Mummy labels were used as a means of identifying corpses of the deceased when they had to be transported to the necropolis. Made of wood and more rarely of stone, faience, or even ivory, they were attached to the mummy with a piece of cord and inscribed in Demotic, Greek, sometimes in both languages, or, less commonly, in hieratic or hieroglyphs.

Sixty-one wooden mummy labels inscribed in Greek were found during the excavation of the Roman-period cemetery at Medinet Habu conducted by the University of Chicago Oriental Institute between 1929 and 1930. From the study of the paleography and onomastics they can be dated to the third and fourth centuries a.d.

This tab provides the user with information related to the collections of mummy labels of the different museums and Institutions worldwide. By clicking on a country the user will see a table containing the name of the museum/s and/or institution/s preserving mummy labels in its funds as well as the number (indicated in brackets).

2023年5月16日 · Mummy labels are small wooden labels (rarely made of stone, ivory, or enamelled glass), which were attached to a mummy prior to its transport to the necropolis. Although their use is known from the New Kingdom onwards, mummy labels became part of funerary practices during the Ptolemaic period.

This article, published on the occasion of the Oriental Institute centennial, consists of a description of the characteristics, role, and appearance of mummy labels; a presentation of the Mummy Label Database project; and an introduction to the mummy labels in the Oriental Institute Museum.

Wooden label for a mummy wrapping inscribed with the name Diogenes, a mender of textiles.

Mummy labels were used to preserve the name of the deceased and were important for the rebirth of an individual in the afterlife. They were inscribed by family members with the name of the deceased, the names of the person’s parents, and sometimes a short religious message and sent with the body...

From the 2nd century of our era, the Egyptians produced documents of wood called "mummy labels". They contain short religious formulae mentioning the name, affiliation, occupation, age and the date of death of the deceased. This piece in the form of a sign was intended to be fixed to the mummy of Sarapammon, son of Harpalos.

Mummies in the Ptolemaic and Roman Periods often had a label with an inscription in Greek or demotic, more rarely in hieroglyphs, giving the name and sometimes further information on the dead person. There is an extensive collection in the Petrie Museum, the most distinctive portion being the hieroglyphic and demotic limestone labels found by ...

New mummy labels, both published and unpublished, were entered into the database. In addition, as part of the project, the editors’ activities also included several lectures and publications. For the confer-ence Bridges between Life and Death: Dionysus, Mysteries and Magic in the Ancient Greek and Roman