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The Ashmolean Museum, 2003 Texts by Tom Hardwick, Judith McKenzie, Andres Reyes, Christina Riggs, Andrew Shortland,

and Helen Whitehouse

SACKLER GALLERY OF EGYPTIAN ANTIQUITIES


Egypt from the 1st Dynasty to the Byzantine Period, 2950 BC to AD 641

A Virtual Visitors Guide

Note to Readers
This is a copy of the information panels and labels written for the Ashmolean Museums Sackler Gallery of Egyptian Antiquities. It is a searchable PDF file which can be used with the appropriate software. Readers can search any terms of interest to them such as object types, materials, names, and historical periods. The display cases are numbered in order according to their position in the current arrangement of the Sackler Gallery. Cases 34 to 66 are arranged chronologically, beginning with the Early Dynastic Period; cases 67 to 74 house thematic displays on writing, drawing, and daily life in the New Kingdom and the Roman Period. The following abbreviations are used in the provenance information: BSAE the British School of Archaeology in Egypt; EEF the Egypt Exploration Fund (later, Society); ERA the Egyptian Research Account. Museum numbers for the objects are prefixed with AN. Department of Antiquities March 2009

Egyptian Galleries Floor Plan

Gallery 4 Petrie Room Gallery 5 Chester Room Gallery 6 Sackler Gallery of Egyptian Antiquities Gallery 7 Griffith Gallery

Case 34 Pottery in Transition


Early DynasticOld Kingdom 1st8th Dynasties, about 29502125 BC The technical skill and creativity shown in the hand-made vessels and modelled figures of prehistory began to disappear in the Early Dynastic Period. Craftsmanship in stone, metal, and faience now became more important; pottery became more mundane, sometimes imitating forms such as cylinder jars which would ideally be made in stone. The late prehistoric ware with pictorial designs applied in red-brown paint was now reduced to a repertoire of abstract repeat patterns. Similarly, the wavyhandled jars which had first appeared in prehistory as imports from Palestine now finished their evolution in domestic production as cylindrical vessels with a band of wavy decoration faintly modelled in the clay. Together with these survivors of earlier styles, Early Dynastic grave goods sometimes included more elaborate versions of the carved bone or ivory spoons found in prehistoric graves; they were probably used with cosmetics. Distinctive new forms include large and elaborate pot-stands. The appearance of spouted vessels suggests the introduction of a new social norm handwashing before eating. A stand on which to rotate pots while shaping them was already in use before the end of the Predynastic Period; its technical advantages can be seen in the better finish given to rims. In the Old Kingdom, use of a pivoted wheel on which to turn pots became common.

Black-topped jar, hand-made


From grave T55, Naqada; Naqada IIIa-b
AN1895.337: Flinders Petrie excavations

Jar decorated with grouped commas, and small jar with wavy lines
From grave 1710, Naqada; Naqada IIIa-b
AN1895.615, 621: Flinders Petrie excavations

Spouted pot, burnished


From grave R 131E, Hu: Naqada IIIa-b
AN1896-1908 E.2897: EEF excavations, 1899

Burnished bowl; cylinder jar decorated with a scalloped relief band and painted lattice resembling a carrying net; and a spoon of elephant ivory, the handle carved with marching elephants
From grave 460, Naqada; Naqada IIIb-c
AN1895.460, 548, 903: Flinders Petrie excavations

Multiple pot-stand, hand-made, with a rams head, and legs modelled in relief


From grave 115, Naqada; Protodynastic
AN1895.776: Flinders Petrie excavations

Cylinder jar with a scalloped band in relief, and a bone spoon


From grave 17, Naqada; Naqada IIIa-c
AN1895.546,906: Flinders Petrie excavations

Spoon of hippopotamus ivory, the handle carved with a dog and a lion
From Ballas, found by a woman digging for salt; Protodynastic
AN1895.902: gift of Flinders Petrie and the ERA Figure1AN1895.902

Storage jar with an incised V potmark; potstand; and small travertine bowl
From grave 112, Naqada; Naqada IIIa-b
AN1895.667,665,201: Flinders Petrie excavations

Siltstone dish with a handle carved in the shape of a gazelle-leg


From Saqqara; 1st2nd Dynasty
AN1887.2428; gift of Thomas Shaw, 1751

Figure2AN1887.2428

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Seated lion on a plinth, polished red ware This guardian lion, modelled with a mixture of realism and stylization, is a striking example of ceramic sculpture. It was found in a deposit which included a siltstone statue of King Khasekhem of the 2nd Dynasty (the pair to the limestone statue in this Museum), and the copper statues of King Pepi I of the 6th Dynasty (all now in the Cairo Museum)
From the temple enclosure, Hierakonpolis; Old Kingdom (6th Dynasty?)
AN1896-1908 E.189; ERA excavations, 1897-8

Figure3AN18961908E.189

Case 35 Providing for the Next Life


Early Dynastic Old Kingdom 1st8th Dynasties, about 29502125 BC The need to supply the dead with food and drink for eternity was one of the most important Egyptian beliefs about the next life. Real food was provided to stock the tomb at the time of the funeral, and thereafter as offerings. Ideally these would be continued forever, by endowing a priestly cult service for the dead persons funerary chapel. Tomb goods included storage containers, and tableware for eating and drinking; the pottery included in burials reflects contemporary household stock. Ewer and basin sets for hand-washing were essential items, made of metal or stone, or more cheaply of pottery. Fine tableware of the Old Kingdom was usually red, with a handsome surface created by applying a slip containing iron oxide and polishing it before firing. Storage vessels and breadmoulds were made of coarser ware. A distinctive new form is shown by sharply-curved vessels with a maximum diameter just below their wide rims (Maidum bowls). They were used for both liquids and solid food, and together with new shapes of storage jars, they may indicate a shift in diet towards more consumption of dairy produce.

Figure4AN1949.89GiftofNinaDavies

Funerary priest and offerings: tempera copy by Nina Davies of a painting in the mastaba-tomb of the 6th Dynasty official Kaemankh at Giza. Kaemankhs name is written in the top register, below which are offering tables bearing vessels and food including bread, cakes, meat, a goose, and figs. Carved or painted offerings would have been thought to remain perpetually fresh and available, to sustain the dead Take your bread which does not grow mouldy, and your beer which does not go sour (Pyramid Texts).

