The Beds

In the tomb of Tutankhamen there were seven beds three of them were categorized as funerary while the rest were classified as ordinary or conventional beds including a folding one

The funerary beds were found in the antechamber placed lengthwise against the west wall in front of the entrance facing the burial chamber arranged from smallest to largest. Each one was put lengthwise with the head facing the tail of the one in front of it. At the time of discovery they were laden with offering s and other objects

Function:

The function is obscure but may be to provide the deceased with the revocation forces as well as to be reborn as Re

Description:

They are all similar in construction and each bed consists of four detachable parts as follows:

Two animal headed sides

The mattress in between or the place on which the body of the deceased was placed

The footboard between the tails of the animals

The rectangular hollow pedestal upon which the feet of the animal rest to enable it to rest properly upon the floor

Each par was made separately and then they were assembled and attached together by means of log thin rods of wood tied together with copper rings.

Material:

They are all constructed of wood stuccoed, gilded and some parts covered with black resin or blue glass

Evidence that they are funerary beds:

From the formula containing the title mAa xrw meaning true of voice referring to the king inscribed at the end of a cartouche shaped box between the animals’ heads also the king is described as the Osiris king. Another proof that they are funerary beds is that scenes on tombs of other kings like Seti II and Ramses III represent the deceased being placed upon a bed similar to these beds also there are other scenes representing Anubis performing the last stage of mummification on similar beds but we have to understand that these are not real embalming beds.

Real embalming beds are low beds made out of stone with a basin attached to one side in order to contain the liquids resulting from the mummification process. Priests used to embalm the bodies sitting on their knees in front of these beds.

The usage of the beds:

We are not sure about the exact way that they funerary beds were used but maybe to place the body of the deceased in transit after the mummification is complete until it is placed in the coffin or to carry the body of the deceased after mummification to transport it from the embalming tent to the coffin

Their state of preservation shows that their usage must have been after mummification maybe during the very final stages because the beds were made out of wood covered with gold sheets which could not withstand any mess resulting from mummification

The funerary bed with goddess mHyt wrt the bovine or cow headed goddess:

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Her name means the great northern one or the great flood. She was one of the most important cow goddess in ancient Egypt together with Hathor. She was associated with Hathor being both cow goddesses. She was the one who carried god Re to the sky after the act of the destruction of naming which was carried out be sxmt. Re was still angry with the people so he decided to go back to the sky forever thus she carried him on her back up to the sky.

She came out of the primeval ocean and carried god Re to the sky within her role she was associated with the celestial heaven so that is why we could find an imitation of spots on her body. Some scholars said that these spots represent the stars in the sky while others believe that these spots are green mosses that rested on her body while coming out of the primeval ocean while we have another opinion that said that these spots are natural marks of the cow’s body.

Between the heads of the goddess we have an inscription enclosed in a cartouche containing the epithets mAa xrw, mry wsir thus we could deduce that the king is dead and it is a funerary bed. Also it mentions the name of the goddess as mHyt only and this has been explained as follow:

Maybe it was a fault of the scribe that instead of writing her full name he wrote mHyt only who is the lioness goddess and that was supposed to be written on the other bed with the head of the goddess with the lioness head

Others suggested that this might be a fault that happened during assembling the parts of the beds after finishing them

It has also been suggested that this was not a fault but the scribe wanted to abbreviate the name but this is not acceptable because the lioness bed should have contained the name mHyt as the lioness goddess name on the other hand it contains the name of mHyt wrt so this is definitely a mistake

Description:

It is made out of wood covered with gesso or stucco and then gilded

The black color for the eyes and the spots is made out of resin and the eyes are made out of calcite with traces of red patches. The pupil of the eyes is made out of obsidian

The cow is depicted with two horns and the sun disk in between surmounting her head

The footboard is divided into three panels. The first one is decorated with the Dd sign of stability and resurrection and symbol of god Osiris. The second one is decorated with the tyt sign of fertility and protection of goddess Isis and the third one is decorated again with the Dd pillar.

The ritual purpose of this bed:

We knew from the book of the Divine cow the version which is inscribed on the interior walls of the outermost shrine states that the ritual purpose of this bed is to carry the king from earth to heaven like when mHyt wrt carried Re on her back to heaven    

The bed with goddess mHyt the leonine or the lioness headed funerary bed:

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Goddess Isis mhyt is a divinity embodying the destructive powers of Isis, Hathor and sekhmet. Her anger was to be appeased each year to permit regular flooding of the Nile.

