The coffins of Djedptahiufankh

With the exception of a missing gilded left hand, the ornately decorated coffins (CG 61034) in which the mummy of Djedptahiufankh (CG 61097) was found were virtually intact. This loss was likely the result of rough handling when the coffin was positioned in the tomb and does not necessarily indicate any illicit activity.

Close examination of the inscriptions reveals that these coffins were not originally commissioned for Djedptahiufankh, but had previously belonged to an individual named Nesshuenopet. The coffin board discovered covering the mummy was also not originally made for Djedptahiufankh. Its stylistic differences from the outer and inner coffins suggest that it, too, did not originate from Nesshuenopet’s burial equipment, and its original owner remains unidentified.

The intact condition of Djedptahiufankh’s mummy implies that his burial was not disturbed by tomb robbers who might otherwise have destroyed his original burial equipment. The coffins in which he was discovered should, therefore, not be regarded as replacements for plundered or damaged ensembles but are most plausibly those in which Djedptahiufankh was originally interred, having been donated by their previous owner(s). This circumstance may indicate that Djedptahiufankh died unexpectedly at a young age, before he was able to arrange a dedicated set of coffins for himself. The youthful appearance of his mummy lends support to this interpretation.

The coffins and coffin board of Djedptahiufankh display notable stylistic distinctions from other 21st Dynasty coffins found in DB320. The funerary collars are depicted as exceptionally large, extending down almost to the waist—unlike the shorter collars typical of earlier examples. Crossed “mummy braces” (or stolae) are superimposed on the collars, extending between and below the hands. These features are indicative of later developments in coffin decoration and place Djedptahiufankh’s ensemble within the Type Y-V category, a style that only emerged towards the end of the 21st Dynasty.

Source Bibliography: CCR, 200ff., pls. LVII, LIX, LX; DRN, 201, 207, 212; MiAE, 293, 294 [ill. no. 296-V], 230-233.

Abbreviations

Source 2025-07: Edited from a now-defunct page of The Theban Royal Mummy Project via Wayback Machine
Source url: http://anubis4_2000.tripod.com/mummypages1/Djedptahiufankh/Djedptahiufankh.htm