Canopic Jar with Human-Headed Lid (Imsety)

Artist Unidentified

Period Late Period (Ancient Egyptian, 664–332 BCE)

Dynasty Dynasty 26 (Saite) (Ancient Egyptian, 664–525 BCE)

Place of OriginEgypt

Dateabout 600 BCE

Dimensions9 1/4 × 4 1/8 × 5 3/8 in. (23.5 × 10.5 × 13.7 cm)

Mediumlimestone with paint

ClassificationSculpture

Credit LineGift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1906.14

On View

Toledo Museum of Art (2445 Monroe Street), Gallery, 02, Classic

DescriptionHuman head shaped. Solid, dummy jar, with incised line to suggest a differentiation of cover and jar.

Label TextThis canopic jar, dedicated to Imsety, is part of a set used in ancient Egyptian burial practices to store and preserve the internal organs of the deceased. Imsety, depicted as a human-headed deity, was responsible for guarding the liver. He was one of the Four Sons of Horus, protective deities whose jars ensured the deceased’s safe passage into the afterlife. The other sons—Hapi, Duamutef, and Qebehsenuef—protected the lungs, stomach, and intestines, respectively.Published References

"Egyptian, part II: 6100 BC - 1550 BC," Art-A-Facts, vol. 3, no. 3, Dec. 1999/Jan. 2000, p. 2, repr. (col.).

Peck, William H., Sandra E. Knudsen and Paula Reich, Egypt in Toledo: The Ancient Egyptian Collection at the Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, Toledo Museum of Art, 2011, p. 77, repr. (col.) p. 13, 77.

Fortenberry, Diane ed., Souvenirs and New Ideas: Travel and Collecting in Egypt and the Near East, Oxford, UK, Oxbow Books, 2013, p. 28, repr. fig. 3.5, p. 29.

Exhibition HistoryToledo Museum of Art, The Egypt Experience: Secrets of the Tomb, October 29, 2010-January 8, 2012.

Toledo Museum of Art, The Mummies: From Egypt to Toledo, February 3- May 6, 2018.