In this nearly life-size statue made of white limestone, Horemheb is seated on the right side of Horus, who places his right arm around the king’s waist. The god’s left hand is holding the sign of life. The two figures greatly resemble each other. Both have bare upper bodies and wear the shendyt kilt and...
The girdle with golden cowrie shells could have been worn by a small woman. It was slipped over the head and arms to rest on the widest part of her hips and to cross the lowest part of her abdomen. Such girdles were commonly depicted on the little dolls of wood or faience often found...
The Shrine of Taharqa part of a temple built at Kawa, Nubia (modern Sudan) in about 680 BC. It was built on the orders of Taharqa who was King from 690 – 664 BC. The shrine was dedicated to the sun and fertility god Amun-Re. It was intended to give help to Taharqa in ruling...
This fragment of relief of a group of archers shows one of the most elaborately composed scenes preserved from the Old Kingdom. A careful examination reveals parts of at least four archers, three standing and one kneeling below them, his extended left arm and the upper part of his head just visible along the lower...
Molded winged scarab amulet of blue glassy faience, with separate wings, of a type that was mass-produced in the first millennium BC. Flat and schematically modeled, it was intended to be incorporated into a beadwork mummy shroud. Mounted together with fabric backing. This scarab is rather coarsely modeled, although every detail of the body is...
Egyptian faience statuette of a hippopotamus decorated with lily plants, symbolic of regeneration in the hereafter. These statuettes were popular grave goods that were placed close to the mummy in the coffin. Plants and animals characteristic of the marshes where the hippo lived are depicted on its body. The king’s ritual hippopotamus hunt symbolized his...
This cosmetic vase in the form of fish was found in a medium-sized private house at Tell el-Amarna, buried under a plaster floor together with two glass jugs and some metal objects. It is the most spectacular of a small group of fish-form vessels, all representing the ‘bulti’-fish common in the Nile and a standard...
The frog ring is made of Egyptian blue, which was a vibrant blue pigment, considered to be the first synthetically-produced pigment, composed of quartz sand, a copper compound, and calcium carbonate. The color blue was highly prized in ancient Egypt and the creation of a synthetic pigment allowed artists to produce imitations of the precious...
This small, painted votive statue depicts King Akhenaten and his Great Wife Nefertiti. The king and queen are shown hand in hand (a notedly unusual pose in New Kingdom artwork), as if walking forward together. They stand quite far apart, entirely unbending as they stare straight ahead, without the ghost of a smile. They are...
The King’s relatives, such as Princess Nefertiabet, Khufu’s daughter—depicted on this relief stele found in her tomb (G 1225) in Giza—were buried beside the sovereign’s pyramid. Nefertiabet is shown seated facing right. She is depicted with a long wig and a panther-skin garment. An offering table in front of her bears reeds, as is common,...
