Unraveling the story of UR's mummy

The mummified remains of Ti Ameny Net have resided on the University of Richmond campus for decades. Her journey from Egypt to Richmond has been long, but today she lies in UR’s Ancient World Gallery. 

The informal expert on Ti Ameny and curator of the gallery is Associate Professor of Classics and Archaeology Professor Elizabeth Baughan. 

Ti Ameny Net was given a CT scan at Virginia Commonwealth University’s medical center, where her health conditions, age, and cause of death could be identified. According to the data from VCU, Ti Ameny Net lived in Thebes during the Egyptian 26th dynasty, likely between 685 and 525 B.C.E. While her definitive cause of death is unknown, it is clear that she died between 30 and 35 years old and had calcification in her heart, known as atherosclerosis, and scoliosis. Given her level of preservation and intricate coffin, she was most likely of the Egyptian wealthy and elite. 

For 2,500 years, she lay undisturbed in her tomb in Thebes.  

According to Baughan, the journey of her mummified remains began in 1869, when the Prince of Wales, who would later be King Edward VII, made the trip to visit the tombs of Thebes. The Khedive of Egypt presented 30 mummies to the Prince, likely in a staged excavation in anticipation of the visitor's arrival. During his trip to Egypt, the Prince had a translator by his side, Edwin Smith. For his helping the prince, he was gifted one of these 30 mummies: Ti Ameny Net.

Smith remained in possession of Ti Ameny for a few years, and during this time she was potentially subject to a mummy unwrapping party. These popular events were hosted by European elites who would unwrap the head, hands, and feet in search of amulets buried with the deceased. When visiting Ti Ameny today, you can see the missing linens on these particular areas of her body.

Back in Virginia, Richmond College began its search for artifacts worthy of establishing a museum collection. In 1875, a Professor of History and Literature who also served as an American diplomat to Spain and a Congressman for Alabama, Jabez L.M. Curry, was appointed to travel abroad to acquire items for the gallery. That summer, he journeyed to Egypt where he purchased the remains of Ti Ameny Net from Smith. He also purchased her coffin, a small sphinx and other coffin fragments which can also be found in the Ancient World Gallery. 

According to the 2007 edition of the Richmond Alumni Magazine, in an article titled “Saving the Mummy,” Curry spent all of his allotted budget on Ti Ameny Net. With no way to return the mummified remains to America, Curry began searching for solutions. Given his dilemma, he struck a deal with the organizer of his trip: Thomas Cook and Sons. In exchange for her travel back home, Ti Ameny Net would be displayed at the World’s Fair under the Cook and Sons pavilion, where visitors would buy tickets to see her. She then traveled from Egypt to Philadelphia, and in 1876 finally made her way to Richmond College. 

Once in Richmond, Ti Ameny Net arrived just before Egyptomania had gripped America and Europe. During this period of obsession with ancient Egypt, UR featured her in a 1923 exhibition. According to Baughan, she was later subjected to sorority initiation and Halloween celebrations at Westhampton College. She moved between several places, from the Richmond College library to the Biology Museum in Maryland Hall through the ‘60s, to the basement of North Court. Finally, in the 1970s, Stewart Wheeler envisioned the Ancient World Gallery as a safe place for her and many other artifacts to come together. 

The Ancient World Gallery is on the top floor of the Humanities Building, where many efforts have been made to maintain the preservation of Ti Ameny Net while still respecting her resting place. From a conservation standpoint, the lighting, humidity and HVAC systems have been made ideal for her preservation. She has also been separated from her coffin and is displayed on several shelves, as the overlay of the organic materials advances the decomposition of both. Ti Ameny has been shrouded with linen as a measure of respect granted to her, and information regarding her research and life is on display both in and outside of the museum. 

The main goal of the museum is to offer the artifacts on display as learning tools for students. By contextualizing the display and prohibiting photographs, the museum is working to show her respect and discourage sensationalizing her. 

“We have grappled with whether to keep her on display at all,” Baughan said. “But given the conservation questions we’ve had in the past, we feel it’s better to be able to monitor her condition than to have her sealed away somewhere.” 

There has been discussion surrounding UR’s possession of Ti Ameny Net’s remains, however, Baughan assured that given the current Egyptian patrimony laws and the mummified remains having been gifted, there is no legal issue. 

“In Egyptian culture, the more one said the name of the deceased out loud, the better their afterlife would be,” Baughan said. “That’s one of the reasons the name is repeated so many times on the outside of the coffin, so we encourage visitors to say her name, Ti Ameny Net, when they visit her.”

Contact investigative editor Lucille Hancock at Lucille.Hancock@richmond.edu