Limestone

Pyramidion of Iufaa

Pyramidion of Iufaa

This steep-sided pyramidion is inscribed for Iufaa, a priest of Osiris, ruler of the Netherworld, at his sacred site of Abydos, and originally would have surmounted a memorial chapel at this site. It is decorated on all four faces, with almost identical images on each pair of opposing sides. An inscription at the top of...

Stele of the Vizier Ptahmose

Stele of the Vizier Ptahmose

This stele comes from the tomb (most probably in Thebes; its current location is unknown) of this well-known Vizier Ptahmose from the reign of Amenhotep III. The quality of the carving shows the level of perfection achieved by certain specialist workshops in Upper Egypt during this period. In the middle section is Ptahmose, sitting next...

Relief of a Woman in Blue Dress

Relief of a Woman in Blue Dress

A painted limestone relief depicting a standing woman in a pleated sheer linen blue dress. The woman wears a luxurious wig which is held in place by a diadem of blossoms. A band ties the wig about mid-way through its length with a knot in the back. This slightly pulls the wig back, exposing the...

Colossus of Ramesses II at Memphis, 1897

Colossus of Ramesses II at Memphis, 1897

The Colossus of Ramesses II is an enormous statue carved in limestone. It is about 10m (33.8 ft) long, even though it has no feet, and is located near the village of Mit Rahina (Memphis). The statue was found in 1820 by an Italian traveler Giovanni Battista Caviglia. The colossus is an incredible piece of...

Relief of Nubian Prisoners

Nubian Prisoners tomb relief

This tomb relief shows several Nubian prisoners with negroid features, tightly curled hair and earrings who are seated on the ground submissively as three Egyptian soldiers with batons watch over them. Depicted in sunk relief is also a scribe who is writing a report.  A scribe is writing a report about the occurrence and is...

Tomb Relief with a Messenger on Horseback

Tomb Relief with a Messenger on Horseback

This relief illustrates Horemheb’s military encampment: above, two soldiers watch horses teamed to war chariots as an officer hurries off; below, another officer escorts two water bearers, a messenger on horseback is arriving or departing, and a group of soldiers is carrying a heavy load on their shoulders, a beam or perhaps Horemheb’s rolled-up tent....

Akhenaten Sacrificing Duck to Aten

Relief of Akhenaten Sacrificing Duck to Aten

On this block from a temple relief, Akhenaten, recognizable by his elongated features, holds a duck toward the Aten. With one hand he wrings the bird’s neck before offering it to the god. In this relief, the artist has cut the outlines of the figures into the surface in a technique called sunk relief. Sunk...

Ostracon showing Amun-Re as a ram

Ostracon of Amun-Re as a ram

This is a pottery ostracon, measuring 14.4×10.3 cm with an ink sketch showing the prow of the sacred boat of the god Amun-Re. It is decorated with a ram’s head and a royal cobra (uraeus). The line of hieroglyphs over the head of the ram reads, “Amun-Re, the Light of Day.” And the column of...

Relief of Trading Scenes of Punt

Relief of Trading Scenes of Punt

This sunken relief of trading scenes of Punt is one of many decorated blocks that record the trading expedition sent to the land of Punt by Queen Hatshepsut. Punt was a locality near the Red Sea and the south of Egypt, now southern Sudan or Eritrea or Ethiopia. The block shows Parehu, the Ruler of...

Statue of Pendua and his wife Nefertari

Statue of Pendua and Nefertari

This statuary group is representing the scribe Pendua and his wife Nefertari. The couple embrace in an unusual depiction, seated on a wide high-backed seat with their arms passing behind the other so that their hands rest on each other’s shoulder. Both Pendua and Nefertari (whose name was the same as the reigning queen) wear...