Relief of Soldiers Honoring Their Lord

Fragment of painted limestone raised relief of soldiers honoring their lord. Group of military men are acclaiming the rewarding of General Horemheb. Right arm of Horemheb at extreme upper right corner. Two lines of incised inscription at top left center.

Inscription: “Standard Bearer to the cavalry squadron of Meryt-Aten (named Khai)” or “Standard bearer of the regiment, Love of the Aten, Minka’y.” Condition: Good. Minor chips at edges. Paint faded and is missing in sections.

The kings of the 18th Dynasty extended Egyptian military influence from the Euphrates River in modern Iraq to sub-Saharan Africa. Their army consisted of highly trained professional soldiers led by an able officer corps drawn from the ranks of the Egyptian nobility.

This relief shows a group of such soldiers resting their staves on the ground and raising their arms in a gesture of veneration toward either the ruling monarch or their general. Note the wide range of ethnic types—no doubt an accurate reflection of the composition of the Egyptian military during the New Kingdom.

New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty, ca. 1336-1327 BC. Archaeological provenance not yet documented, possibly from the Tomb of Horemheb at Memphis. Now in the Brooklyn Museum. 32.103