Book of the Dead

The Book of the Dead is an ancient Egyptian funerary text that was used from around 1550 BC to 50 BC during the New Kingdom period. Despite its name, it wasn't a single book but rather a collection of magical spells designed to guide the deceased through the *Duat* (underworld) and into the afterlife. These texts were written by numerous priests over approximately 1,000 years. The term "Book of the Dead" comes from Egyptologist Karl Richard Lepsius, who in 1842 introduced the German name *Todtenbuch*. The original Egyptian title, *rw nw prt m hrw*, translates to ***Spells of Coming Forth by Day***.

This text was part of a longer tradition of funerary writings that included the earlier Pyramid Texts and Coffin Texts, which were painted on objects rather than written on papyrus. Some spells in the Book of the Dead originated from these older works dating to the 3rd millennium BC, while others were composed during the Third Intermediate Period (11th to 7th centuries BC). Many spells continued to be inscribed on tomb walls and sarcophagi, maintaining their original tradition.

There was no standardized version of the Book of the Dead. Each papyrus contained different selections of religious and magical texts with varying illustrations. Some individuals commissioned personal copies, selecting spells they believed most crucial for their journey to the afterlife. The text was typically written in hieroglyphic or hieratic script on papyrus scrolls, often accompanied by vignettes depicting the deceased's journey into the afterlife.

The most well-preserved example is the Papyrus of Ani, created for an Egyptian scribe named Ani. It was discovered in Luxor in 1888 by traders in illegal antiquities and subsequently acquired by E. A. Wallis Budge, as he recounted in his autobiography *By Nile and Tigris*. The papyrus remains in the British Museum's collection.