Artifacts

Funerary Couch in the form of Mehit

Funerary Couch in the form of Mehit

This wooden bed is covered with gilded plaster designed to represent two elongated lionesses represent the goddess Mehit. According to the ancient Egyptian beliefs, Mehit was identified with Hathor, Sekhmet, and Isis and helped to cause the Nile flood when she was appeased. The eyes of these animals are inlaid with blue glass paste; the...

Plaque of Amenhotep III flanked by two uraei. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 30.8.334

Plaque of Amenhotep III flanked by two uraei

On this piece the uraeus cobra functions as the protector of the royal name, the name of king Amenhotep III “The Lord of Maat is Re” is in the center of the plaque. The top and center part of the inscription is written twice and the direction of the hieroglyphs was reversed. Only the very...

Statue of Kai

Statue of Kai

The statue shows Kai sitting on a high-backed chair. He wears a shoulder length wig, decorated with horizontal rows of curls. Each eye is framed in copper, while his eyebrows are in raised relief. The lips are thin and finely drawn. Below, he wears Usekh or Wesekh (broad) collar, composed of seven horizontal bands of...

Figurine of the god Khnum

Figurine of the god Khnum

Upper part of a steatite figurine depicting the god Khnum. The ram headed deity was the embodiment of the creative force and was thought to control the waters of the Nile from caves near the first cataract. Intimately connected to the river and the concept of fertility, the god was often depicted as a potter,...

Limestone fragmentary stele with Akhenaten

Fragmentary stele of Akhenaten

In this stele, Akhenaten is slouched on a low-backed, cushioned chair with side struts in the form of the ancient royal symbol for the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt, which is partly obscured by the long sash of his pleated kilt. The Aten disk was above him, in the center of the stele. The...

Cartouches of the god Aten

Cartouches of Aten

This block of crystalline limestone once graced the railing of a stairway in a temple of the god Aten. It is in the form of a double cartouche, which usually enclosed the name of the king. In this relief instead, the cartouches contain the names of the sun disk Aten, the one god of king...

Model of Musical Entertainment

Model of Musical Entertainment

The wooden model of musical entertainment from the tomb of Ka-tenen depicts musicians and singers performing for the master. The master is seated on a carrying chair. A woman is seated on a stool by his feet. A man and a woman, who are positioned on either side of the carrying chair, are playing harps....

Ostracon Showing a Cat Waiting on a Mouse

Ostracon of a Cat Waiting on a Mouse

In this ostracon, a cat funerary priest approaches a mouse with offerings. The mouse wears a lotus flower on its head, sits on a chair, sniffs a flower, and holds out a cup to be filled. The cat, standing on his hind legs, fans the mouse and offers a roasted duck and a piece of...

Stool of Tutankhamun with Sema Tawy Symbol. Egyptian Museum, Cairo. JE 62039

Stool of Tutankhamun with Sema Tawy Symbol

The stool of Tutankhamun is made of wood and covered in gold leaf, showcasing the exquisite craftsmanship of ancient Egyptian artisans. The elements of the stool are joined to each other with copper pins. The chair’s legs were modeled to look like the legs of a lion. The lion held a privileged status in ancient...

The Rosetta Stone. British Museum EA2

The Rosetta Stone

The Rosetta Stone is a stele composed of granodiorite inscribed with three versions of a decree issued in Memphis, Egypt, in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty on behalf of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes. The stele was found in a small village in the Delta called Rosetta (Rashid). It is called the Rosetta Stone because...