This statuette is of a servant girl probably the best known of all the Egyptian objects in the Oriental Museum’s collection. It is reputedly from the tomb of Meryptah, High Priest of Ptah at Thebes. It is famous both for the quality of the craftsmanship and for the natural pose of the girl’s body. The...
The back of this wooden chair, which belonged to the scribe Reniseneb, is handsomely veneered with ivory and embellished with incised decoration showing the owner seated on a chair of identical form. It is the earliest surviving chair with such a representation, and it is the only non-royal example known. The scene and accompanying text...
Originally Egyptologists at the museum thought that the mummy of Ankh Hor was untouched, but recent x-rays found modern pins and clips. A re-examination of the cartonnage revealed that it had been cut, re-sealed and painted over. Although no one knows why it was opened, it is possible that Victorian researchers started to unwrap Ankh...
Based on the style of this bust, it has been dated to the second half of 13th Dynasty, during the reigns of Userkare Khendjer to Khasekhemre Neferhotep I (ca. 1764-1731 BC). He is one of the most powerful kings of this dynasty. The upper part of this life-sized statue was found at the temple of...
Amulet in the shape of a cartouche. The glaze is a deep cobalt blue. Two holes at either end enter on the edge and exit on the back of the amulet near the edge. The cartouche is one of the two cartouches used for the Aten and is translated: Ra-Horakhty lives, rejoicing in the horizon....
This wonderful catfish pendant exemplifying the high craftsmanship of jewelry makers during the Middle Kingdom (ca. 2030-1650 BC). This pendant also embodies the magic that was part of life for the ancient Egyptians, which they incorporated into a wide variety of objects. Believed to ward off drowning. A loop for suspension extends from the mouth...
This gold ring of Akhenaten and Nefertiti was found at Tell el-Amarna. The hieroglyphs may be read as an ideogram. The two seated figures are probably Akhenaten (left) and Nefertiti (right) as the deities Shu (air as indicated by the feather he holds) and Tefnut (moisture). They were father and mother of the earth and...
This relief portrait of Queen Nefertiti comes from a short end of a talatat, a limestone block of standardized size used during the Amarna Period in the building of the Aten temples at Karnak and Akhetaten. The standardized size and their small weight made construction more efficient. The term talatat is most likely derived from...
The symbolism of this wadjet eye amulet was one of the most pervasive and powerful in ancient Egypt. Combining a human eye with the stylized markings of a falcon’s, it represents the healed eye of the god Horus that was known as the “Sound One.” It was a symbol of recovery and regeneration. As amulet...
In ancient Egypt, people wear carnelian to ward off the Evil Eye and instill peace. Frogs are a symbol of rebirth, creation and fecundity, most probably, when the frog amulet was worn by the living it brought fertility, while when it was placed on a mummy it favored its rebirth in the afterlife. The frog,...
