Mummy and Cartonnage of Amen-nestawy-nakht
- Artist Culture
- Egyptian
- Dynasty
- Dynasty 22, 945–715 BC
- Period
- Third Intermediate period, 1069–664 BC
- Date
- 945–715 BC
- Material
- Linen, plaster, and pigment
- from
- Luxor, Qina governorate, Egypt, Africa
- Classification
- Sculpture, wood
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 313
- Dimensions
- 14 x 16 x 67 in. (35.6 x 40.6 x 170.2 cm)
- Credit Line
- Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Barney A. Ebsworth for the children of St. Louis
- Rights
- Contact Us
- Object Number
- 109:1989
NOTES
Amen-Nestawy-Nakht, a priest of Amun, was buried in this painted plaster cartonnage which covered his carefully wrapped body. Additional outer wooden coffins, supplied only for wealthier clientele, probably completed this package of protection. The cartonnage is decorated with painted words and images that illustrate the legion of deities who escort Amen-Nakht into the afterlife and protect him for eternity. Even the rendering of his face in golden tones with rich blue details alludes to his transformation into Osiris, lord of the underworld. In the top registers or sections, Amen-Nakht is led by the gods Thoth and Horus to Osiris; the bottom register shows him being anointed by Horus and Anubis after he has passed the tests that prove his piety and purity.
Provenance
- 1857
Giovanni d'Anastasi (1780-1857), Alexandria, Egypt [1]
1857/06/23 - 1860
Alphonse Raifé (1802-1860), purchased at auction of the collection of Giovanni d'Anastasi, Paris, France, June 23-27, 1857, lot no. 126 [2]
1860 - 1867
M. Gosset, by inheritance [3]
1867/03/16
In auction "Collection A. Raifé, Antiquités, Monnaies & Medailles," Hôtel Drouot, Paris, France, March 18-23, 1867, lot no. 18 [4]
1950s/1960s - 1988
Mr. and Mrs. Jacques Blot, Nice, France [5]
1988 - 1989
Mr. and Mrs. Barney Ebsworth, St. Louis, MO, USA, purchased from Jacques Blot through Galerie du Sycomore (Jean-Louis Domercq) [6]
1989 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Barney Ebsworth [7]
Notes:
According to an undated French manuscript (probably c.1960), this work is said to have been found in the Necropolis of Thebes in the nineteenth century [manuscript and English translation, SLAM document files].
[1] A letter dated April 29, 1996 from John H. Taylor, Assistant Keeper in the Department of Antiquities at the British Museum, states that the mummy case was originally owned by Giovanni d'Anastasi, a Swedish-Norwegian Consul who was an active collector of Egyptian antiquities between 1828 and 1857 [letter, SLAM document files; Dawson, Warren. "Who Was Who in Egyptology." London: The Egypt Exploration Society, 1951, p.5]. The case was sold at an auction of objects from Anastasi's collection in Paris, June 23-27, 1857. The auction catalog confirms that the mummy case was lot no. 126 (although it was misidentified as the cartonnage of Pétéménoph, perhaps a variation of Amen-Nakht's father's name, which is recorded on the cartonnage) ["Catalogue d'une Collection d'Antiquités Égyptiennes par M. François Lenormant: Cette Collection Rassemblée par M. d'Anastasi," Paris: Maulde er Renou, 1867, p.19-20].
[2] A private French collector, Alphonse Raifé, purchased the mummy case at the 1857 sale [Taylor letter]. At some point, the mummy case was apparently lent to the Museum of Saint-Cyr-Sur Mer, purportedly by a French Egyptologist [French manuscript, SLAM document files]. It is possible that Raifé was this lender.
[3] The author of the 1867 auction catalogue, François Lenormant, states that Raifé's son-in-law, M. Gosset, tried to maintain the collection after Raifé's death but eventually had to sell it ["Description des Antiquités Égyptiennes, Babyloniennes, Assyriennes, Mèdes, Perses, Phéniciennes, Grecques, Romaines, Étrusques et Américaines Composant la Collection de Feu M. A. Raifé," Paris: Imprimerie de Ad. Laine et J. Havard, 1867, viii].
[4] A Paris auction catalogue dated March 18-23, 1867 lists the mummy case as one of the objects for sale from the collection of Alphonse Raifé. The mummy case is again incorrectly ascribed to Pétéménoph [Taylor letter; Lenormant, François. "Description des Antiquités Égyptiennes, Babyloniennes, Assyriennes, Mèdes, Perses, Phéniciennes, Grecques, Romaines, Étrusques et Américaines Composant la Collection de Feu M. A. Raifé," Paris: Imprimerie de Ad. Laine et J. Havard, 1867, p. 4, lot no. 18; Dawson, Warren R. "Who Was Who in Egyptology." London: The Egypt Exploration Society, 1951, p. 131; SCIPIO 29611]. There is no indication as to the identity of the buyer.
