The Book of the Dead: Ancient Egypt’s Guide to the Afterlife
The Book of the Dead is a collection of Egyptian funerary texts, written on papyrus and placed in the tombs of the dead, designed to guide the deceased through the dangers of the underworld and into the afterlife. The texts developed gradually over more than a thousand years, beginning with the Pyramid Texts of the Old Kingdom and continuing through the Coffin Texts of the Middle Kingdom and the later Book of the Dead of the New Kingdom. The most famous surviving copy is the Papyrus of Ani, written around 1250 BCE for a Theban scribe named Ani and now in the British Museum. The Book of the Dead is one of the most important religious texts of the ancient world, and it gives us a unique look at the Egyptian conception of death, judgment, and the afterlife.
This page is a concise introduction to the Book of the Dead. It explains the history, the contents, and the legacy. It links back to the Mummification and the Afterlife cluster, the Egyptian Pharaohs cluster, and the Egyptian Mythology cluster.
The History of the Book of the Dead
The Book of the Dead developed out of a long tradition of Egyptian funerary texts. The earliest were the Pyramid Texts, which were inscribed on the walls of the pyramids of the Old Kingdom, especially the pyramids of Unas (c. 2345 BCE), Teti, Pepi I, and Merenre I. The Pyramid Texts were exclusively royal, and they were a kind of magical-religious instruction for the deceased pharaoh.
The Middle Kingdom saw the development of the Coffin Texts, a related but more accessible set of funerary texts, written on the inside of the coffins of the deceased. The Coffin Texts were available to nobles and other high officials, not just to the pharaoh, and they included many of the spells of the later Book of the Dead.
The New Kingdom (c. 1550–1069 BCE) saw the development of the Book of the Dead in its final form. The texts were written on papyrus scrolls, often beautifully illustrated, and placed in the tombs of the deceased. The most famous examples are the Papyrus of Ani (in the British Museum), the Papyrus of Hunefer (also in the British Museum), and the Papyrus of Nu (in the British Museum). The texts were also written on the tomb walls, on the mummy cases, and on the mummy bandages.
The Contents of the Book of the Dead
The Book of the Dead is not a single text but a collection of about 200 spells, prayers, and magical texts, often numbered in modern editions. The most famous are:
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The Negative Confession (Spell 125). The deceased declares before the gods that they have not committed a list of about forty-two specific sins, including murder, theft, adultery, lying, envy, and cruelty to animals. The Negative Confession is the ancient Egyptian equivalent of a moral examination, and it is one of the most famous passages in the entire body of Egyptian religious literature.
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The Weighing of the Heart (Spell 125). The heart of the deceased is weighed against the feather of Ma’at, the goddess of truth and cosmic order. If the heart is lighter than the feather, the soul is judged worthy and can pass into the Field of Reeds, the Egyptian paradise. If the heart is heavier — weighed down by the sins of the deceased — it is devoured by Ammit, the “Devourer of the Dead,” a hybrid monster with the head of a crocodile, the forebody of a lion, and the hindquarters of a hippopotamus.
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The Hymn to Ra (Spell 15). A prayer of praise to the sun god, with a description of his nightly journey through the underworld and his rebirth at dawn.
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The Opening of the Mouth (Spell 22). A ritual that allowed the deceased to eat, drink, and speak in the afterlife. The opening of the mouth was performed on the mummy by the priest using a ceremonial adze, and it was the central ritual of the Egyptian funeral.
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Spell for Coming Forth by Day (Spell 1). The deceased is given the ability to come out of the tomb and to enjoy the daylight, the warmth of the sun, and the beauty of the world.
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Spell for Not Dying a Second Time (Spell 175). The deceased is protected from dying again in the afterlife.
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Spells for Various Deities. Many of the spells are dedicated to particular gods and goddesses, including Osiris, Ra, Anubis, Thoth, and Hathor. The spells are designed to win the favor of the gods and to protect the deceased from the dangers of the underworld.
The Sources of the Book of the Dead
The most important surviving copies of the Book of the Dead are:
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The Papyrus of Ani (c. 1250 BCE), the most complete and most beautifully illustrated copy, now in the British Museum. The papyrus is 24 feet long and is illustrated with vignettes of the spells.
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The Papyrus of Hunefer (c. 1275 BCE), a shorter but very beautifully illustrated copy, also in the British Museum. The papyrus includes a famous scene of the Weighing of the Heart.
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The Papyrus of Nu (c. 1450 BCE), a longer copy in the British Museum, written for the priest Nu.
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The Papyrus of Lady Cheritwebeshet (c. 1050 BCE), a copy now in the Louvre, written for a noblewoman.
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The Coffin Texts of the Middle Kingdom, found in many of the tombs of the nobles of Thebes.
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The Pyramid Texts of the Old Kingdom, inscribed on the walls of the royal pyramids.
The Afterlife in the Book of the Dead
The Egyptian conception of the afterlife, as preserved in the Book of the Dead, was complex and beautiful. The Egyptians believed that the soul survived death, but only if the body was preserved, the heart was light, and the deceased had successfully navigated the dangers of the underworld. The afterlife was a kind of mirror image of the earthly life: the deceased would live in a beautiful land called the Field of Reeds, work the fields, harvest the crops, and spend eternity with family and friends.
The journey to the afterlife was dangerous. The deceased had to pass through twelve gates, each guarded by a demon, and to recite the correct password at each gate. The deceased had to be judged by the gods, weighed in the balance, and found worthy. The deceased had to be protected from the many dangers of the underworld, including the demon Ammit, the serpent Apophis, and the many minor demons who tested the deceased.
The Legacy of the Book of the Dead
The Book of the Dead is one of the most important religious texts of the ancient world, and it has been the subject of intense scholarly study since the decipherment of the Rosetta Stone in 1822. The texts have been translated into English, French, German, and many other languages, and they have been the inspiration for countless works of literature, art, and film.
The Book of the Dead is also the source of many of the most famous images of the Egyptian afterlife. The Weighing of the Heart, the Hymn to Ra, the Opening of the Mouth, and the many vignettes of the underworld are all images that have entered the popular imagination. The Egyptian Book of the Dead is, in many ways, the original of the Western genre of the guide to the afterlife, and it has been the model for the Christian, Jewish, and Islamic descriptions of the afterlife ever since.