Stela

Funerary stelae such as this one were set up inside chapels dedicated to the deceased. Typically, stelae would depict the deceased and various family members. The text on the stelae would contain prayers for offerings in the afterlife. This stela is divided into three registers. In the uppermost resister, the deceased, a man named Shuamay stands with his wife in adoration before the god Osiris. Behind Osiris are Isis and their son, Horus. The middle register is divided into two parts. On the right, Shuamay and his wife bring offerings to his parents. The scene on the left shows the deceased undergoing the “Opening of the Mouth” ritual prior to burial. A priest in the form of Anubis attends to the coffin. At the bottom Shuamay is seated together with his ba (shown as a human headed bird), receiving libations of water from the goddess Nut who appears in the sycamore tree.