Small ewer of polished red ware, with an incised square potmark


From grave A.13, Abadiya; Old Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.2898: BSAE excavations, 1899

Miniature vessels of glazed faience with black decoration


From mastaba C, el-Kab; 4th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.381-2: ERA excavations, 1897

Pot stand of polished red ware


From grave 5328, Badari; 5th Dynasty
AN1925.454: BSAE and ERA excavations

Bowls of stone (anorthosite gneiss, Chephren diorite) and pottery


From mastaba A, tomb of Kamenu, el-Kab (stone); and grave M 432, Mahasna (pottery); 4th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.401, E.574: ERA excavations, 1897 and 1901

Shouldered jar of polished red ware


From Reqaqna; 4th5th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.497: Garstang excavations, 19012

Ewer of polished red ware; although made to hold water, it was found full of grain
From grave 1085, Qau; 4th Dynasty
AN1923.528: BSAE excavations

Jar of fine cream marl clay, for holding beer or water


From grave 127, Dishasha; 5th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.1938: EEF excavations, 1897

Ewer and basin of travertine


From the stairway to tomb 2, el-Kab; ProtodynasticOld Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.403, 468: ERA excavations, 1897

Model food: dates of painted wood, and a stone fig


Not dated
AN1888.378 (date, from Thebes): G.J. Chester Collection; AN1962.803A,B (fig and date, provenance unknown)

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Ewer and basin of polished red ware


From grave 1310N, Armant; 4th Dynasty
AN1935.167-8; Mond excavations

Figure5Cases34to38

Case 36 Beyond the Pyramids


Early Dynastic Old Kingdom 1st8th Dynasties, about 29502125 BC

Provincial Burials of the Old Kingdom


The royal pyramid fields near Memphis such as Giza, Saqqara, and Abusir were the final resting place for the kings of the Old Kingdom and their court officials. The 3rd Dynasty king Djoser built the Step Pyramid at Saqqara for himself, rather than being buried at Abydos like most of his predecessors. After Djoser, almost every king was buried in a pyramid, the largest and most famous of which is the Great Pyramid of Khufu at Giza. In the 5th and 6th Dynasties, pyramids decreased in size, but the pyramid was just one part of a whole complex serving the soul of the dead king. Near the pyramid complexes, the nobility and high-ranking officials were buried in flat-roofed, rectangular tombs called mastabas, from the Arabic word meaning bench. Elsewhere in Egypt, provincial towns and villages were home to lesserranking officials drawn from local families. Each town had its own cemetery, where burials ranged from simple pit graves to more elaborate mastaba tombs made of sun-dried mud bricks. The dead needed bread, beer, and meat to sustain them and scented oils and fine linen to adorn their bodies. Pots of foodstuffs could be left in the tomb, along with stone vessels, jewellery, copper implements, and other precious objects. Headrests, which were used like a pillow for sleeping, were also placed in graves. A basin or stela set up in front of the tomb enabled visitors to make an offering to the dead, or recite the prayer inscribed on the stela.

Diorite bowl
AN1896-1908 E.510

Crescent-shaped flint drill bit, and a string of faience beads


AN1896-1908 E.690, 4080 (EE 482)

Two copper axeheads and an assortment of chisels and knife-blades


AN1896-1908 E.680, 672, 676, 681-5, 687, 689

From tomb K 1, Bet Khallaf; 3rd Dynasty


ERA excavations, 1901

Faience tiles from chambers beneath the Step Pyramid of King Djoser. A tenon with holes in the back of the tiles was used to fix them to the chamber walls in multiple rows, creating a shimmering blue frame around reliefs of the king
From the Step Pyramid complex, Saqqara; 3rd


Dynasty
AN1933.1031: A. H. Sayce Bequest; AN1954.670.a, b: Gift of A. H. Gardiner; AN1937.115: MacGregor Bequest; AN1942.480: Gift of Mrs. Woolner

Travertine bowl with carved rim, and copper bowl


AN1896-1908 E.4084, 885

Copper dagger blade and wooden handle


AN1932.926, AN1896-1908 E.890

Flint blades and copper tools: an axehead, chisels, engravers, and needles; and a band with holes for attachment
AN1896-1908 E.886-7, 891, 893-5, 897-8, 904, 902

All from tomb K3, for a man named Sa-nakht, Bet Khallaf; 3rd Dynasty. Dagger blade from grave 586, Matmar; 6th Dynasty
ERA excavations, 1901; dagger: Gift of Guy Brunton

Wooden headrest inscribed in black ink with the name and titles of a man named Shepses
From tomb 226, Tarkhan; Old Kingdom
AN1912.601: BSAE and ERA excavations

At el-Kab in southern Egypt, the British archaeologist James Quibell found an intact burial in a pit covered by a large pottery bowl known as a majur in Arabic. Next to the deceased was a decorated, lidded pot containing many small objects 6 Decorated clay pot with lid, two travertine bowls, two shells from the Red Sea, and two ivory bracelets, an ivory disk, a polished pebble, a necklace with carnelian, green steatite, and faience beads, a flint blade, and a green steatite cylinder seal incised with hieroglyphs
From grave 166 at el-Kab; Old Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.1836-9, 1804-6, 1042, 1044, 1046, 3763, EE 89: ERA excavations, 1897

Polished red pot, travertine cylinder vase, diorite bowl, and a polished pebble, steatite cylinder seal, two blue glaze and carnelian necklaces, and a mirror of arsenic-plated copper
From the burial of a woman, grave 3540, Mustagidda; 5th Dynasty
AN1930.514-21: Guy Brunton excavations

Travertine vases, an ivory spatula, and restrung blue glaze and carnelian beads, all found with a female burial in a reed coffin
From grave 5535, Badari; 6th Dynasty
AN1925.440-4, 446-50: BSAE and ERA excavations

Four necklaces with carnelian, gold and blue glaze beads and pendants; a carnelian hand-shaped amulet; an ivory button seal, and gold pendants
From grave 183, Haragah; 6th Dynasty
AN1914.657-9, 661-2, 664-7, AN1957.15: BSAE and ERA excavations Figure6AN1914.662

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Bone spoon, gold pendant, baked clay bowl, and granite lamp containing the remains of a charred wick
From grave Q 172, Ballas; Old Kingdom
AN1895.895, 994, 996, and 995: Flinders Petrie and ERA excavations

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Painted limestone relief with the head of a man


Probably from the mortuary temple area serving the pyramids of kings Sahure, Neferirkare, and Niuserre at Abusir; 5th Dynasty
Queens College Loan.1

