By the end of the Fifth Dynasty, long religious texts known as "pyramid texts" began to appear, first seen in the pyramid of King Unas at Saqqara. This type of text consists of hundreds of "spells," which speak of the death, burial, and protection of the king and his resurrection in the hereafter.

From this period onward, offering spells, which were texts intended to be recited during the presentation of offerings, were widely used on false doors, stelae, and coffins of individual or royal persons, such as those of Queen Kawit and Queen Ashait.

At the beginning of the Middle Kingdom and perhaps earlier, funerary objects were decorated with new personal spells, known as "coffin texts" because they were very often inscribed on coffins, such as that of the vizier Dagi.

The coffin texts also contained a new type of funerary text called "Netherworld Guides," which provided the deceased with descriptions of various places in the Underworld, along with words that would help the soul of the deceased to pass through them safely. The most elaborate guide, which decorated the coffin of General Sepi, is The Book of the Two Ways.

From the Second Intermediate Period onward, funerary texts began to be separated into several distinct compositions.

During the New Kingdom, from the Eighteenth to the Twenty-First Dynasty, the richly illustrated Book of the Netherworld appeared on the walls of tombs and on papyri, followed by fully illustrated copies of the Book of the Dead and other religious texts.

At the same time, the walls of temples were covered with ritual scenes and pictorial motifs. Also, a complete funerary composition, which is known as the "Opening of the Mouth" ritual, was developed in the New Kingdom. This ritual consists of 75 scenes and acts that enabled the priest to help in the revival of the different parts of the deceased through his statue.