Canopic jars of Neskhons
From Deir el-Bahari, Upper
Egypt
21st Dynasty, 1069-945
BC
Stone jars made to store the liver, lungs,
stomach and intestines of a mummified body
When a body was preserved as a mummy, the
internal organs were taken out quickly after death, as they would
rot. All the same, the ancient Egyptians believed that it was
important to preserve them alongside the mummified body. The heart,
the 'seat of understanding', was left in place. The
liver, lungs, stomach and intestines were placed in four different
containers.
The wooden lids
of these jars represent the Sons of Horus, four minor gods who
protected the organs that they contained. They are: the
falcon-headed Qebhsenuef (intestines); the jackal-headed Duamutef
(the stomach); the baboon-headed Hapy (the lungs), and the
human-headed Imsety (the liver). These were named
'canopic' jars by modern Egyptologists. This
mistakenly linked them to Canopus, the captain of the fleet of
ships of Menelaus, king of Sparta. Canopus was buried in Egypt
after the fall of Troy, and was worshipped locally in the form of a
human-headed jar.
This set
of jars belonged to Neskhons, wife of Pinedjem II, the High Priest
of
Amun.
Her name and numerous titles are inscribed on the front. The
brightly painted lids are one of the best surviving images of the
Sons of Horus.
T. Richard Blurton (ed.), The enduring image: treasures, exh. cat (British Council, 1997)