Archaeologists at the ancient Egyptian site of Oxyrhynchus discovered a 1,600-year-old mummy with a fragment of Homer’s Iliad placed on its abdomen.

The papyrus contains a passage from the “catalogue of ships” in Book II of the Greek epic, marking the first known case of a literary text used in a mummification ritual.

Researchers say this is unprecedented, as previous finds included only ritual or protective writings rather than literature.

Experts are still unsure why the text was included, though it may have had symbolic or ritual significance or even identified the embalmer, CNN has reported.

The broader excavation also uncovered multiple tombs with unusual burial practices, including gold- and metal-adorned mummies and cremated remains.