Inventory number

General description

Textual amulet with BoD chapter 100

Provv. 3586 is a papyrus stripe containing parts of the Book of the Dead spell 100, dedicated to the deceased named Pasherimentu, son of the lady of the house Taimenipet. The function of the spell is to protect the deceased, allowing him to become an “excellent spirit” and to enter the solar boat of Ra joining “the ones who belong in his entourage”. Preserved of the original vignette is only the stern of the boat on which stands the Benu-bird (phoenix) and a hieraco-headed deity (with the head of a hawk), which can be identified with Ra.

Isolated from the Book of the Dead, the formular 100 had a protective function as a textual amulet. These types of amulets were folded or wrapped and placed on the body, usually tied around the neck. 

Papyrus amulets were used since the beginning of the New Kingdom. They were largely used during the later phases of the ancient Egyptian history and continued after the pharaonic period. Based on palaeographic comparisons, Provv.3586 is an example belonging to the late Late Period or early Graeco-Roman period.