Saturday 26/July/2025 – 05:20 p
The Royal Museum of Arts and History in Brussels displays one of the most prominent unique mummies found in Egypt, known as the mummy of the embroidered, which was discovered during the excavations of French archaeologist Albert Gaye in Anninopolis, Sheikh Obada currently in the 1899-1900 season.
The embroidered mummy
The mummy is called this modern name due to the amount of embroidery and rich decorations that accompanied its funeral preparation, which highlights an exceptional artistic taste from the Roman era, and although it is a mummy, the woman’s body was not subject to a embalming process, but rather naturally dried up in the hot sand in the Egyptian desert.
The mummy shows a lady wearing three layers of dresses decorated with heart motifs, with a head and roll of colored wool in the form of a bouquet of flowers, and is based on embroidered pillows under the head and feet, while her shoulders covers a shawl embroidered with vegetable drawings and birds, in a scene that documents the elegance and accuracy of care for the deceased.
This unique piece dates back to the Roman era, and it is made of linen, wool, bones and hair, using textile and embroidery techniques, and the registration number E.1045 is part of the museum’s holdings.
This discovery is a sign of the extent of civilized interference between Egyptian and Roman culture, as well as aspects of daily and funeral life for women in that era, and reflects the superior interest in details even after death, in a weather that reflects respect for beauty and personal identity.
