This stele is known in Egyptian art as a cippus (pl. cippi) or magical stele. The instructions found on some cippi indicate that they were used to heal afflictions caused by snake or scorpion venom. Specifically, Egyptians believed that the water poured over these cippi would be transformed into a curative remedy that the afflicted...
This head of a priest, called the Boston Green Head, is the best portrait sculpture known from the Late Period. The face is wonderfully lifelike and individual. Light wavy lines indicate the furrows of his brow, and crow’s feet radiate from the outer corners of his eyes. The top of his nose has a pronounced...
This unique stele commemorates the deceased ruler Ahmose (1539-1515 BC), who inaugurated the 18th Dynasty in the New Kingdom. The relief style places the stele’s manufacture later in the reign of Tutankhamun (1332–1323 BC). At this time, royal cults were reinstated after the reign of Akhenaten, who wiped out the cults of other gods in...
One of the most remarkable paintings to survive from ancient Egypt, this depiction of the noblewoman Tjepu came from a tomb built for her son Nebamun and a sculptor named Ipuky. Egyptian artists usually did not depict individuals as they truly looked, but rather as eternally youthful, lavishly dressed, and in an attitude of repose....
Tjetji is shown in the classic pose of a standing official, with his left leg advanced, a long staff in his left hand, and a sekhem scepter (now lost) held horizontally in his right hand. The arms of this statue were made separately and pegged to the body, and the feet tenoned into a separate...
The Metternich stela belongs to a group of stelae known as the “Cippi of Horus” or ‘Stelae of Horus on the crocodiles’. The top half of this stela was skillfully carved in the hard dark stone. On the part below the central figure panel, rows of hieroglyphs record thirteen magic spells to protect against venomous...
Through the veil of time, a woman’s gaze meets ours, serene, knowing, eternal. This is a woman, whose memory lingers upon the fragile remnants of her cartonnage, linen-wrapped shell that once cradled her in death. Hers is a face preserved in the exquisite art of the Romano-Egyptian mummy portrait, a testament to both beauty and...
Originally described as a ‘linen belt’ but since at least 1913 it has been called the ‘Ramesses Girdle’. Paintings of Ramesses III show him wearing similar long lengths of cloth wrapped several times around the chest in a herringbone fashion, like a girdle, before being fastened around the waist. Cartouches of Ramesses III were inscribed...
Referred to as Asqanu in Egyptian texts and among the cities revolting against Ramesses II. Scenes of the battle for Ashkelon (including the one shown here) are shown on the walls of Ramesses’ temple at Karnak. The scene shows many activities taking place at once. The army of Ashkelon is being defeated in the center,...
The inner coffin lid of Henuttawy is painted yellow all over, imitating royal coffins made of solid gold or gilded wood. The pectoral is only slightly less elaborate than the one on her outer lid (25.3.182a, b). Its main feature is a large scarab that pushes a sun disk upward to symbolize the rising sun....