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Pottery model of a granary with twelve dome-shaped silos


From mastaba A, for a man named Kamenu, el-Kab; 4th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.408: ERA excavations, 1897

Figure7AN18961908E.408

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Pottery mould for baking bread


From el-Kab; Old Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.550: ERA excavations, 1897

Tall pottery vase for storing beer


From tomb K 1, Bet Khallaf; 3rd Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.572: ERA excavations, 1901

Pot and handle, for cooking or serving food


From tomb K 2, for a man named Sa-nakht, Bet Khallaf; 3rd Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.513-4; ERA excavations, 1901

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Limestone offering basin. The hieroglyphic inscription is a prayer for offerings for a man named Nebishet, whose title was overseer of the storehouse of the kings meals
From Saqqara; Old Kingdom
AN1969.477: EEF excavations

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Belt or necklace of faience beads


AN1896-1908 E.E. 459: EEF excavations, 1898

Copper model of an altar, with bowls and tools, including a knife, adze, and axe
AN1896-1908 E.1735-42: EEF excavations, 1898

From the tomb of a man named Mereru, Dendera; 6th Dynasty

Case 37 Vessels for Eternity


Early Dynastic Old Kingdom 1st8th Dynasties, about 29502125 BC

Carving Luxury Goods from Stone


Egyptian craftspeople were skilled at working with all the varieties of stone that were quarried throughout the country. Stones like pink breccia or creamy travertine were valued for their rich colours, and black diorite, hard white limestone, and black-and-white rippled gneiss for their polished shine or for the way their crystals glittered in the sun. Vases, bowls, spouted ewers, and tables carved out of these stones were prized luxury items and were included in wealthy burials. In the Early Dynastic Period and the Old Kingdom, kings could be buried with thousands of stone vessels, while local elites in the provinces might take just a few of these opulent items to the grave. The vessels displayed here are from pit burials or mudbrick mastaba tombs in provincial cemeteries in Middle and Upper Egypt. Stone vessels imitated objects that were commonly made as inexpensive pottery, or more rarely from copper. Both clay and metal were pliable, allowing vessels to take many forms and have thin walls, curved handles, and spouts. To achieve the same effect in stone required considerable skill, and stoneworking became a hallmark of Egyptian craftsmanship. A stoneworker first hollowed out the inside of a vase or bowl using a wooden drill with a forked end holding a flint drill-bit . The top of the drill was weighted with rocks. Rotating the flint, together with abrasive sand or powder, cleared the inside of the vessel, after which the surfaces were smoothed with hard stone pounders, grinders, and more powder. Vessels given as gifts from the royal workshops could be inscribed with the name of the reigning king. In the Egyptian language, the hieroglyphic sign for a stoneworkers drill was used to write words meaning craft or art.

Travertine cylinder vase with rope pattern carved beneath rim


From cemetery Q, burial 100, Ballas; Early Dynastic Period
An1895.189: ERA excavations, 1895

Copper ewer and bowl, two shapes often copied in stone


Ewer: From mastaba A, for a man named Kamenu, El Kab; 4th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.407: ERA excavations, 1897

Bowl: Provenance unknown; Old Kingdom


AN1932.510: ex Sambon Collection

Figure8AN18961908E.407

Travertine cylinder vase


From burial 418, El Mahasna; Old Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.1868: ERA excavations, 1900-1

Travertine vase
From burial 420, El Mahasna; Old Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.1867: ERA excavations, 1900-1

Diorite vase with a removable rim


From tomb 40, one of the largest Old Kingdom tombs at El Reqaqna; 3rd Dynasty
AN1896-190 E.481: Garstang excavations, 1901-2

Travertine vase
From burial 613, for a woman, Qaw; 6th Dynasty
AN1923.642: BSAE excavations

A travertine table, two bowls of diorite and travertine, a travertine cylinder vase sealed with mud, a travertine pot stand, and a travertine vase with handles. Broken before they were placed in the burial, these stone objects were found in fragments between the coffin and the wall of the grave. The finely polished pot stand, which has a raised ring around its middle, may be the only one of its kind
From burial 102, Matmar; 2nd or 3rd Dynasty
AN1931.398-405: Brunton excavations

Diorite bowl
From mastaba A, for a man named Kamenu, El Kab; 4th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.406: ERA excavations, 1897

Travertine lid inscribed for king Pepi I


Provenance unknown; 6th Dynasty
AN1933.340: Sayce Bequest

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Travertine vase with pink bands of colour in the stone


From burial 114, El Mahasna; Old Kingdom.
AN1896-1908 E.1869: ERA excavations, 1901

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Fluted limestone pedestal, perhaps from a headrest


Provenance unknown; Old Kingdom
AN1878.193.a: G.J. Chester Collection

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A diorite-gneiss bowl, a travertine bowl with an interior ridge, and a shallow breccia bowl. All three were found in a burial shaft, along with a stone table and two shells from the Red Sea
From burial 63, El Reqaqna; 3rd Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.487; E.485; E.486: Garstang excavations, 1901-2

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A breccia vase with tubular handles, a travertine bowl, and three travertine cylinder vessels, which have not been completely drilled inside
From tomb K2, for a man named Sa-nakht, Bet Khallaf; 3rd Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.502-4, E.4087, E.4104: ERA excavations, 1901

Cases 38/39

Sculpture for Survival

Old Kingdom 4th8th Dynasties about 25752125 BC Preservation of a dead persons physical image was fundamental to their continuing existence in the afterlife. The mummification and decorated covering of the body was one element in the strategy for bodily survival. Another was the provision of sculpted images which a dead persons spirit or ka could inhabit, and through which the dead could receive food offerings. According to this ideology, presenting incense or food and drink to a statue was futile, unless the image had been through a kind of birth process which enabled it to breathe and feed. The ritual of Opening the Mouth, attested from the Old Kingdom onwards, was the means by which this was accomplished. It included a symbolic parting of the lips which, in later representations, is shown being performed on the dead persons mummy by a funerary priest with a carpenters adze. Both cult statues and images of the dead were subject to this ritual, which seems to have been repeatedly performed, so that they could continue to receive sustenance. Model sets of the vessels and implements needed for the ritual were included in Old Kingdom tombs, perhaps with the same idea of perpetuation. Provision of the food which the dead needed was likewise ensured by means of sculpture. Models of servants who worked on for eternity, grinding corn and mixing dough, would magically ensure that sustenance was available, even if the supply of real offerings should fail.

