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Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · Hover to magnify, click for fullscreen
Original fileThis life-sized stone sarcophagus is carved in the likeness of Harkhebit, featuring a serene portrait face, a traditional wig, and a ceremonial false beard. Below the head and collar, the chest area is adorned with a relief of the winged sun disk and extensive columns of incised hieroglyphic text detailing funerary spells to assist the deceased in the afterlife.
As a primary vessel for the preservation of the physical body and the transformation of the soul, this object embodies the fundamental Egyptian theological concept of the 'ka' and the journey through the Duat. Its textual content aligns with the traditional funerary liturgies intended to secure eternal life through ritualized transition.
Vertical columns of hieroglyphs covering the torso of the sarcophagus, detailing offerings and invocations for the deceased Harkhebit.
Translation
The text contains a series of standard protective spells and offerings to the gods Osiris and Anubis, identifying the deceased as 'The Hereditary Prince and Count, Sole Friend, and Overseer of the Garden of the House of Gold, Harkhebit, true of voice.'
Corpus Hermeticum
The Egyptian funerary traditions and notions of the soul's deification expressed in these inscriptions serve as an intellectual foundation for the later Hermetic literature.
Object
Greywacke
religious
Digital Source
Unknown · Public domain
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3.1-flash-lite-preview on April 14, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.