Coffin of Bakenmut, Late 21st to Early 22nd Dynasty, c.1000-900 BC (gessoed & painted sycamore)

The coffin of Bakenmut is one of the finest examples of painted wooden coffins made for the priests of Amen and their families at Thebes during Dynasty 21 and early Dynasty 22. The decoration on the interior features two deified dead kings of Dynasty 18. The main scene near the top depicts Tuthmosis III, the great military pharaoh, who lived 500 years before Bakenmut. Posed as a mummy, the ruler wears a brilliant feathered garment enfolding him with falcon’s wings. The scene below features back-to-back seated images of Amenhotep I, regarded as the patron of the Theban cemetery and worshiped as a local god there.