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A 2,400-year-old coffin bearing unusual and amateurish decorations, may reveal the decline of Ancient Egypt, one expert claims.

It has strange features such as 'goofy' jars and an unusual funeral bed painted on it.

The egyptologist believe the marks were made by junior artists, after the best Egyptian painters were deported when the Persians controlled the region.

A historic mess? A 2,400-year-old coffin bearing unusual and amateurish decorations, may reveal the decline of Ancient Egypt, one expert claims. It has strange features such as 'goofy' jars and unusual funeral bed with a bird's head (pictured) painted on it among other mistakes

From 525 BC for around a century, the Persians ruled Egypt after king Cambyses marched into the Egyptian capital, Memphis, toppling the pharaoh.

The occupation meant that the Persian Empire stretched from what is now Turkey to Afghanistan.

The coffin could shed light on a tumultuous time in Egyptian history, in which ancient texts by Diodorus Siculus suggest the occupying Empire deported Egypt's best craftsmen and artists to work on its own grand projects in Persia – as well as taking precious metals too.

This drain of talent may explain the badly-painted coffin, according to Egyptologist Gayle Gibson, of Toronto's Royal Ontario Museum.

'Many of the best artists in Egypt were taken by the Persians back to Persepolis and Susa as prisoners of war and war booty — you can see their work in those places,' she told Live Science. 

From 525 BC for around a century, the Persians ruled Egypt after king Cambyses marched into the Egyptian capital, Memphis, defeating pharaoh Psamtik II (illustrated in this 19th century painting)

'There seems to have been a dearth of masters for some time, so that fewer and fewer artists got proper training.'

A lack of training might explain the strange features on the coffin, such as the funeral bed having the head of a human-headed bird named Ba.

Ba is almost always depicted as a human-headed falcon and is often seen hovering over the deceased's mummy or freely entering and leaving a tomb, signifying an individual's soul, or spirit. 

She told the Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities Scholars' Colloquium last month that this is the only coffin she has come across with a bed featuring Ba's head.

She also said that a winged snake wearing a crown that is associated with the goddess Hathor - of joy and motherhood - is 'very odd,' while four jars in the scene have a 'goofy' appearance.

Dr Gibson explained that the artist's lack of skill is particularly apparent when considering two creatures that look a little bit like fish, which are meant to be falcons – a symbol of the god Horus.

According to inscriptions on the coffin, it belonged to a woman named Denit-ast, or Dent-ast, who radiocarbon dating suggests lived while Egypt was under Persian control.

Persian king, Darius I,who was born in 550 BC, reportedly bragged that skilled Egyptian artists, carpenters and goldsmiths decorated his palace at Susa.

Experts have questioned whether the coffin is real, because of its unusual markings.

But radiocarbon dating has confirmed its authenticity and its material – sycamore wood – was used during this time for crafting coffins. The distinctive 'Egyptian blue' pigment also points to the artefact not being fake.

Dr Gibson said: 'I think there is really no doubt that this one is genuine.

The coffin could shed light on a tumultuous time in Egyptian history, in which ancient texts suggest the occupying Empire deported Egypt's best craftsmen and artists, to work on its own grand projects in Persia, instead of grand projects in the country's capital, Memphis. The head of a sphinx in Memphis is shown