1.9 x 6.4 cm, 0.08kg) as mounted: 1 1/2 x 7/8 x 2 1/2 in. (3.8 x 2.2 x 6.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.410Ea-b. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum (Gavin Ashworth, photographer), 37.410E_Gavin_Ashworth_photograph.jpg)

Gallery

Not on view

Title

Shrew Coffin

Date

664–30 B.C.E.

Dynasty

Dynasty 26, or later

Period

Late Period to Ptolemaic Period

Geography

Reportedly from: Lower Egypt, Egypt

Medium

Bronze, animal remains

Classification

Remains, Animal

Dimensions

1 5/16 x 3/4 x 2 1/2 in., 0.2 lb. (3.3 x 1.9 x 6.4 cm, 0.08kg) as mounted: 1 1/2 x 7/8 x 2 1/2 in. (3.8 x 2.2 x 6.4 cm)

Credit Line

Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund

Accession Number

37.410Ea-b

Rights

Creative Commons-BY

You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

Frequent Art Questions

  • What Egyptian god is the shrew is supposed to be associated with?

    Shrews were used to stand in for the ichneumon, the African mongoose. The ichneumon was associated with Horus and the god Atum, and was worshipped for it's ability to see in the dark and ability to kill snakes.
    You might have seen a small statue of a king and (much larger) Ichneumon elsewhere in the exhibition!
    Interesting! I knew the ichneumon was variously worshipped, also as the goddess Mafdet, but I didn't know the shrew could be a possible stand-in for it.
    Isn't it fascinating?
    It really is!

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