Stele of Amenemhat and his family

This rectangular stele made out of painted limestone shows Amenemhat with his wife, son, and daughter. All the figures are shown seated except his daughter. She stands before an offering table heaped with different kinds of offerings. 

The son is depicted seated between his mother and father. Beneath the seated lady, there is a basket containing a mirror that she used for applying makeup.

“This limestone slab, with its original bright colors preserved, shows a funeral banqueting scene at which a whole family is present. A father, mother, and a son named Antef are seated on a long bench with lion’s feet and are immortalized in a moment of intimacy and affection as they hug one another.

A table covered with offerings of meat and vegetables separates the family from a female figure identified by the hieroglyphic inscription as Ipy, the daughter-in-law of the deceased….

The horizontal hieroglyphic inscription forms an invocation to Osiris to provide supplies of food to the ‘venerable’ couple, Amenemhat and his wife, Iy.”

― The Illustrated Guide to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, by Alessandro Bongioanni, and Maria Sole Croce (#aff)

From El-Assasif. Middle Kingdom, 11th Dynasty, ca. 2130-1991 BC. Now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. JE 45626