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W651

W651

A piece of a shroud which belonged to a lady called Tashay. She died around 110AD (the shroud was dated by her hairstyle!). This fragment shows her heart being weighed against the feather of truth to see if she was a good or bad person.

 

This is a piece of shroud from a collection of shroud pieces belonging to a lady called Tashay. These pieces were probably cut up from a complete example to make them more saleable to a collector! They were purchased by Sir Henry Wellcome at auction in 1931. 

The piece illustrated here shows Tashay, having her heart weighed, against the feather-standard of truth and righteousness in a scale by Thoth and Horus, while Thoth in his baboon form is sitting on the top of the scale. The woman wears a tunic with clavi. Her heart was weighed to see if she was considered worthy of the afterlife. Compare this weighing of the heart scene with that on the 21st gallery coffin in this gallery

The shroud has been dated by Christina Riggs in her unpublished doctoral thesis by the lady’s hairstyle to 140-160 AD. Because of this late date, the pictures on the shroud show Greaco-Roman influence. For example you can see that the woman, Tashay, is shown facing the front. She is shown in Greek dress. The gods, however, are typically Egyptian. 

The piece has been published in: Griffiths, G. Gwyn, 1982, Eight Funerary Paintings with Judgement Scenes in Swansea Wellcome Museum. Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 68, 228-252.

Other sections of Tashay’s shroud:

W649 Nephthys or Isis reviving Tashay

W650 Nephthys reviving Tashay

 

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