List of ancient Egyptian papyri
This list of ancient Egyptian papyri includes some of the better known individual papyri written in hieroglyphs, hieratic, demotic or in Greek. Excluded are papyri found abroad or containing Biblical texts which are listed in separate lists.
The content descriptions are preceded by a letter in bold font, indicating the literary genre it belongs to. In the case of collections of texts of various kinds, the first letter refers to the most important text on the papyrus.
- B : biographical
- D : drawings: cartoons, maps
- F : funerary: Books of the Dead
- L : literary texts: tales, poems
- O : official records
- P : private papyri, correspondence, contracts
- R : religious, myths
- S : scientific: mathematical, medical
- T : teachings, instructions
- W : wordlists
Name | Date: century BCE | Content | Institution | Ref # | City | Country |
Wadi al-Jarf Papyri | 26th | O - about pyramid construction | Egyptian Museum in Cairo | |||
Dryton and Apollonia Archive | Ptolemaic | P - family papers | dispersed | |||
Abusir Papyri | 25th or later | O - about Neferirkare Kakai | ||||
Moscow Mathematical Papyrus | 21st | S - Mathematical problems and solutions | Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow | Moscow | Russia | |
Berlin Papyrus | 21st or later | S - Medical and mathematical topics | P. Berlin 6619 | Berlin | Germany | |
Westcar Papyrus | 20th | L - Tales of Magic | Ägyptisches Museum, Berlin | P. Berlin 3033 | Berlin | Germany |
Heqanakht papyri | 20th | P - Private Correspondence of Heqanakht | Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York | 22.3 | New York City | United States |
Papyrus Hermitage 1116A Papyrus Moscow, Papyrus Carlsberg 6 | 20th or later | T - Instruction of Merikare | ||||
P. Leningrad 1115 | 20th or later | L - Tale of the shipwrecked sailor | P. Leningrad 1115 | Moscow | Russia | |
Prisse Papyrus | 20th or later | T - Instruction addressed to Kagemni The Maxims of Ptahhotep | Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris | Paris | France | |
Papyrus Berlin 3023 Papyrus Berlin 3025 Papyrus Berlin 10499 | 20th or later | L - The Eloquent Peasant | P. Berlin 3023 P. Berlin 3025 P. Berlin 10499 | Berlin | Germany | |
Papyrus Butler 527 | 20th or later | L - The Eloquent Peasant | British Museum, London | P. BM 10274 | London | UK |
Papyrus Berlin 3024 | 20th or later | L - Dispute between a man and his Ba, Herdsman's Tale | P. Berlin 3024 | Berlin | Germany | |
Hearst Papyrus | 20th or later | S - Medical texts | University of California, Berkeley | Berkeley, CA | United States | |
Rhind Mathematical Papyrus | 19th or later | S - Mathematical problems and solutions | British Museum, London | pBM 10057, pBM 10058 | London | UK |
Kahun Papyri | 19th | S - Mathematical and medical topics | University College London | London | UK | |
Papyrus Berlin 3022 | 19th | B - Story of Sinuhe | P. Berlin 3022 | Berlin | Germany | |
Ramesseum medical papyri | 18th | S - Medical texts | ||||
Papyrus Boulaq 18 | 18th | O - palace administration | Egypt | Cairo | ||
London Medical Papyrus | 18th | S - Medical texts | British Museum, London | pBM 10059 | London | UK |
Reisner Papyrus | 18th | O - official records | ||||
Ipuwer Papyrus | 17th | T - The Admonitions of Ipuwer | Rijksmuseum van Oudheden, Leiden | Papyrus Leiden I 344 | Leiden | Netherlands |
Papyrus Golenischeff | 17th | R - Hymn to the Red Crown | ||||
Edwin Smith Papyrus | 16th or earlier | S - Medical | New York Academy of Medicine | New York City | United States | |
Ebers Papyrus | 16th | S - Medical | University of Leipzig, | Leipzig | Germany | |
Turin Erotic Papyrus | 16th or later | D - Animal and erotic cartoons | P. Turin 55001 | Turin | Italy | |
Millingen Papyrus | 16th or later | T - Instructions of Amenemhat | ||||
Papyrus of Ani | 13th or later | F - Book of the Dead | Cairo Museum, Cairo | P. Boulaq 4 | Cairo | Egypt |
