Rishi Coffin

The coffin is decorated with the classic rishi pattern, consisting of overlapping carved and painted feathers that symbolize the wings of protective deities wrapping the deceased. Below the feather motif, a narrative scene unfolds along the side, showing mourners and attendants guiding a ritual boat toward the afterlife. The lid is sculpted to suggest the human form, emphasizing the integration of the soul with the protective covering of divine plumage.

The rishi coffin design reflects the Egyptian transition of the deceased into a divine state, effectively transforming the body into a vessel protected by the wings of Isis and Nephthys. This iconography deeply influenced later Hellenistic and Hermetic notions of the soul's winged ascent and the protective nature of the funerary 'chariot' or barque.