Head of a life-size statue. The head, badly weathered but retaining traces of red paint, has been roughly cut from the body. The cemetery in which this head and the foot (no. 2) were found had been plundered for reusable wood and linen
From the cemetery at Dishasha; 5th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.1950: EEF excavations, 1897

Foot of a statue, plastered and painted wood; made as a separate piece for attachment by means of a peg to the leg of a statue of a man
From Dishasha; 5th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.1970: EEF excavations, 1897

Statue of a man wearing a kilt; the weathered wood retains traces of plaster and paint
From Dishasha; late 6th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.1881: EEF excavations, 1897

Wooden statues from the grave of Nebemhenennesu Two plastered and painted statues of Nebemhenennesu, whose name and titles royal noble, overseer of craftsmen are painted on the base
AN1921.1418-19

Models of food preparation: a woman grinding corn on a saddle-quern; a man kneading dough on a board (the tool in his hand is lost); a woman preparing dough for beer-making in a bowl; and a man preparing a cake of dough
AN1921.1420-23

Figure9AN1921.141819

All from shaft-grave 604, Maiyana cemetery, Sidmant; 6th Dynasty


BSAE and ERA excavations Figure10AN1921.1423

Head of painted wood from a statuette of a man


From the tomb of Pepi-ankh, Meir; 6th Dynasty
AN1914.39: gift of Aylward M. Blackman, from his excavations

Statuettes and model funerary equipment Travertine statue of a seated woman; painted ivory statuette of a man; and a limestone tray holding models of the vessels and implements required for the Opening of the Mouth ritual vases and cups for oil and incense, a forked flint knife (missing), and a pair of flint blades
From grave E 21, Abydos; 6th Dynasty
AN1910.486-8: EEF excavations

Case 40 From Table to Tomb


1st Intermediate Period to Middle Kingdom 9th13th Dynasties, about 21251640 BC The political division of Egypt in the 1st Intermediate Period is reflected in diverse regional pottery styles, which gradually disappeared with the centralisation of power in the 12th Dynasty. Much of the surviving pottery comes from tombs and seems to have been made specifically for funerary use. Although it broadly reflects the types of vessels and tableware in domestic use, it was often made of coarser ware and forms did not change as rapidly as the styles of everyday pottery. Because tables were not a common household item, except in elite homes, it was not necessary for pottery to have flat bases. Net bags were used for carrying pots and for hanging them on pegs or poles. Sometimes the pots themselves were pierced with holes below the rim so that they could be hung on cords. Storage jars were generally made with somewhat pointed bases; they were placed in racks, or holes in the hardened mud floor. Serving dishes for food and jars for beer, milk, or water were placed on pot stands made in a variety of materials. The regular parallel lines produced by wheel-turning are often visible on the upper part of pots, but the roughly cut surface of the lower part shows that excess clay was trimmed away after the pot had been removed from the wheel and dried. The most common forms of surface decoration were incised lines and coloured washes; painting was rarer, and simple linear designs were the norm. Occasionally vessel shapes echo plant forms, such as flowers, seed capsules, or the undulating profiles of bean pods. More care was lavished on the production of small faience vessels, which were glazed a rich blue and often decorated with plant motifs in black. Small cosmetic jars were produced in faience, wood, and especially stone: the distinctive, hard stone known as blue anhydrite, from a quarry not yet identified, was first used as a luxury material for kohl-pots in the Middle Kingdom.

Large storage jar, the mouth covered with cloth, tied with string, and sealed with a lump of clay bearing a seal impression. On the outside, the remains of a rope carrying-net; inside, the residue of a small amount of liquid
From tomb 67, Beni Hasan; 9th10th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2525: John Garstang excavations, 1902-4 Figure11AN18961908 E.2525,detail

Jar of cream marl clay with quatrefoil mouth


From Ballas, North Town; 1st Intermediate Period
AN1895.661: ERA excavations

Spouted jar, red slipped ware, with applied knobs


From grave 1637, Qau; 9th Dynasty
AN1923.477: BSAE and ERA excavations

Jar of white marl clay


From Ballas, North Town: 1st Intermediate Period
AN1895.780: ERA excavations

Jar with quatrefoil rim, decorated with painted dots and zigzags
From grave 528, Qau; 9th Dynasty
AN1923.585: BSAE and ERA excavations

Bowl of white marl clay, and a small jar with the clay crudely cut around the lower half, pierced with two holes below the rim
From Ballas, North Town; 1st Intermediate Period
AN1895.674, 788A: ERA excavations

Bowl with five lips


From Sidmant; 1st Intermediate Period
AN1921.1256: BSAE and ERA excavations

Miniature stela of painted limestone, showing the deceased man, Sisebek, seated before a table laden with food offerings. Under the table are sealed wine-jars in wooden stands
From el-Lahun, town site; 12th Dynasty
AN1889.1550: Flinders Petrie excavations, gift of H.M.Kennard

Drinking cup, with a red wash


From grave 491, Matmar; Middle Kingdom
AN1932.913: Guy Brunton excavations

Bowl of red slipped ware with random splashes of white paint


From grave 106, el-Kab; Middle Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.2078: ERA excavations, 1897

Bowl with a crinkled rim decorated with red slip and black paint, probably derived from a Minoan prototype
From grave 326, Haraga; Middle Kingdom
AN1914.684: BSAE and ERA excavations

Jars of marl clay, one with a broken rim, the other with incised potmarks
From graves 108 and 44, el-Kab; 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2082, 2088: ERA excavations, 1897

Spouted jar, red slipped ware


From Riqqeh; 12th Dynasty


AN1913.502: BSAE and ERA excavatons

Jar with incised lines, coloured red over rim and neck; tall jar with a flat ring base and red and black decoration around the neck
From graves 326 and 327, Haraga; 12th Dynasty
AN1914.689-90: BSAE and ERA excavations

Small shouldered jar, red slipped


From grave 13, el-Kab; 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2102: ERA excavations, 1897

Small jar decorated with incised lines


From grave 10, el-Kab; 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2105: ERA excavations

Small jar of marl clay with incised decoration and four holes pierced below the rim, and a jar with incised wavy lines and two holes
From graves 26 and 76, el-Kab; 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2025, E.2114: ERA excavations, 1897

Tall pottery stand (rim missing) to hold a dish, decorated with an applied figure of a man
From Beni Hasan; 9th11th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2527: Garstang excavations, 1902-4

