Early Burial Practices

Above: A relief representing Nofer--4th dynasty--from his tomb in Giza (G 2110). Excavated by the Harvard University-Museum of Fine Arts Expedition; 1907, and currently on display in the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. Relief of Nofer – Results – Advanced Search Objects – Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (mfa.org)

Burial: The End of Life, the Beginning of Research

In light of all the subjects previously discussed--from geography, social stratification, and religion onwards--on method of analysis is critical and commonplace: that of the mortuary rite. This section will expand on the religious and material finds made in tombs and what they may tell archaeologists about the ancient world and its practices--even with the sparsest of evidence.

Though not within the frame of this investigation, Egyptian burials in the Predynastic period set the stage for their significance and changes later on. In an earlier predynastic period–the Amratian–burials were less socially stratified: while grave goods’ number and complexity could show some economic or social advantage, tombs were far less ornate than those of the Old Kingdom and rather resembled simple dug graves.

The Early and Pre-Dynastic Periods

The earliest large mortuary structures only appeared in the Early Dynastic period, with the Decorated Tomb in Heirakonpolis and the ‘royal tomb’ of Naqada, which housed clay sealings inscribed with the name of king Aha (Bard 2015:104). This architectural aggrandizement continues as Egypt itself grows more socially stratified, and especially as kings are equated with gods and their tombs become as much religious as mortuary, representing the death-journey of Osiris (a symbol of the king) himself.

Photograph, Right:

A set of cosmetic palettes from the Naqada II period. These, while quite small, give context for the more elaborate, decorated palettes of the Early Dynastic period--and the Narmer palette. Found in Mesa'eed tomb 185, no. 2. Currently housed at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Bird-headed palette – Works – Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (mfa.org)

A set of Naqada II vessels from Mesa'eed tomb 102, no. 10--identifiable from their black-tipped redware. Pottery was a staple of most burials in this period. Currently in the MFA Boston Collection Small squat jar with lug handles and spiral decoration – Works – Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (mfa.org)

Diagram Left:

A diagram of the 'royal tomb' in Naqada as excavated by Jaques Morgan and drawn in Recherches sur les origines de l'Egypte II. Ethnographie préhistorique et tombeau royal de Negadah. Note the simple tomb structure and low-to-the-ground construction.

Object Purposes and Relations

The objects found within graves are also of note, though they may not represent only the economic status of the interned. As Alice Stevenson states of predynastic burial theories, “funerals and their material correlates are better viewed in terms of social practice than direct social record” (Stevenson, 2009:180)--thus many objects found in graves may indicate relationships with others in the community rather than the purely economic or hierarchical standing of an individual. The number and wealth of objects, however, is still important--especially in early graves where quantity is an important signifier of stratification.

Items from the tomb of Tutankhamun (18th Dynasty)--many of which were originally intended for others in the family and were reappropriated following the boy king's death. From the collection of the University of California, San Diego. https://www.jstor.org/stable/community.13564276

Animal Burials - Ritual and Familial

Religious animal burials were also commonplace–and while the largest votive mass graves date from the Ptolemaic period (Ikram 2015:10), burial pits with multiple animal bodies have existed since the Amratean period, wherein M.A. Murray identified a pit of 20 dogs as likely connected to a religious context. Pet burials were separately present at the site, and contextually different enough that this pit’s similarities to later mass-offering sites are clear.

Victual Burial and Food Offerings

Animal mummies also exist in the victual context–they “are very useful not only in explaining beliefs in the reification of offerings, but also practical questions concerning butchery, food preparation, and the types of creatures that were considered high status” (Ikram 2015:5). Much like material objects, the cuts of meat present also varied by the social status of the deceased.

Food and drink were deeply important items in sacrificial contexts--"the deceased was to be symbolically nourished in the afterlife, and was provided with real food, and probably beer and water in large jars" (Bard 2015:151). This also manifested in clay figures and representations of prepared animals alongside the real thing. Moving beyond the Predynastic period--and possibly throughout it--it is clear that ancient Egyptian burials were conducted with a belief in life after death.

Top Image:

A woman bearing offerings. These statues are seen quite frequently in tombs and represent the servants and care the interned would receive in the afterlife. From the end of the 6th dynasty and held in the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek art museum in Copenhagen. Offering bearer on JSTOR

Bottom Image:

A carved offering in the image of a trussed duck. In addition to human representations and real animals, model food would be common throughout a tomb's assemblage. From Giza, tomb G4733 E, in the 5th dynasty. Model offering in the form of a trussed duck – Results – Advanced Search Objects – Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (mfa.org)

Conclusion

Though burial is one of the best views we have into the past, it is by no means perfect–as many graves have been looted beyond reconstruction. Any artifacts recovered later will have lost their contexts entirely, and even in antiquity this looting practice was common. It is thus our archaeological responsibility to preserve what we know of Egyptian culture and practices of this era–especially during the times of tumult and social upheaval brought about by Narmer’s reign in the first dynasty and the end of the Old Kingdom by the sixth.

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