The final and most challenging confrontation that the ancient Egyptian had with the natural world was death. For the ancient Egyptian, death was an affirmation of the value of life. The ceremonies, objects, and structures that were created as part of funerary rites were not mournful in tone. Rather, they were celebratory affirmations of the good things that the deceased had experienced in the life just passed and the better things that he hoped to experience in the afterlife.

To enter the afterlife, the deceased had to complete a dangerous journey through the underworld and pass final judgement. The body had to be properly mummified and the tomb filled with everything needed for the journey. On special days, surviving family members and funerary priests performed rituals and made offerings at the tomb to nourish the spirit of the deceased.

A shabti is a small figure shaped like a mummy that was placed in the tomb to do any manual labor required of the deceased. Ideally a tomb contained over 400 shabtis - one for every day of the year, plus one foreman for every squad of ten workmen. Each shabti was equipped with a pick, hoe, and seed basket. The name of the deceased was engraved on the shabti. Shabtis were most often made of faience. They varied greatly in workmanship according to the wealth of the tomb owner.

This example is made of blue faience. The figure appears as a mummified replica of the deceased owner with its hands closed upon its breast.

After burial, the spirit journeyed toward the Land of the Setting Sun in the west, also called the Field of Reeds. The deceased had to appear before Osiris and forty-two spiritual advisors to convince them that he had led a virtuous life. During this Judgement of the Dead, the heart of the deceased was weighed against a feather that represented Ma'at, the goddess who represented eternal harmony and balance. If the heart was not heavy with deceit, the deceased was allowed to proceed to the Field of Reeds. Here the deceased or his helpers worked in the fields plowing, planting, and harvesting the crops. The deceased passed through Duat, the underworld ruled by Osiris which was the mirror image of the living world, lit by the sun on its overnight journey.

Mummification and the Physical Body
Mummification attempted to preserve the physical body. The level or quality of embalming reflected the wealth, social status, and rank of the deceased and his family. In the most elaborate burials, the mummy was placed in up to three protective coffins, encased in a stone sarcophagus, and buried in a pyramid, a stone building, or an underground chamber. Mummies of the poor were placed in common repositories with or without coffins. A poor Egyptian who could not afford mummification was buried in the sand.

This inlaid glass eye, with black pupil pressed into a white background, probably was placed in the eye socket of a statue to give it a realistic look. The statue may have been made of stone or wood. The detail and vibrant color on such a small object demonstrate the high level of skill of the ancient Egyptian glassmaker.

Pyramids and Tomb Objects
A pyramid was a stone or mud brick structure built to house and protect the mummy of the king for eternity. It had four triangular, smooth, angled or stepped sides and was located in royal burial complexes from the Third Dynasty to the Second Intermediate Period. Royal funerary complexes sometimes included mortuary and valley temples and in some cases, smaller secondary pyramids.

When mummifying the body of the deceased, ancient Egyptian embalmers removed most of the inner organs and preserved them separately in four containers called Canopic jars. Each jar was protected by one of the four sons of Horus. Hapi who resembled a baboon, protected the lungs; Duamutef who had the head of a jackal guarded the stomach; Qebhsenuef who resembled a falcon, protected the intestines. Imsety who is shown here, guarded the liver of the deceased. (The heart of the deceased was returned to the mummy before entombment. The brain was discarded.)

Canopic jars were made of stone, wood, or pottery and were often carved or painted with inscriptions. Within the tomb, the Canopic jars were enclosed in an elaborately designed cabinet.

All text this section from the original exhibition text panels, © Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. All rights reserved.