Tall pottery stand


From el-Kab; 6th11th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2091: ERA excavations, 1897

Basketwork ring, possibly for carrying a pot on the head


From el-Lahun, town site (?); 12th Dynasty
AN1889.1189: Flinders Petrie excavations, gift of H.M.Kennard

Faience pot stand, inscribed for a man named Hekeku


Provenance unknown; 12th Dynasty
AN1971.950: ex Bomford Collection

Figure12AN1971.950

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Pottery flasks with undulating necks, with red wash and red slip, and a flask decorated with incised lines
From grave 10, el-Kab; 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2096-7, 2019: ERA excavations, 1897

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Juglet of Tell el-Yahudiyeh ware (restored) with white-filled impressed and incised decoration
From grave 354, Haraga; Middle Kingdom
AN1914.644: BSAE and ERA excavations

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Two faience vases, kohl-pots of blue

anhydrite, and a fragment of Tell el-Yahudiyeh ware


From grave 644, Haraga; Middle Kingdom
AN1914.651-4, 655.a: BSAE and ERA excavations

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Faience vases with petal decoration in black


From Qena, and grave 7, Haraga; 12th Dynasty
AN1922.80: gift of Sir Arthur Evans, ex MacGregor Collection L.94: on loan from Newbury Museum

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Faience kohl-pot
From grave 1648, Hammamiya; 9th10th Dynasty
AN1923.489: BSAE and ERA excavations

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Jar of blue anhydrite


From grave E 244, Abydos; Middle Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.2222: ERA excavations, 1900

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Limestone vase with a flower-shaped neck, and kohl-pot of green limestone


From grave 361, el-Kab; 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2132, 2149: ERA excavations, 1897

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Kohl-pot with an integral stand, serpentine, and obsidian kohl-pot with a haematite stick, capped with gold
From graves E 231 and E 234, Abydos; 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2200-02: ERA excavations, 1900

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Circular loaf of bread


From cemetery 2100, Sidmant; 9th Dynasty
AN1921.1395: BSAE and ERA excavations

Conical vase of coarse ware, probably a bread mould


From el-Kab; 9th11th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2080: ERA excavations, 1897

Oval bread mould with incised decoration, red-coated ware with some white decoration
From grave E 325, Abydos; Middle Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.2279: ERA excavations, 1900

Case 41 Central Weakness, Local Strength


1st Intermediate Period 9th11th Dynasties about 21251975 BC Towards the end of the Old Kingdom, the centralized economy controlled from Memphis began to change its character. The 90-year reign of Pepi II near the end of the 6th Dynasty may have led to political stagnation in the capital. Regional governors (nomarchs), who had previously regarded themselves as members of the Memphite elite, now began to be buried in the provinces, and to pass their offices to their children. This created powerful families with a strong sense of local identity. As the nomarchs became more powerful, their subjects also enjoyed an increase in prosperity. Regional cemeteries contained rich grave goods, and there is a marked increase in the distribution of precious gold objects. At the same time, changes in religious practice and belief gave ordinary people a chance for an afterlife. One result of this was that protective amulets became more widely worn. One form of amulet introduced in this period is the scarabseal. Later Egyptian literature characterized the 1st Intermediate Period as an era of anarchy. While the nomarchs did fight for power amongst themselves, it was also a time when people from more lowly backgrounds had increased access to goods that had been beyond the reach of their ancestors.

Wooden headrest, the headpiece carved in the shape of a pair of cupped hands
From grave 86, Haraga; 1st Intermediate Period
AN1914.673: ERA and BSAE excavations

Figure13AN1914.673

Necklace of black faience and shell beads, with carnelian and gold amulets
From grave 87, Mahasna; 7th9th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.E.458: Garstang excavations, 1901

Five gold amulets in the shape of the god Heh; two carnelian leg amulets, placed at the ankles; gold beads with amulets; glazed steatite stamp-seal in the form of a frog
From grave 1981, Hammamiya; 7th8th Dynasty
AN1924.381, 378, 382.a: BSAE and ERA excavations

Figure14AN1924.381

Figure15AN1924.378

Travertine vase; two gold bracelets; gold beads and Heh amulet; carnelian necklace
From grave 7762 (burial of a child), Qau; 7th8th Dynasty
AN1924.369-373: BASE and ERA excavations

Figure16AN1924.3701

Travertine vases; fragmentary flint blade; travertine kohl-pot; bronze blade; flint knife; carnelian and faience beads
From the tomb of Intefiker, Dendera; 11th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.1955-6, 1959-60; 1964, 1957, AN1896-1908 E.E.15960, 199: EEF excavations, 1898

Travertine miniature vases; travertine kohlpot with contents; gold, carnelian and green faience beads; carnelian and black faience beads; copper model adze blade
From grave Y250, Hu; 10th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.1773-5, 1777, AN1896-1908 E.E.462-3: EEF excavations, 1898-9

Faience beads in the form of fists, hippopotamus heads, tjet-knots, and flies. These formed part of two strings of amulets found around the head of a child. Blue and black faience beads; blue and black faience beads decorated with crumbs of blue faience
From graves 306 and 401, Matmar; from grave 2080, Qau; 7th8th Dynasty
AN1931.256-9, 261: Brunton excavations; 1924.385: BSAE and ERA Excavations

Travertine miniature vases; pink limestone vase; two scarab-seals; gold bracelet; strings of faience, carnelian and shell beads and amulets
From grave 5207, Badari; 9th10th Dynasty
AN1924.341-3, 344.a-b, 353, 355-7: BSAE and ERA excavations

Five necklaces; two bead bracelets or anklets, and an anklet with a carnelian leg pendant; two copper catches and faience inlays from a decayed wooden box; copper

mirror disc, found in the box; limestone headrest, repaired in antiquity; two travertine vases; gold beads and amulets; a quartzite grinder
From grave 1316 (burial of an old woman), Matmar; 7th 8th Dynasty
AN1932.935-6, 938-9, 937, 940-2, 934, 933, 932, 931, 928-9, 943, 930: Brunton excavations

10

Pink limestone vase


From grave 3114, Badari; 7th8th Dynasty
AN1924.352: BSAE and ERA excavations

11

Necklace of shell, glazed steatite and carnelian beads


From grave 87, Mahasna; 7th9th Dynasty
An1896-1908 E.E.457: Garstang excavations, 1901

12

Copper model hoe


From grave Y14, Hu; 1st Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.1909 EEF excavations, 1898-9

