How to use the model
- Rotate the model by dragging with your mouse or finger.
- Zoom in and out using the mouse wheel on your computer, the arrow keys, the on-screen buttons, or pinch gestures on a touch surface.
- Click on the numbered points, or use the arrows at the bottom of the image to open text explanations of the motifs.
The hotspots follow a fixed order around the coffin, so that you can “read” it systematically. The order is from 1 to 12. The texts for each hotspot are also included in this document.
Hotspot 1
The scarab
The scarab was a holy symbol of life, rebirth, and the sun god Khepri. The scarab looks like a dung beetle. Just as the dung beetle rolls its ball of dung, the scarab rolls the sun across the sky. The sun drawn above the scarab was a symbol of rebirth.
The scarab was meant to ensure a good journey to the afterlife. It was often placed over the heart of the deceased in the coffin; then it was called a heart scarab. It was also common to wear a scarab as a lucky amulet.
Hotspot 2
The winged cobra
The winged cobra is the goddess Neith. She is one of the oldest gods in ancient Egypt. She protected the person in the coffin.
Many wings are painted on this coffin; the Egyptians did this because they believed it would give protection to the deceased.
Hotspot 3
Ankh
The ankh is a symbol of eternal life. It often looks like a T with a loop on top. There are many ankhs painted on the coffin – can you count how many?
Hotspot 4
Colors
The ancient Egyptians used colors that were full of meaning. The shiny yellow color was meant to look like gold. The Egyptians thought gold was very special, and it symbolized eternal life and the sun god Ra.
Blue was a sacred and protective color. It symbolized the sky and the Nile river, which gave life to all of Egypt.
Hotspot 5
What do the hieroglyphs mean?
Hieroglyphs can represent a word or a sound. Here in the middle column it reads:
Words spoken by Osiris, foremost of the westerners. May he give voice-offering of bread, oxen and fowl, everything good and pure, everything good and sweet.
Hotspot 6
The goddess Nut
The sky goddess Nut was the goddess of the sky and the night. She was the mother of the sun, the moon, and the whole sky. Here she is shown as a cow covered with stars. She protected the deceased and helped them reach the afterlife.
Hotspot 7
The birds Ba and Ka
Many birds are painted on the coffin. The small bird with a human head is the Ba — one of the souls of the deceased. People had several souls, and these souls could live on if the body was mummified.
The Ka is shown as two upraised arms. This is another one of the deceased person’s souls. A person’s Ka needed offerings to survive.
For a person to have eternal life, their Ka and Ba had to be united.
Hotspot 8
The god Anubis
This is Anubis, one of the oldest gods in ancient Egypt. He is the god of mummies, embalming, and the afterlife. He watches over and guides the souls of the dead into the underworld. He also protects souls that need help.
Anubis is shown as a jackal — an animal similar to a dog — or as a man with the head of a jackal.
Hotspot 9
The god Osiris
Osiris was the god for those wishing/wanting to live on after death. He is shown as a mummy with a beard and a crown on his head. He holds a whip and a crook in his hands.
Osiris ruled the afterlife, the underworld, and resurrection. In ancient Egypt, the dead were mummified so their bodies could be reborn with Osiris in Duat — the underworld.
Hotspot 10
The god Horus
This is the god Horus. He was often painted on coffins to protect the dead and ensure rebirth. Horus is wearing the pharaoh’s royal crown, which combines the two Egyptian crowns. The crown of Upper Egypt is white and green. The crown of Lower Egypt is red.
Hotspot 11
Pharaoh
The pharaoh was the ruler of Egypt and was seen as a link between the gods and people. The pharaoh is often shown with a long beard.
In the time when Paenhor lived, the famous child king Tutankhamen became pharaoh at only nine years old.
Hotspot 12
Is this Paenhor?
Could this be Paenhor himself, the owner of the coffin? We find him in several places, both on the outside and on the inside of the coffin, wearing the same tunic.
The ancient Egyptians painted the deceased on the coffin to help the souls recognize their physical body and to ensure eternal life.
