Mummy, Monster or Pharaoh. 2004

During a 1 month trip to Egypt I became obsessed with the Mummy.

About my Mummy

In my head I had two versions of the Mummy.

The first was the Mummy that was a great Egyptian Pharaoh, who had simply been dried and wrapped in linen to help preserve it for the afterlife.

The second was the Mummy from horror films and books, where the Mummy is transformed into a Monster, thanks to popular fiction.

So, while making these sketches I was torn between these two very different views of how to interpret the Mummy.

On Location sketching

Sketching time was often minimal, 15 to 30 minutes because of a limited period of time allowed down a tomb or in 'The Royal Mummy Room' of the Egyptian Museum.

Pencil or pen was used to quickly do a portrait, then if time allowed, I would colour in using pencil crayon or chalk. A coloured base also helped to create an instant atmosphere.

After, or while sketching, I always tried to get the guard to sign my picture with the name of the Mummy.

The Royal Mummy Room, Egyptian Museum, Cairo.

Some Egyptians say that such great Pharaohs like Ramesses II should not be on display for all to see, because the West has created a monster out of the Mummy and not a great Pharaoh.

Ink & watercolour on handmade paper, 33/22 cm
by Simon Bird £175

The Awakening, Egyptian Museum, Cairo.

After being in the 'Royal Mummy Room' for a while, some of the Mummies gave me the impression they wanted to get up and have a stretch !

Ink & watercolour on coloured card, 29/21 cm
by Simon Bird £175

Sleep Walking, Valley of the Kings, Egypt.

According to ancient Egyptian writtings the Pharaoh Setnakhte was buried in the tomb of Queen Twosret, because the tomb he had begun to construct was abandoned after workers broke through into an adjacent tomb. (Such are the cramped conditions of the Valley of the Kings)

His coffin, however, was never found In Queen Twosret tomb. Archaeologists then started to believe that an unidentified Mummy that was discovered lying on a wooden boat in a yet another tomb was that of the Pharaoh Setnakhte.

Due to this odd story I picture him here in Queen Twosret tomb as a sleep walking Mummy, disturbed and restless.

Chalk & watercolour on coloured card, 29/21 cm
by Simon Bird £ 175

Mummy Encased, Egyptian Museum, Cairo.

“Seqenenre ta a” was the fourteenth king of the Theban Dynasty, very old.

Ink & watercolour on traditional handmade papyrus reed parchment, 21/33 cm
by Simon Bird £175

The Blending of Cultures, Kom El-Shuqafa Catacombs, Alexandria.

Anubis is dressed as a Roman Legionnaire, the sarcophagus is carved with Roman armour, the Egyptian crocodile God strikes a classical Greek pose and the wings of Ra the Egyptian God of eternal life is above them all.

These catacombs were a place where people seemed to have the talent, for combining rather than, destroying cultures. AD100

Chalk & watercolour on coloured card, 29/21 cm
by Simon Bird £ 175

In the After Life, Valley of the kings.

On every Sarcophagus is a pair of eyes to keep a lookout while on the journey into the After-Life.

Chalk & watercolour on coloured card, 29/21 cm
by Simon Bird £175