Of all the images associated with ancient Egypt, the funerary scene is probably the one
that is most frequently duplicated in books and art prints. This scene depicts what occurs
after a person has died. Beginning with the upper left-hand corner, the deceased appears
before a panel of 14 judges to make an accounting for his deeds during life. The ankh, the
key of life, appears in the hands of some of the judges.
Next, below, the jackal god Anubis who represents the underworld and mummification
leads the deceased before the scale. In his hand, Anubis holds the ankh.
Anubis then weighs the heart of the deceased (left tray) against the feather of Ma'at,
goddess of truth and justice (right tray). In some drawings, the full goddess Ma'at, not
just her feather, is shown seated on the tray. Note that Ma'at's head, crowned by the
feather, also appears atop the fulcrum of the scale. If the heart of the deceased outweighs
the feather, then the deceased has a heart which has been made heavy with evil deeds. In
that event, Ammit the god with the crocodile head and hippopotamous legs will devour
the heart, condemning the deceased to oblivion for eternity. But if the feather outweighs
the heart, then the deceased has led a righteous life and may be presented before Osiris to
join the afterlife. Thoth, the ibis-headed god of wisdom stands at the ready to record the
outcome.
The deceased is then led to Osiris by Horus, the god with the falcon head. Note the ankh
in Horus' hand. Horus represents the personification of the Pharaoh during life, and his
father Osiris represents the personification of the Pharaoh after death.
Osiris, lord of the underworld, sits on his throne, represented as a mummy. On his head is
the white crown of Lower Egypt (the north). He holds the symbols of Egyptian kingship
in his hands: the shepherd's crook to symbolize his role as shepherd of mankind, and the
flail, to represent his ability to separate the wheat from the chaff. Behind him stand his
wife Isis and her sister Nephthys. Isis is the one in red, and Nephthys is the one in green.
Together, Osiris, Isis, and Nephthys welcome the deceased to the underworld.
When Amenhotep IV (also known as Akhenaten) was Pharaoh, he decreed that artists
should create images showing everyday life. Up until then, art was very focused on
scenes showing topics related to death and the afterlife. Concerned that future generations
would believe that the Egyptians were obsessed with death, he commissioned artwork
that showed everyday activities such as making music and dancing.
On the heads of the musicians, you'll see cones made of perfumed wax. As the heat from
the room and the women's bodies melts the wax, it releases its scent into their hair.\
The above picture of the three musicians comes from a tomb relief of a man named Nakht
who lived under the reign of Tuthmoses IV, around 1401-1391 BCE. Nakht was a scribe
and a temple star watcher. The picture of the dancers comes from a tomb in Thebes of an
official named Nebamen who lived under the reign of Amenhotep III, around 1550-1307
BCE.
On the Tree Of Life, the birds represent the various stages of human life. Starting in the
lower right-hand corner and proceeding counter-clockwise:
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The light gray bird symbolizes infancy.
The red bird symbolizes childhood.
The green bird symbolizes youth.
The blue bird symbolizes adulthood.
The orange bird symbolizes old age.
In ancient Egypt, the direction east was considered the direction of life, because the sun
rose in the east. West was considered the direction of death, of entering the underworld,
because the sun set in the west. They believed that during the night, the sun traveled
through the underworld to make its way back to the east so it could rise in the east again
on the next day.
On the tree of life, note that the birds representing the first four phases of life all face to
the east, but the bird representing old age faces to the west, anticipating the approach of
death.
This picture depicts the goddesses Ma'at and Isis. Ma'at, the goddess of truth and justice,
is the winged goddess who is kneeling. Isis is the goddess seated on the throne.
According to legend, Isis was the wife of Osiris and mother of Horus; therefore, the
queen of the gods. The identifying characteristics that indicate the seated goddess is Isis
include the horned headdress and the vulture on her head. Although sometimes Hathor is
also depicted with a horned headdress, only Isis has both the horned headdress and the
vulture.
Why the vulture? The ancient Egyptians respected the vulture for its commitment to
motherhood, and another goddess (Nekhebet) who was portrayed as a vulture is also said
to have suckled the royal children, including the pharaoh. So it's natural that Nekhebet
would be incorporated into a portrait of the mother of Horus.
Notice that Isis is holding the ankh, the key of life.
In this particular illustration, because Isis is seated on the throne and facing the goddess
of justice, Isis is most likely serving as a metaphor for the queen.
Did you think the winged goddess in this picture was Isis? Contrary to what many people
believe, not all winged goddess images are Isis. Here's how you can tell it's Ma'at instead
of Isis: she has an ostrich feather headdress. Whenever you see a feather headdress like
this, the goddess being depicted is Ma'at.
In this picture, the goddess Hathor (the one with the horned headdress) is leading Queen
Neferari by the hand. Like Isis in the picture above, Hathor is wearing a horned
headdress. But instead of including a vulture in the headdress, she wears the cobrashaped symbol.
How do we know that the woman in the dress is Neferari? From the cartouches next to
her, which portray the name Neferari in hieroglyphics.