13

Copper dagger, with remains of a wooden handle


From grave 308, Qau; 9th10th Dynasty
AN1923.534: BSAE and ERA excavations

Figure17Cases4146

Case 42 Sculpture in the Middle Kingdom


Middle Kingdom to 2nd Intermediate Period 11th17th Dynasties about 19751540 BC King Nebhepetre Mentuhotep, who reunited Egypt in the 11th Dynasty, came from Thebes (modern Luxor), and the sculpture produced during his reign had a distinctive, local style. The kings of the 12th Dynasty were also from a Theban family, but they ruled the country from a new capital in the Faiyum, where they were inspired by the art of the nearby pyramid complexes of the Old Kingdom. The power and wealth of the Middle Kingdom allowed kings to sponsor large building projects and royal workshops for artists. When sculptors trained in these studios travelled to work for the king, they influenced styles throughout the country. As a result, statuary made for non-royal people closely imitated royal sculpture. For instance, the high cheekbones, deep-set eyes, and large ears used for images of Kings Senwosret III and Amenemhat III in the 12th Dynasty were copied in sculpture for private men and women, giving many statues the appearance of realistic portraits. During the Middle Kingdom, sculptors became adept at carving the hard, dark stones that were quarried in the Eastern Desert, in addition to working with limestone and wood. Although some high-ranking individuals could dedicate statues of themselves in temples, most statues were made for individual and family tombs. Tomb statues were inscribed with a prayer asking the king and the gods to give food and drink to the deceased.

Head from a limestone canopic jar


From tomb D 110, Abydos; 13th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2377: EEF excavations, 1900

Head of a man, from a black granite statue


Provenance unknown; 13th Dynasty
AN1965.879

Head of a king, from a limestone statuette


From Deir el-Bahri, Thebes; late 12th or 13th Dynasty
AN1933.1456: Mrs. G.H. Pope Bequest

Statuette of the steward SenwosretSenbebu, son of Ankhti-en-Mentu. On the back of this statuette, which is made of igneous rock, a hieroglyphic inscription identifies SenwosretSenbebu and his mother.
Probably from Thebes; early 13th Dynasty
AN1888.1457: Chambers Hall gift, 1855


Figure18AN1888.1457

Yellow sandstone statuette of three people. On the left is the attendant Neferpesed, son of Sit-Hathor, in the middle is a woman named Dedetnub, and on the right is her son, the attendant Kemau
From mastaba D 109-11, Abydos; late 12th or 13th Dynasty
AN1913.411: EEF excavations, 1913

Figure19AN1913.411

Head of a man with a clean-shaven head, from a serpentine statuette


From the ruins of House 530, Haragah, near the Fayum; 13th Dynasty
AN1914.748: BSAE and ERA excavations, 1914

Two wooden statuettes, representing men with clean-shaven heads. One had moveable arms that were made separately and attached at the shoulder with a thin dowel
From a tomb at Deir el-Bahri, Thebes; early 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.4163-4: EEF excavations, 1907

Female figurines were placed in both male and female tombs. In contrast to representations of elite women, these figurines have loose or plaited hair instead of elaborate wigs, and their breasts and genitals are revealed. They symbolized fertility and rebirth 8 Statuettes of women, steatite and painted limestone
Naked women: possibly from Asyut (limestone), and provenance unknown (steatite); Middle Kingdom
AN1892.1013: G.J. Chester Collection; AN1891.91: G.J. Chester Collection

Harp player: from Thebes; Middle Kingdom


AN1922.212: MacGregor Collection

Two clay figurines, with holes for insertion of hair and jewellery
From Gebelein (left) and the tomb of Idu II, Dendera; Middle Kingdom
AN1890.330: G.J. Chester Collection; AN1896-1908 E.1920: EEF excavations, 1898

10

Two wooden statuettes of women, one with a peg for attaching hair separately
From Thebes (left) and Akhmim; Middle Kingdom
AN1892.850 and AN1888.533: G.J. Chester Collection

Women from the upper classes wore long, tight dresses and heavy wigs. Some were honoured with their own statues, but more often they appeared

with a male relative. 11 Serpentine statuette of Hety, daughter of Neferu, dedicated by her son Renefseneb
Provenance unknown; late 12th or 13th Dynasty
AN1985.152

Figure20AN1985.152

12

Copper statuette of a woman


From tomb E 107, Abydos; late 13th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2208: ERA excavations, 1900

13

Head of a woman from a granite pair statuette


Possibly from Giza; late 12th Dynasty
AN1872.86: G.J. Chester Collection

14

Images of non-Egyptians gave an exotic appearance to objects like this faience seal and an ivory spoon handle depicting a Nubian woman and child
From el-Kab (seal) and grave 521, Dendera (spoon handle); 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.1807: ERA excavations, 1897; AN1896-1908 E.1803: EEF excavations, 1898

Small figures of animals, which had religious associations, could be buried with the dead 15 Limestone statuette of three monkeys
From burial 1, el-Kab; 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2135: ERA excavations, 1897

Ivory statuette of a raging lion


From burial D 84, Abydos; 17th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2221: EEF excavations, 1901

Two hippopotamus figures, blue frit and faience


From grave 7, Haragah (frit): 1st Intermediate Period; and burial M 560 (faience), el-Mahasna: 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.1784: ERA excavations, 1901; AN1949.353: BSAE and ERA excavations

Egyptian children in elite families often wore a braid on the right side of the head, known as a Horus lock after the god Horus. On images of children who had died, the lock might have protected the deceased. 16 Limestone statuette of a boy in a short kilt
From burial Y 471, Hu; 17th Dynasty


AN1896-1908 E.1968: EEF excavations, 1899

Blue faience statuette of a shrouded boy


From burial 1, el-Kab; 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.3788: ERA excavations, 1897

Figure21AN18961908 E.3788

17

Limestone statue of Mentuhotep and Nefermesut, found in their mastaba tomb. Inscriptions on the sides of the statue pray for Mentuhotep (the man) to be honoured before the god Osiris, and Nefermesut before the goddess Hathor
From Dendera; 11th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.1971: EEF excavations, 1898 Figure22AN18961908 E.1971

18

Offerings for the pharaoh Senwosret II, in painted limestone relief


From the mortuary temple of Senwosret II, Lahun; 12th Dynasty
AN1914.701: BSAE and ERA excavations

19

Fragment of painted relief depicting bound captives from Syria-Palestine


From the funerary temple of king Nebhepetre Mentuhotep at Deir el-Bahri, Thebes; 11th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.699: EEF excavations, 1907

