Essay on The Roxie Walker Galleries of Funerary Archaeology

The Roxie Walker galleries at the British Museum in London are solely dedicated to displaying and educating visitors on Ancient Egyptian funerary practices, spiritual beliefs, and attitudes towards death and the afterlife. They are housed in rooms 62 and 63 on the upper floor and named after the British Museum's Bio-archaeologist and Director of the Institute for Bio-archaeology. Visitors may tour the exhibit in two sections: Room 62 is dedicated to funerary archaeology, with artifacts such as useful burial gifts for the deceased and literature on display, while room 63 is focused on mummies and the magnificent coffins in which they were interred. Both rooms have a compact spatial plan that allows visitors to have a close look at all of the artifacts on show.

Egypt's and the Near East's cultural history are kept closely bundled together within the museum. A comparable exhibit on Egyptian life and death can be found in room 61 to the left, while relics from early ancient Egypt can be found in room 64 to the right.

Ethiopia (located south east of Egypt) and Coptic period Egypt are seen above in room 66, whereas room 56 below depicts Mesopotamia (located north east of Egypt).

As stated in the context, the overarching theme is exclusively centred on ancient Egyptian beliefs about death and the afterlife, as well as their complex ceremonies for both preparing the deceased and celebrating their journey into the next life.

While the exhibit does not go into great detail about the deceased's lives, the information offered on their coffins gives visitors a general idea of who they were and what type of lives they may have led. Padiamenet, chief barber and chief doorkeeper at the temple of Ra, died c.700BC, and Artemidorus, a Roman Period Greek man, are two such examples.

Through the panels that line the exhibit's walls and accompany the relics, visitors may learn about how the deceased were prepared, how coffins and tombs evolved between the Old Kingdom and the Roman Period, the role of burial objects, and Ancient Egyptian beliefs about death and the afterlife. They also educate us about the mummies on exhibit and how they were examined without having to remove them from their linen wrappings or coffins. Each artifact's place of discovery, as well as who discovered it, when it was discovered, and how it was obtained, is provided (most were purchased in the 1800s).

The Ancient Egyptians are undoubtedly the most well-known for their ideas about death and the afterlife, and the archaeological record demonstrates how prolific they were in constructing great monuments and elaborate tombs to commemorate their deceased. Even thousands of years later, the modern world is captivated by Ancient Egyptian traditions, yet museum exhibits around the world provide only a glimpse into these enthralling ideas. The display at the British Museum recounts the past of a once-mighty empire, conveying long-lost memories and voices of individuals who lived during its peak for the benefit of their descendants and us now, so that they are never forgotten.