The Significance of Coffin Construction Practices in the Old and Middle Kingdoms

Abstract

Over time, technology and traditions shift as artists or craftspeople adapt to transformations in fashion, politics, religion, the availability of materials, and advances in knowledge. These changes in production are often visible in the material record. Understanding why certain elements of production change or remain constant can therefore help archaeologists or historians to understand better the broader social contexts in which these communities of practice lived and worked. Developments in the production of ancient Egyptian coffins over time can provide an example of the type of social insights that a long-term, large-scale analysis of technological history permits. In this longue-durée analysis, the author highlights the construction history of coffins from the beginning of the Old Kingdom through to the end of the Middle Kingdom, punctuated with a selection of detailed case studies. The adaptations in practice show carpenters beginning a tradition, demonstrate the emergence of communities of practice, and express a major shift in approaches in response to revolutions in religious expression. Once this tradition emerges, however, it remains constant throughout the First Intermediate Period and beyond, during a time otherwise characterised by experimentation and political upheaval. This suggests a continuity and resiliency among communities of carpenters, building up an alternative history to the royal narrative.