Her eyes are inlaid with rock crystal; the tears and the nose are inlaid with blue glass of faience

The funerary usage of the second and third beds is still unclear. It is believed that they would provide the king with what is necessary for his protection in his journey in the after life.

Goddess Ammut amam the hybrid or hippopotamus headed funerary bed:

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The third bed depicted an animal composed of the head of a hippopotamus covered with a wig, the body of a leopard and the tail and scales of a crocodile. This monstrous combination represented the dreaded Amwt the devourer of the corps who in the book of the dead isa ready to swallow the heart of the deceased who fails to be justified before the judgment of Osiris against the feather of mAat.

This monster also possessed a positive value: in the form of a sow; a female pig that personifies Nut the sky who swallows the sun god Re everyday in the morning and gives birth to him once more at night.

Description:

This bed is made out of stuccoed gilded wood. It represents a hybrid animal composed of the head of a hippopotamus opening his mouth. His teeth are made of ivory and tongue is made out of painted red ivory to imitate the normal color of the tongue. The eyes are inlaid with glass paste and he is wearing a wig. It has also a leopard’s body and a crocodile’s tail and scales.

This combination represents god Ammut or amam in ancient Egyptian language, the devourer of the corps which was normally represented with the head of a crocodile, the forepart of a leopard and the hind part of a hippopotamus. Here the artist changed the style maybe to be able to maintain the slender appearance of the bed or to avoid the representation of ha hostile being within the tomb of the king

Ordinary Beds

These beds are referred to as ordinary, conventional or daily life beds. Four beds were discovered in the tomb of Tutankhamen mainly from the antechamber but one from the annex

The camping or folding bed:  

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This full sized wooden bed could be used during camping or hunting. Tutankhamen was fond of hunting so he used this king of bed for convenience of transport during the hunting trips.

It was discovered in the annex of the tomb. It is made out of wood and the legs take the shape of lion paws. The mattress is made out of woven papyrus and is covered with lime wash and is perfectly preserved. It has a unique design which facilitates folding. It is divided into three parts fixed together with a technique of heavy copper joints or hinges. It has 8 legs; four of them placed strategically to support the folding parts. The central part folds inward over the first part while the third part folds outwards over the central one making the shape of the letter Z when folded. The foot board is plain except for some imitations of papyrus plant depicted head to head.

Bed with openwork figured foot board representing god Bes:

<!--<!--It was discovered in the antechamber of the tomb. It may have been a truly functional piece of domestic furniture. It has characteristic curved shape with a mattress of woven plant fibers covered with lime wash between the main frames. This curve provides better blood circulation for the sleeper. It is made of ebony and has lion’s legs and feet resting on a rounded base. Its most notable feature is the footboard. It had three similar panels surrounded by a religious formula which includes prayers to the king to have life, stability, prosperity and all health like Re forever.

Each panel contains three figures in openwork centrally the god Bes, a leonine dwarf with a lotus headdress, a domestic deity charged to protect the home. He is flanked by two rampant lions with similar headdress. Their front paws resting on the Sa signs signifying protection. These finely carved figures are covered in part with gold leaf and all have tongues of pink stained ivory. Here is powerful protection for whoever slept on this bed. In between the panels there is a depiction of papyrus flowers head to head.

The bed with floral footboard; the smA tAwy sign:

<!--<!--The bed is considered one of the finest beds of the ordinary beds collection. Carter considered it to have the best proportions of all non-rituals beds found in the tomb.

It stands relatively high on its lion legs and it is elegantly curved from front to back. The so called drums underneath the lion paws here and on much other furniture were designed to facilitate the stabilization of the bed on uneven floors. The whole bed is covered with thick gold sheets and the mattress is made of woven plant fibers. When in use is would have been lavishly piled with linen to soften the surface. The footboard is divided into panels of decoration embossed in the gold foil. In the center is the conventional design of the unification of the two lands of Upper and Lower Egypt; the smA tAwy sign. On either sides are tow panels one showing a clump of papyrus and the other narrower and show a trophy bouquet of papyrus and lotus flowers. In these designs Carter claimed to see the influences of Amarna naturalistic art.

The bed with lion heads:

<!--<!--It was found in the annex of the tomb. It is in a bad condition and maybe its footboard had been wrenched away from it. It is totally gilded and low to the ground having stumpy and thick leonine legs. The two front legs continued through above the frame by two heads of lions as a sign of protection to the one who is sleeping on it. This composes the Axt sign with lions being the two mountains and the head of the sleeper is the sun rising in between. The lions’ eyes are inlaid with quartz and colored glass