Two Wooden Anthropoid Coffins from Abusir el-Malaq

     On Tuesday 24 April 2012, the chief inspector of Beni Suef governorate Amal Farag and the inspector Shimaa Galal rescued two anthropoid coffins (for a male and a female) in Abu Shelb – south west of Abusir el-Malaq at the same moment robbers were preparing to transfer them outside the tomb. Fortunately, thieves left the coffins and run away once they heard the inspector's car approaches and stops nearby the tomb. This tomb is situated atop an archaeological Tell three meters high. The male coffin was covered with blankets by thieves. At the moment of rescuing the coffins, the inspectors could not determine whether this tomb was the original location or the thieves transferred them to this tomb as a collection point before taking them away. Moreover, they are not sure – even though this tomb was the original location – in which part of the tomb these coffins were located as they were discovered in the center of the open court at the tomb entrance. This raises an issue in terms of their archaeological context.  The tomb is accessible through a vertical shaft in its eastern side, almost 1.5m deep, and ends with a staircase that leads to an open corridor (2m×1.10m). At the end of this corridor, the tomb entrance measures almost 1.30m×0.70m. It terminates into a main east-west rectangular chamber surrounded by six niches to house mummies (loculi), two at the northern, southern, and western sides. Two niches are at the top of the northern wall and one at the top of the western wall (Average 0.80m long×0.20m wide×0.30m deep).   The two anthropoid coffins under investigation of unknown male and female have been separated from their archaeological context by tomb robbers and coincidently rescued. The two coffins were restored and once preserved in BeniSuefMuseum under the numbers 2612 and 2613 for male and female coffins respectively. Until recently in 2017, they were moved to the GrandEgyptianMuseum under the numbers 65490 and 65489 respectively.  The texts are inscribed in vertical columns and occupy the central part of the two coffins. They are inscribed on yellow grounds and flanked with simple motives. Either coffins lost parts of their hieroglyphic texts but still in a reasonable state of preservation with vivid colors. The Coffins shroud mummies; the male one is wholly preserved while the female one is heavily decayed.