Cartonnage Mummy Masks
Beginning in the Middle Kingdom, mummies could be provided with funerary masks that covered the head and shoulders. These masks were made of cartonnage, a material consisting of waste papyrus or linen soaked in plaster. Similar to papier-maché, cartonnage can be molded in three dimensions, so the masks could be carefully worked to closely resemble the bodies inside them.
Cartonnage is also easily painted, so the face and wig of the mummy could be reproduced. This would help the person's spirits to recognize and return to the body.
Over time, other items made of cartonnage were also wrapped in the mumm's bandages. These included pectorals, which covered the chest; aprons, which covered the lower torso and upper legs; and foot coverings. These items could be painted to resemble the body parts they covered, the jewelry the mummy would be wearing, or important religious symbols and scenes. By the time of the New Kingdom, cartonnage was being used for complete body cases.
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| Mask | Foot Covering | Mask |
Sources:
Adams, Barbara. Egyptian Mummies. Aylesbury: Shire Publications, Ltd., 1984.
"Masks: THE FUNCTIONS AND FORMS OF MASKS: Funerary and commemorative uses." Britannica Online. <http://www.eb.com:180/cgi-bin/g?DocF=macro/5004/1/8.html>
Putnam, James. Mummy. New York: Alfred A Knoph., 1993.
Spencer, A.J. Death in Ancient Egypt. New York: Penguin Books, 1982.
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Copyright 2000, Spurlock Museum, University of Illinois.
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