Case 43 Abydos and the Cult of Osiris


Middle Kingdom 11th13th Dynasties about 19751640 BC The site of Abydos in southern Egypt was revered as the burial place of Osiris, the god of the dead. The cult of Osiris absorbed a local deity named Khenti-amentiu, whose name literally meant the foremost of the Westerners. These Westerners were the dead, who went to the west like the setting sun, and Osiris Khentiamentiu was their chief. According to Egyptian beliefs, Osiris had been a mythical king who was murdered by his brother Seth, the god of disorder and chaos. Mummification restored health to the body of Osiris, and the magic of his wife and sister Isis returned his procreative powers to him. Osiris sailed in triumph to his home town of Abydos, while the royal throne passed to his son Horus and to all the kings of Egypt. In the Middle Kingdom, the worship of Osiris became more widespread and influential. The 12th Dynasty kings built a temple to Osiris Khenti-amentiu near the funerary enclosures of the Early Dynastic kings. Non-royal cemeteries sprang up nearby, with hundreds of tombs for both local families and those from elsewhere in Egypt who wanted to be buried in this sacred area. Other people dedicated stelae and small shrines to praise Osiris and ask him for blessings in the afterlife. Osiris victory over death set an example for the Egyptians to follow. By mummifying the body, performing funerary rites, and making offerings of incense, food, and drink, the Egyptians empowered their dead with everything required for eternal life.

An intact tomb at Abydos Tomb E3, with several burials of children and adults, was one of the largest tombs excavated by the Egyptologist John Garstang at Abydos. Each undisturbed burial included beads, kohl-pots, and palettes for grinding eyepaint. Sometimes a mirror was placed in front of the face, wrapped in cloth to hide or protect the polished surface.

Two bronze mirror disks and the top of a wooden handle


AN1896-1908 E.2182, 2186, and 2182.a

Faience staff head and kohl-pot, and three vases of travertine, serpentine, and faience
AN1896-1908 E.2172, 2160, 2171, 2189, 2176

3 4

Faience lion and weight


AN1896-1908 E.2183, E.4272

Ivory box decorated with a snake and protective gods, and two faience necklaces
AN1896-1908 E.2169, AN1896-1908 E.E.478, AN1896-1908 E.E.480

Eight kohl-pots of travertine, serpentine, steatite, and pale blue anhydrite, and two travertine vases
AN1896-1908 E.2170-71, 2173-4, 2187, 2190, 2159, 2175, 2188, 2142, 2185

Quartzite grinder and silver disk, on which grains of eyepaint were found, two lids of sandstone and limestone, serpentine palettes and pestles, for mixing eyepaint, and two spatulas made of bone and siltstone
AN1896-1908 E. 2163-4, 2167-8, 2177-81, 2184, 2165-6

Beads of faience, garnet and carnelian


AN1896-1908 E.E.479, E.E.481-3

All from tomb E3, Abydos; late Middle Kingdom


ERA excavations, 1900

Connections between Egypt and Crete Tomb 416 consisted of six burial shafts, which were damaged when the walls between them collapsed. Discovered in 1907, the tomb was an important source for the chronology of the Minoan culture of ancient Crete, because the grave goods include a Minoan jar imported to Egypt and two cylinder seals inscribed with the names of the 12th Dynasty kings Senwosret II, Senwosret III, and Amenemhat III. 8 Bridge-spouted, decorated pottery jar from Crete, an example of Classical Kamares ware from the Middle Minoan period (restored)
AN1896-1908 E.3295

Figure23AN18961908E.3295

Bronze mirror with serpentine handle, clay pot and steatite vase with lid. The mirror surface has traces of cloth on one side and hair on the other, from being wrapped in cloth and placed near the head of the deceased


AN1896-1908 E.3283, 3301, 3296

10

Three travertine kohl pots, two bone hairpins, limestone palette for eyepaint, and faience necklace
AN1896-1908 E.3271-3, 3290-1, 3284, AN1896-1908 E.E.628

11

Faience figurines of a hedgehog, lion, and baboon; two faience vases; fragments of a vase and bowl
AN1896-1908 E.3274-5, 3299; 3276-8; 3280

Figure24AN18961908E.3274

Figure25AN18961908E.3299

12

Man playing a stringed instrument, and two men wrestling; limestone statuettes with painted details
AN1896-1908 E.3298, 3297

Figure26AN18961908E.3297

13

Steatite palette and pestle, and beads of carnelian, garnet, amethyst, and faience
AN1896-1908 E.3300, AN1896-1908 E.E.679

14

Two cylinder seals with the names of 12th Dynasty kings, and beads of carnelian, garnet, amethyst, and faience
AN1896-1908 E.4249-50, AN1896-1908 E.E.630-1

All from tomb 416, Abydos; late Middle Kingdom


Garstang excavations, 1907

Stela of Khent-ekhtay-emhat Khent-ekhtay-emhat was a temple official who dedicated this stela at Abydos

in order to honour Osiris and be close to the gods cult. The limestone stela depicts Khent-ekhtay-emhat at the left, with his arm raised as if he were addressing an audience. The nineteen lines of hieroglyphs are a hymn to Osiris, which reads in part: Praising of Osiris, recited by the Attendant of the Chamber of henket offerings, Khent-ekhtay-emhat, justified. He says: Hail to you, Osiris, foremost of the Westerners, On this beautiful day when you have arisen. ...Revered in the hearts of men, gods, the blessed, and the dead, ...Greatly beloved upon the earth, ...Great of appearances in Abydos, Who has been justified before (his father) Geb and the Nine Gods ...Because of the magnitude of the reverence for you. Such is Osiris, the heir of Geb, sovereign of the gods, Power of heaven, prince of the living, And king of those who are in the beyond.
From Abydos; late 12th Dynasty or 13th Dynasty
Queens College Loan.1109

Headpiece for the mummy of a woman Found, together with a sandal, in a grave which contained no body or coffin, it seems that this headpiece was ever used. As a result, it has survived better than others from the same cemetery which has been placed over mummies buried with wooden coffins, all of which had been affected by damp. The headpiece is made of cartonnage formed of linen and plaster. A curious feature is the sand adhering to the painted surface, which suggests that it was dropped into the empty grave while the decoration was still wet
From grave 2114, Sidmant; late 1st Intermediate Period
AN1921.1435, from Petries excavations

