Anubis and the Embalming Scene: Tradition and Innovation in a New Kingdom Funerary Scene at Kom el-Shoqafa, Alexandria

Author

Bethany Jensen

Date

2022

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

Art History

Committee Chair

Lorelei Corcoran

Committee Member

Joshua A. Roberson

Committee Member

Suzanne Onstine

Abstract

Focusing on the scene of Anubis embalming the mummy in the main tomb at Kom el-Shoqafa in Alexandria, Egypt, this thesis demonstrates how it is both a continuation of the funerary motif that first appears in Dynasty 18 of the New Kingdom (ca. 1425 BC) and an innovative version unique to the early Roman period (first to second centuries AD). Background information regarding Alexandria, the site of Kom el-Shoqafa, and a description of the tomb are provided. This is followed by a history of the scene, its origins in Spell 151 of the Book of the Dead, and a comparison of the scene to those in other tombs and contexts (papyri, coffins, etc.) which show adherence to tradition while simultaneously allowing for modification. The thesis argues that the Alexandrian scene preserves earlier iconography and departs from it in its conflation of the embalming scene with a funerary scene of purification.

Comments

Data is provided by the student.

Library Comment

Dissertation or thesis originally submitted to ProQuest.

Notes

Open access

Recommended Citation

Jensen, Bethany, "Anubis and the Embalming Scene: Tradition and Innovation in a New Kingdom Funerary Scene at Kom el-Shoqafa, Alexandria" (2022). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 3406.
https://digitalcommons.memphis.edu/etd/3406