Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead

Journey through the afterlife: Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead

It’s now just over one month since the Book of the Dead exhibition opened to the public

The Museum has always known they have one of the best collections of books of the dead in the world, but can usually only display a small proportion of them.

‘Book of the Dead’ is a modern term for a collection of magical spells that the Egyptians used to help them get into the afterlife. They imagined the afterlife as a kind of journey you had to make to get to paradise – but it was quite a hazardous journey so you’d need magical help along the way.

Location:

Great Russell Street

The British Museum collection includes statuary and decorated architecture from throughout pharaonic history, often inscribed with hieroglyphs. Many other aspects of ancient Egyptian culture are represented: coffins and mummies of individuals, but also furniture, fine jewellery and other burial goods. These reflect the practice of lavish burials for the wealthy, which included the royal family, government officials and the priesthood.

Whats On London 2011