A second branch of the project is concerned with the conservation of Ibi’s two sarcophagi, discovered during the excavations led by Wolfgang Schenkel and Klaus P. Kuhlmann from 1970 to 1982. The inner coffin is anthropomorphic and made from basalt whereas the outer one is quartzite. Large pieces of the outer coffin were found at the beginning of the preliminary work in February 1970 still in situ in the coffin room, and further small fragments were discovered outside. Of the inner sarcophagus only small fragments remained in the coffin room, as the main parts had been removed at an earlier stage, along with two large slabs from the floor and remains of the walls. The coffin lid however is intact, having been taken to the Egyptian Museum in Turin in the 19th century (inv. no. 2202). The aim is to attempt a reconstruction of both of Ibi’s sarcophagi from the remaining parts. Instrumental in this are close parallels like the sarcophagus of Pabasa which shed light on parts that are missing, particularly with regard to the inscriptions. The next step will be to translate the inscriptions when they have been completed and examine them chronologically and theologically. The chance to research a complete coffin ensemble, comprising an inner and an outer sarcophagus which for the most part have been preserved, is a rare opportunity to study how the decoration of each sarcophagus complements and supplements one another, for example how different accents are used and themes are repeated, and the variations found therein. The discovery during the excavation of the tomb complex surface structure of a further, third, decorated wooden sarcophagus belonging to Ibi, makes this research even more interesting, even if it seems this coffin was not used in Ibi’s burial.
