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Dealing with the Dead in Ancient Egypt

The Funerary Business of Petebaste

Koenraad Donker van Heel author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:American University in Cairo Press

Published:6th Apr '21

Should be back in stock very soon

Dealing with the Dead in Ancient Egypt cover

An intimate look at the funerary business of a Theban mortuary priest

An intimate look at the true story of the funerary business of a Theban mortuary priest 2800 years ago as unearthed by an ancient papyrus
Petebaste son of Peteamunip, the choachyte, or water-pourer, lived during the first half of the seventh century BCE in the reigns of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty Kushite kings Shabaka and Taharqa and was responsible for the comfortable and carefree afterlife of his deceased clients by bringing their weekly libations.

But Petebaste was also responsible for a wide range of other activities—he provided a tomb to the family of the deceased, managed the costs of the personnel and commodities, and took care of all necessary paperwork, while also tending to the gruesome preparation of the mortal remains of the deceased.

Drawing on an archive of eight abnormal hieratic papyri in the Louvre that deal specifically with the affairs of a single family, Donker van Heel takes a deep dive into the business dealings of this Theban mortuary priest. In intimate detail, he illuminates the final stage of the embalming and coffining process of a woman called Taperet (‘Mrs. Seedcorn’) on the night before she would be taken from the embalming workshop to her final resting place, providing fascinating insight into the practical day-to-day aspects of funerary practices in ancient Egypt.

“Delightful. . . interesting . . . intriguing. . . Dealing with the Dead provides an insightful peek into an often overlooked period of Egyptian history, decoded using an impossible script, against the backdrop of the sometimes inimitable workings of Egyptology.”—Nicky van de Beek

ISBN: 9781617979965

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

156 pages