tour 11 of 11
Changing face: masks from the British Museum
Egyptian mummy mask
The ancient Egyptians performed mumification to
transform the bodies of the dead into dwellings for the
ba (spirit) in the
afterlife. The seventy-day process purged the corpse of fluids that
cause decay and endowed it with the attributes of gods such as
Osiris
and Ra, who had the power to renew human life
eternally.
An important
part of the mummy was a helmet-like mask, which was placed over the
head of the linen-wrapped body. Its youthful features were not
intended as a likeness of the deceased, but projected an idealized
image for their existence in the
afterlife.
This example has
many of the typical features of these masks. It is made of
cartonnage, a lightweight material formed from layers of linen
coated with plaster. The gilded skin and the wig symbolize the
wearer's divine status - the gods had flesh of gold and
hair of the blue mineral lapis lazuli. The ornamental collar and
the gilded winged scarab beetle on the top of the head promoted the
resurrection of the deceased. Lastly, a spell from the
Coffin
Texts linked the
mask's anatomy to that of powerful gods: 'Your
forehead is that of
Anubis,
the nape of your neck is that of
Horus,
your locks of hair are those of
Ptah-Sokar....'
The mask also provided physical protection and could act as a
substitute should the mummy's head lost or
damaged.