The mummy on display. The sarchophagus cover is mounted above. YPM catalog no. ANT.PA04745

Mummification techniques may have developed among the Egyptians to ensure that the mummy act as a substitute body and a repository for the soul in case the real body was damaged and could not be re-inhabited by the deceased in the afterlife. The study of the text and symbols that decorate the mummy and its coffin, and of the materials and techniques used by the Egyptians, is one way researchers establish when and where mummies were made. The position of the body, with its arms extended, was one clue that helped date the Peabody’s mummy.

By putting together all the research, it was determined that the mummy and its sarcophagus are likely about 2,300 years old, dating to the Ptolemaic Period in Egyptian history, and are probably from the area around Thebes.