Keku's eternal body
Because Keku was wealthy, she was treated with great respect and care when she died. After her body was embalmed it was wrapped in bandages of coarse linen and then covered in a shroud. The shroud was adorned with a net of blue Egyptian faience beads. This net represented the sky and placed Keku under the protection of the sky goddess Nut. A blue-winged scarab and images of the four sons of Horus were placed on top of the net. Keku's wrapped and decorated mummy was then placed into two painted wooden coffins.
Mummy of Keku with shroud and bead net.
Mummy, linen, Egyptian faience
Late Period, 26th Dynasty (664 BCE - 525 BCE)
From Thebes
National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden
© National Museum of Antiquities, the Netherlands
