Ancient Egypt at the Hermitage

The Egyptian Hall is one of the most atmospheric corners of the Hermitage and a favourite goal for visitors who come “to see the mummy”. It is Room 100 on the ground floor of the Winter Palace, so it is easy to look in at the start or the end of your visit, without climbing up to the picture galleries.

The star exhibit: the mummy of the priest Pa-di-ist

The heart of the hall is the mummy of the ancient Egyptian priest Pa-di-ist, more than three thousand years old. It lies in a triple wooden sarcophagus (two inner and one outer, around the 10th century BC) and is kept in a sealed glass case with reduced pressure, which protects the ancient remains from air and damp. It is the best-known and most magnetic object in the collection — there are almost always visitors lingering beside it.

What else is in the hall

The Hermitage’s Egyptian holdings span several millennia, and Room 100 shows the most important part:

• sarcophagi and mummies — besides Pa-di-ist, the museum owns several ancient mummies;
• statues of gods and pharaohs — including dark-stone figures of the lioness-headed goddess Sekhmet;
• stelae and reliefs with hieroglyphs and scenes of the funerary cult;
• burial goods — shabti figurines, amulets, canopic jars;
• everyday objects that tell of daily life in Egypt.

Together they give a rounded picture of Egyptian culture — from religion and the cult of the dead to craft and daily life.

How a mummy was made

Standing by the sarcophagi, you understand why mummification mattered: the Egyptians believed the soul had to return to a preserved body. The process was long — about 70 days:

• the internal organs were removed and placed in special vessels, the canopic jars;
• the body was dried with a natural salt, natron;
• it was then wrapped in dozens of metres of linen bandages, with protective amulets tucked between the layers;
• the finished mummy was laid in a coffin, sometimes in several nested one inside another, as with Pa-di-ist.

Gods and the cult of the dead

Almost all Egyptian art is bound up with religion and the afterlife. In the hall you can see images of the chief gods — Osiris, lord of the realm of the dead, and jackal-headed Anubis, patron of embalming. Most striking are the statues of Sekhmet, goddess of war and healing, carved from dark stone more than three thousand years ago. One of the Hermitage’s Sekhmet statues carries a museum legend that her knees grow “damp” on certain days — a fine tale and nothing more.

What else to look for

Beyond the mummy and sarcophagi, in Room 100 it is worth looking at:

• statues of pharaohs and nobles, from monumental stone figures to small service statuettes;
• reliefs and stelae with hieroglyphs — both tombstones and “documents” of the age;
• shabti figurines — little “workers” placed in the tomb to labour for the deceased in the next world;
• everyday objects, jewellery and amulets that speak of ordinary life;
• wooden models of boats and work scenes, placed in burials.

Together they show Egypt not only as a kingdom of the dead but as a living, developed civilisation with crafts, trade and daily life.

History of the collection

Egyptian antiquities began reaching Russia as early as the 18th–19th centuries — through the Kunstkamera, diplomats and private gifts (some pieces, including the mummy, came from merchant-benefactors). Russian Egyptologists described and catalogued the finds, turning scattered curiosities into a scholarly collection. For a long time the objects were kept in different places, and only in 1940 were they brought together in the present ground-floor hall. Today the museum’s Egyptian holdings number several thousand items and cover nearly every period of Ancient Egypt.

How to find it

Room 100 is on the ground floor and easy to find with the floor plan. To fit Egypt into your overall route, see the one-day itinerary.

FAQ

Which room holds the Egyptian collection? Room 100, on the ground floor of the Main Museum Complex (Winter Palace).

Is there a real mummy in the Hermitage? Yes — the mummy of the priest Pa-di-ist in a triple sarcophagus, plus several other ancient mummies in the collection.

Do I need a separate ticket for the Egyptian Hall? No, it is included in the standard Main Museum Complex ticket.

Is the hall good for children? Yes, it is one of the museum’s most popular rooms with children.

How long do I need for the Egyptian Hall? Usually 20–30 minutes, though many people linger longer by the mummy.

This is an unofficial, informational website. The display and availability of rooms can change — confirm details on the official museum website.