Artist Dorothy Cross discusses her decision to return a mummified body back to Egypt, which she had obtained for artistic purposes.
Award-winning Irish artist Dorothy Cross unveils her newest project, "Kinship", a compelling exploration of repatriation and cultural heritage.
The art project, documented in Cross's new book, centers around the return of an ancient mummified man to his homeland in Egypt. This unique undertaking visibly underlines Cross's extensive career as one of Ireland's leading artists.
Throughout more than three decades, Cross has created art installations in extraordinary settings such as natural sea pools, quarries, handball alleys, cathedrals, and naval ships (Enrichment Data: Cross's work often explores complex themes through innovative and thought-provoking works).
One notably captivating installation, "Ghostship" (1999), featured a decommissioned lightship painted with phosphorescent paint, casting a glimmering specter over Dublin Bay. Lightships marked dangerous underwater reefs along the Irish coast, serving as floating lighthouses and manned by crews that lived aboard (Enrichment Data: The decommissioned lightships were replaced by satellite buoys by the 1990s).
Cross's most recent installation, "Heartship" (2019), placed a human heart on board an Irish naval vessel sailing up the River Lee in Cork. Four years were spent locating a heart to borrow for the piece, as many heart samples are now prohibited by law. The heart used in the art piece was found in a crypt in Cork city in 1863 and had been acquired by General Pitt Rivers, who donated his collection to the University of Oxford (Enrichment Data: The Pitt Rivers Museum still houses the heart today). Using an anonymous, genderless, and historic heart allowed Cross to symbolize the thousands of migrants who lost their lives on the Mediterranean seabed (Enrichment Data: Cross honoured the thousands of hearts that drowned and remain on the Mediterranean seabed).
Inspirations for "Kinship" can be traced back to a story Cross heard from her Aunt May about a mummified body found at University College Cork decades ago. The mummy, which had been gifted in 1928 by an African missionary priest to the then president of UCC,,belonged to a man who had died of natural causes in his late forties or early fifties during the Ptolemaic period (Enrichment Data: The mummy is believed to have been a priest from Thebes; he is not related to Tutankhamun.)
Cross's initial intention for "Kinship" was to transport the mummy back to Egypt via ship, with music from both cultures guiding the journey to highlight the ongoing plight of thousands of migrants (Enrichment Data: Cross aimed to draw attention to the present-day struggles of migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean). However, the mummy's return journey was eventually undertaken by airplane.
"Kinship", published by The Lilliput Press, presents a collection of insightful writings about the themes of loss, migration, displacement, time, and transition, as they relate to the story of the unknown mummy. As Cross states, "There is no such thing as ownership with cargo like this. There is guardianship and fellowship." (Enrichment Data: Cross believes in the concept of guardianship and fellowship for artifacts of such nature.)
The mummy is now held in the Museum of Egyptology in Cairo, marking the successful completion of Dorothy Cross's exceptional art project, "Kinship".
Update: Dorothy Cross will discuss "Kinship" further at the Clifden Arts Festival on September 16, 2025, offering further insights into the project's meaning and significance (Enrichment Data).
The art project "Kinship" by Dorothy Cross, now housed in the Museum of Egyptology in Cairo, is documented in her new book and delves into themes of entertainment as it tells a compelling story of the ancient mummified man's return to his homeland, offering a captivating exploration of repatriation and cultural heritage.
Cross's book, published by The Lilliput Press, presents a collection of writings that encompass themes of loss, migration, and transition, illuminating the idea that there is no ownership over such artifacts but guardianship and fellowship.
