Abstract
In its literal sense, the word ‘sarcophagus’, of Greek origin and meaning ‘that which devours flesh’, refers to exactly the opposite of the purpose for which an Egyptian sarcophagus is intended. Indeed, in the Egyptian cultural context, the sarcophagus, as a massive stone casing, encloses the body or mummy of the deceased with the aim of preserving and protecting it for eternity. And just as there are numerous terms in Egyptian for what we now call a coffin or a sarcophagus, so too are there many variations in the materials used, their external forms and their decorations.
The group of sarcophagi belonging to the wives of the gods and their highest-ranking officials – a group strictly limited in time and space – will be selected here as an example to shed further light on the evolution of sarcophagus decoration, including their origins, their divergent – and sometimes individual – developments, the social constraints they reflect, as well as the differing theological concepts embodied in the decoration.
In some cases, we can also examine the integration of the sarcophagi and their decoration into the overall structure of the burial chamber.