[5] In a conversation with Saint Louis Art Museum curator Sid Goldstein, Jean-Louis Domercq, proprietor of Galerie du Sycomore, suggested that the Blots acquired the case c.1950-1960. A letter dated April 10, 1990 from Jacques Blot confirms that the case was formerly in his collection [SLAM document files].
[6] Sid Goldstein and Jean-Louis Domercq viewed the mummy case at the Blot home in Nice before the Ebsworths decided to purchase it. A signed agreement dated March 4, 1988 states that Mr. and Mrs. Barney Ebsworth arranged to purchase the mummy case in 1988 through their foundation, Windsor, Inc., and to have it transferred from France directly to the possession of the Saint Louis Art Museum [SLAM document files].
[7] Minutes of the Collections Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 7, 1989.
Giovanni d'Anastasi (1780-1857), Alexandria, Egypt [1]
1857/06/23 - 1860
Alphonse Raifé (1802-1860), purchased at auction of the collection of Giovanni d'Anastasi, Paris, France, June 23-27, 1857, lot no. 126 [2]
1860 - 1867
M. Gosset, by inheritance [3]
1867/03/16
In auction "Collection A. Raifé, Antiquités, Monnaies & Medailles," Hôtel Drouot, Paris, France, March 18-23, 1867, lot no. 18 [4]
1950s/1960s - 1988
Mr. and Mrs. Jacques Blot, Nice, France [5]
1988 - 1989
Mr. and Mrs. Barney Ebsworth, St. Louis, MO, USA, purchased from Jacques Blot through Galerie du Sycomore (Jean-Louis Domercq) [6]
1989 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Barney Ebsworth [7]
Notes:
According to an undated French manuscript (probably c.1960), this work is said to have been found in the Necropolis of Thebes in the nineteenth century [manuscript and English translation, SLAM document files].
[1] A letter dated April 29, 1996 from John H. Taylor, Assistant Keeper in the Department of Antiquities at the British Museum, states that the mummy case was originally owned by Giovanni d'Anastasi, a Swedish-Norwegian Consul who was an active collector of Egyptian antiquities between 1828 and 1857 [letter, SLAM document files; Dawson, Warren. "Who Was Who in Egyptology." London: The Egypt Exploration Society, 1951, p.5]. The case was sold at an auction of objects from Anastasi's collection in Paris, June 23-27, 1857. The auction catalog confirms that the mummy case was lot no. 126 (although it was misidentified as the cartonnage of Pétéménoph, perhaps a variation of Amen-Nakht's father's name, which is recorded on the cartonnage) ["Catalogue d'une Collection d'Antiquités Égyptiennes par M. François Lenormant: Cette Collection Rassemblée par M. d'Anastasi," Paris: Maulde er Renou, 1867, p.19-20].
[2] A private French collector, Alphonse Raifé, purchased the mummy case at the 1857 sale [Taylor letter]. At some point, the mummy case was apparently lent to the Museum of Saint-Cyr-Sur Mer, purportedly by a French Egyptologist [French manuscript, SLAM document files]. It is possible that Raifé was this lender.
[3] The author of the 1867 auction catalogue, François Lenormant, states that Raifé's son-in-law, M. Gosset, tried to maintain the collection after Raifé's death but eventually had to sell it ["Description des Antiquités Égyptiennes, Babyloniennes, Assyriennes, Mèdes, Perses, Phéniciennes, Grecques, Romaines, Étrusques et Américaines Composant la Collection de Feu M. A. Raifé," Paris: Imprimerie de Ad. Laine et J. Havard, 1867, viii].
[4] A Paris auction catalogue dated March 18-23, 1867 lists the mummy case as one of the objects for sale from the collection of Alphonse Raifé. The mummy case is again incorrectly ascribed to Pétéménoph [Taylor letter; Lenormant, François. "Description des Antiquités Égyptiennes, Babyloniennes, Assyriennes, Mèdes, Perses, Phéniciennes, Grecques, Romaines, Étrusques et Américaines Composant la Collection de Feu M. A. Raifé," Paris: Imprimerie de Ad. Laine et J. Havard, 1867, p. 4, lot no. 18; Dawson, Warren R. "Who Was Who in Egyptology." London: The Egypt Exploration Society, 1951, p. 131; SCIPIO 29611]. There is no indication as to the identity of the buyer.
[5] In a conversation with Saint Louis Art Museum curator Sid Goldstein, Jean-Louis Domercq, proprietor of Galerie du Sycomore, suggested that the Blots acquired the case c.1950-1960. A letter dated April 10, 1990 from Jacques Blot confirms that the case was formerly in his collection [SLAM document files].
[6] Sid Goldstein and Jean-Louis Domercq viewed the mummy case at the Blot home in Nice before the Ebsworths decided to purchase it. A signed agreement dated March 4, 1988 states that Mr. and Mrs. Barney Ebsworth arranged to purchase the mummy case in 1988 through their foundation, Windsor, Inc., and to have it transferred from France directly to the possession of the Saint Louis Art Museum [SLAM document files].
[7] Minutes of the Collections Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 7, 1989.