Egyptian Sarcophagus Mask

Originally part of a sarcophagus that was meant to protect a mummy, this enigmatic face hails from the 26th Dynasty of the Late Kingdom of Egypt. It is carved from a single piece of cedar and remarkably still bears the original light ocher and black paint that represents the kah, or the immortal spirit double of the deceased.

Masks were a very important aspect of ancient Egyptian burials. In the Egyptians’ complicated view of life after death, they provided the dead with a face in the afterlife and enabled the person’s spirit, or ba, to recognize the body. Specific features of a mask, including the eyes, eyebrows, forehead and other features, were directly identified with individual divinities. This allowed the deceased to arrive safely in the hereafter and gain acceptance among the other divine immortals in the council of Osiris, the great god of the dead.

Initially made for only the royalty, such masks were also later crafted for the nobility. They became an important part of the elaborate precautions taken by the ancient Egyptians to preserve the body after death. Once the mummy was in the sarcophagus, the mask was placed over his or her face and held in place by wooden pegs. Such masks were in use well into the Greek Ptolemaic period around 300 B.C.E. and are extremely hard to find on the market today.

11 1/2” wide x 12 1/2” length

6th-4th Century B.C.E.

Provenance:
German private collection, 1960s