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Mummy of an ibis

Mummy of an ibis

 

Length: 43.200 cm

Gift of the Egypt Exploration Fund

EA 53938

Ancient Egypt and Sudan

    Mummy of an ibis

    From Abydos, Egypt
    Roman Period, after 30 BC

    Sacred bird of the god Thoth

    This is an exceptionally fine ibis mummy, in an excellent state of preservation, with intricately arranged wrapping. The ibis was the sacred bird of the god Thoth, the scribe of the gods, and the moon deity, the patron of scribes, writing, mathematics and language.

    Many ibis mummies have been discovered, particularly at Saqqara. All were wrapped in linen bandages, and many of them then sealed in conical pottery jars.

    C.A.R. Andrews, Egyptian mummies (London, The British Museum Press, 1984)