Golden Mask of Psusennes I

by Vicki Maheu

Title

Golden Mask of Psusennes I

Artist

Vicki Maheu

Medium

Photograph - Photograph

Description

Fine Art America watermark will not appear in the purchased product.
The golden mask of Psusennes I. The golden mask lay over the head, chest, and part of the shoulders of the mummy of Psusennes I, as a layer of protection. The royal headdress with ureaus and the divine false beard he wears indicates his royal status and his veneration as a god by the people of Egypt. The use of gold, considered the flesh of the gods, reaffirmed his expected divinity in the afterlife.
Psusennes I, was the third king of the Twenty-first dynasty of Egypt who ruled from Tanis between 1047 - 1001 BC. Psusennes is the Greek version of his original name Pasebakhaenniut which means "The Star Appearing in the City" while his throne name, Akheperre Setepenamun, translates as "Great are the Manifestations of Ra, chosen of Amun. He was the son of Pinedjem I and Henuttawy, Rameses XI's daughter by Tentamun. He married his sister Mutnedjmet.
Professor Pierre Montet discovered pharaoh Psusennes I's intact tomb in Tanis in 1940. Unfortunately, due to its moist Lower Egypt location, most of the "perishable" wood objects were destroyed by water - a fate not shared by the tomb of Tutankhamun in the drier climate of Upper Egypt. However, the king's magnificent funerary mask was recovered intact; it proved to be made of gold and lapis lazuli and held inlays of black and white glass for the eyes and eyebrows of the object. Psusennes I's mask is considered to be "one of the masterpieces of the treasure[s] of Tanis" and is currently housed in Room 2 of the Cairo Museum. It has a maximum width and height of 38 cm and 48 cm respectively.

Uploaded

April 6th, 2013

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