Turin King List | 13th | O - Kinglist | Museo Egizio, Turin | Turin | Italy | |
Papyrus Sallier II | 13th or later | T - The Satire of the Trades | British Museum, London | London | UK | |
Papyrus Anastasi I | 13th or later | T - Satirical letter | British Museum, London | pBM 10247 | London | UK |
Papyrus Harris I | 12th | O - Lists of endowments | British Museum, London | P. BM 9999. | London | UK |
Judicial Papyrus of Turin | 12th | O - Report on the Harem conspiracy against Ramesses III | ||||
Papyrus Harris 500 | 12th or later | L - Tale of the doomed prince, The Taking of Joppa, love poems, the Harper's Song | British Museum, London | P. BM 10060 | London | UK |
Papyrus Pushkin I | 12th or later | L - Moscow literary letter | P. Pushkin I | |||
Turin Papyrus | 12th | D - Map | Museo Egizio, Turin | Turin | Italy | |
Abbott Papyrus | 12th | O - Investigation of crimes | ||||
Leopold II and Amherst Papyrus | 12th | O - Investigation of crimes | Musée d'arts, Brussels | Brussels | Belgium | |
Mayer Papyri | 12th | O - Investigation of crimes | ||||
Chester Beatty Medical Papyrus | 12th | S - Medical texts | British Museum, London | London | UK | |
Papyrus British Museum 10474 | 12th | T - Instructions of Amenemopet | British Museum, London | P. BM 10474 | London | UK |
Papyrus Lansing | 12th | T - Schoolbook | British Museum, London | P. BM 9994 | London | UK |
Papyrus Chester Beatty IV | 12th | T - The Immortality of Writers | British Museum, London | P. BM 10684 | London | UK |
Papyrus D’Orbiney | 12th | L - Tale of Two Brothers | British Museum, London | P. BM 10183 | London | UK |
Papyrus Chester Beatty II | 12th | L - Tale of Truth and Falsehood | British Museum, London | P. BM 10682 | London | UK |
Papyrus Chester Beatty I | 12th | L - Love poetry Contention between Horus and Seth | ||||
Greenfield papyrus | 11th | F - Book of the Dead | British Museum, London | BM EA 10554 | London | UK |
Papyrus Moscow 120 | 11th or later | L - Story of Wenamun | P. Moscow 120 | |||
Papyrus Hood | 10th | W - Onomasticon of Amenope | British Museum, London | P. BM EA 10202 | London | UK |
Papyrus Berlin 3048 | 08th | P - Marriage contract | P. Berlin 3048 | Berlin | Germany | |
Papyrus Rylands 9 | 06th | P - The petition of Pediese | John Rylands Library, Manchester | P. Rylands 9 | Manchester | UK |
Brooklyn Papyrus | 04th or later | S - Medical texts | Brooklyn Museum | Brooklyn | United States | |
Papyrus Bremner–Rhind | 04th | R - The Songs of Isis and Nephthys. | British Museum, London | P. BM 10188 | London | UK |
British Museum Papyrus 10508 | 04th or later | T - Instruction of Ankhsheshonq | British Museum, London | P. BM 10508 | London | UK |
Papyrus Berlin 3008 | 04th or later | R - The Lamentations of Isis and Nephthys | P.Berlin 3008 | Berlin | Germany | |
Cairo Museum Papyrus No. 30646 | 04th or later | L - Setne I | Cairo Museum | Cairo Museum Papyrus No. 30646 | Cairo | Egypt |
Cairo Museum Papyrus No. 30692 | 04th or later | L - Setne I | Cairo Museum | Cairo Museum Papyrus No. 30692 | Cairo | Egypt |
Vienna Demotic Papyrus 6165 | 04th or later | L - Story-cycle of King Petubastis | Vienna Demotic Papyrus 6165 | Vienna | Austria | |
Leiden Demotic Papyrus I 384 | 04th or later | R - The Myth of the Eye of the Sun | Leiden Demotic Papyrus I 384 | |||
Papyrus Milbank | 04th or later | F - Book of the Dead | Oriental Institute | E10486 | Chicago | United States of America |
Milan Papyrus | 03rd or later | L - Poetry in Greek | University of Milan | P.Mil.Vogl. VIII 309 | Milan | Italy |
Carlsberg Papyrus | 02nd and later | S - Medical texts | University of Copenhagen | Copenhagen | Denmark | |
Insinger Papyrus | 02nd or later | T - Instruction of Papyrus Insinger | Leiden | Netherlands | ||
British Museum Papyrus 604. | 01st or later | L - Setne II | British Museum, London | P. BM 604. | London | UK |