Model coffin

This ancient Egyptian wooden model coffin from Thebes in Egypt dates from the New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty (around 1539 to 1295 BC). It contains a wooden shabti - a model of a servant, buried to perform menial tasks in the Afterlife on behalf of the deceased.

This picture shows the lid of the model coffin. It is in the form of a person. The face is yellow and the rest has been painted black and decorated in yellow line coated with varnish.

Some ancient Egyptians were buried in coffins which were painted with portraits. Model coffins containing shabtis also had similar designs. The faces on coffins generally show the owner as young and attractive regardless of how old they may actually have been.

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