In ancient Egypt, the deceased often received travel provisions and useful objects with them on their way to the afterlife. Now archaeologists have discovered a mummy that took an unusual reading with it to the grave: On the embalmed dead’s stomach lay a papyrus with a text from the work “Iliad” by the Greek poet Homer. This discovery is the only one to date, as a mummy with a literary text on its body has never been found before, as the team reports.
In the beliefs of the ancient Egyptians, preserving the body as well as possible was important for the survival of their dead in the afterlife. To achieve this, embalmers and priests subjected the bodies of high-profile dead people to a complex procedure that lasted up to 70 days. For protection and as gifts to the gods of the underworld, amulets, jewelry and other gifts were often wrapped in the mummies’ bandages. Travel provisions and valuable grave goods were intended to ensure well-being in the afterlife. Thanks to this practice, Egyptian mummies gave unique insights into the thinking and life of ancient Egypt.
Mummy with papyrus on his stomach
A mummy that archaeologists discovered in the necropolis of the ancient city of Oxyrhynchus now provides a very special insight. In the Greco-Roman era, this city, located around 160 kilometers south of Cairo, was one of the most important centers in Egypt. During excavations in December 2025, a team led by Núria Castellano from the University of Barcelona came across a previously unrecognized grave complex in the necropolis of Oxyrhynchus. The limestone grave complex, which dates back to around 1,600 years ago, consists of three chambers in which the team discovered decorated wooden sarcophagi containing mummies. Grave robbers had already looted this grave and damaged some sarcophagi and mummies, but some have been preserved.
When archaeologists examined the mummies more closely after they were recovered, they discovered a papyrus with Greek text on the stomach of one of the dead. “This is not the first time that we have found bundled, sealed and carefully wrapped papyri inside mummies,” explains Ignasi-Xavier Adiego, head of the Oxyrhynchus project. However, the content of this text hidden under the bindings turned out to be surprising. Because on the papyrus there was an excerpt from the famous “Iliad” by Homer. In this work, the Greek poet tells the story of the Trojan War. The passage of text found on the mummy comes from the so-called “Catalog of Ships,” in which Homer describes the Greek fleet off the coast of Troy.
“Unprecedented in the history of archaeology”
As the archaeologists explain, this find is unique to date. “Although many papyri have already been found in Oxyrhynchus, including important literary texts, what is new here is that such a literary papyrus was discovered in the context of a burial,” explains Adiego. Never before has a literary text been found in an Egyptian mummy – this is unprecedented in the history of archaeology. However, it is unclear why this deceased person, of all people, was given a literary work to read about the afterlife. Who the dead man was is also still unknown.
Source: University of Barcelona