Alabaster canopic jar with portrait of Imseti, also known as Mestha, on lid, Egyptian, 1400-700 BCE

Alabaster canopic jar with portrait of Imseti, also known as Mestha, on lid, Ancient Egyptian, 1400-700 BCE. During the preparation for mummification, the brains were removed through the nostrils, and then an incision was made in the side of the body and all the major organs removed and placed in canopic jars. Four organs would be removed each time and four jars used to protect them. They eventually came to represent the four sons of the god Horus and each had a head associated with the particular demi-god. The human headed jar (Imseti) carried the liver.