Figure27AN1921.1435

Case 44 Abydos and the Cult of Osiris


Middle Kingdom 11th13th Dynasties about 19751640 BC

Painted clay rattle with a baboon head. Seeds or clay pellets move inside if the rattle is shaken
AN1896-1908 E.2240

Three pottery dishes, and shells from the Red Sea


AN1896-1908 E.2238, 2248, 2252, 2225-7

Travertine kohl-pot, wooden kohl-stick, and greywacke vase


AN1896-1908 E.2228-9, 2232

Two ivory wands incised with protective animals and knife-wielding deities
AN1896-1908 E.2223-4

All from tomb D 79, Abydos; late Middle Kingdom or 2nd Intermediate Period EEF excavations, 1901

5 6

Copper mirrors
AN1913.400, 409

Blue anhydrite bowl, travertine kohl pot with lid, shell-shaped electrum pendant, and silver ring with rotating faience scarab
AN1913.410, 401, 407, 406

All from tomb D 166, Abydos; Middle Kingdom


Egypt Exploration Fund, 1913

Serpentine vase, faience vase, and faience statuette of the god Horus
From grave E 303, Abydos; late Middle Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.2153, 2198-9: ERA excavations, 1900

Five travertine vases, travertine kohlpot, and serpentine shabti inscribed for the superintendent of the Delta, Nakht. This is an early example of the mummiform statuettes placed in burials to perform manual labour for the deceased in the afterlife
AN1896-1908 E.2122-6, 2129, 2128

Travertine eyes from a coffin or mask, with a hollow for inlay


AN1896-1908 E.E.474; AN1896-1908 E.2127

10

Faience cylinder, and faience necklace with a gold, turquoise, and carnelian pendant in the shape of a shen-ring, the hieroglyphic sign for eternity
AN1896-1908 E.E.472

Figure28AN18961908E.E.472

All from the burial of Nakht, grave E 105, Abydos; 12th Dynasty
ERA excavations, 1900

11

Two faience cylinders; bronze mirror with wooden handle; serpentine palette and grinder; travertine vase; blue anhydrite kohl-pot; and two kohl-sticks of wood and faience
AN1896-1908 E.2149-50, 2140, 2131, 2137-9, 1751

12

Amethyst necklace; gold pendants in the form of falcons, fish, and beak-to-beak birds; and two strings of garnet and carnelian beads, with pendants of jasper, feldspar, lapis lazuli, turquoise, and faience. The amethyst necklace was wrapped around the neck of the deceased, the gold pendants lay on the chest, and the garnet and carnelian beads encircled the wrists
AN1896-1908 E.4238, E.4240, E.4243-4, E.4241-2

Figure29AN1896-1908 E.4238, E.4240, E.4243-4, E. 4241-2

All from tomb E 30, Abydos; 12th Dynasty


ERA excavations, 1900

The burial of Senebhenaf in tomb D 25 at Abydos dates to the end of the Middle Kingdom or the 2nd Intermediate Period. His wooden coffin was discovered in fragments, due to damage from ants and woodworm. The burial included one canopic jar to hold the internal organs removed from the mummy 13 Canopic jar with human-headed lid. Pottery decorated with paint; the yellow and wavy red stripes imitate a stone vessel, and the hieroglyphic inscription, written in blue, names Senebhenaf s father Sa-amun and his mother Ib-iaw
AN1896-1908 E.3541

14

Fragments from a wooden coffin

coated in plaster and inscribed in red and blue on a yellow background. The hieroglyphic signs representing birds and animals have been drawn without any legs, to prevent them from magically coming to life and moving around
AN1896-1908 E.1952.a-c

15

Fragment of painted wood with faience inlay, perhaps from the beard of a coffin or mummy mask
AN1896-1908 E.3519

16

Mourning woman, on a fragment from a painted wooden coffin. Female mourners performed ritual laments at funerals, just as the goddesses Isis and Nephthys had mourned their brother Osiris
AN1896-1908 E.1953

All from tomb D 25, for a man named Senebhenaf, Abydos; late Middle Kingdom or 2nd Intermediate Period
EEF excavations, 1900

Figure30Cases44to46

Case 45 Bread and Beer


1st Intermediate Period to Middle Kingdom 9th13th Dynasties About 21251640 BC

Model Scenes of Egyptian Life


Bakeries, breweries, and butcher shops supplied the food and drink offerings that nourished the dead. In some Middle Kingdom tombs, these activities were represented by carved wooden models so that the production of offerings would continue in the afterlife. The models depict men and women at work, or else carrying baskets of food to the tomb. Bakeries and granaries are the most common types of model, since bread was the staple food of the Egyptian diet. It was made from emmer wheat or barley, which was milled into flour by women. The flour was sifted, mixed into dough, and baked in pottery moulds in an oven fired from below. Extra grain was stored in domed silos or in a partitioned granary. Barley and emmer were also mixed with water and fermented to make beer, the most popular beverage in Egypt. The fermented grain mixture was strained and stored in large pottery jars. The strength of the beer could be adjusted by adding more water, and the mash left after straining could be eaten. Pottery models of houses were also used in Middle Kingdom tombs, where they were left in a chapel accessible to visitors. Known as soul houses, they might have been used like a basin for libations in honour of the dead. The models show the two-storey construction of a typical house, with a staircase leading to a flat roof used as extra living and working space. Placing model houses in tomb chapels might reflect the idea that the tomb was a house for the soul of the deceased. 1 Model brewery, painted wood The men at the right are taking sheets of bread dough from a stack on the floor and adding them to a pot, where the dough was fermented to make mash for beer. In the next stage of the brewing process, two men standing at a tall vat sieve the mash from the beer liquid
Possibly from Deir el-Bersha; 11th or 12th Dynasty
AN1933.1446: gift of Mrs. G. H. Pope Figure31AN1933.1446

Pottery model of a domed granary with a hinged door


From grave Y518, Hu; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.2006: EEF excavations, 1899

Model granary, filled with emmer wheat, barley, and tiger nuts Inside the granary are two labourers and two scribes. Emmer wheat and barley were the chief grain crops, used to make both bread and beer. Tiger nuts are a sweet-tasting tuber from the sedge plant
From the tomb of Khety, Beni Hasan 575; 11th or 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2310: John Garstang excavations, 1903

Figure32AN18961908E.2310

Pottery soul house


From Rizeiqat; Middle Kingdom.
AN1890.657: G. J. Chester Collection

Figure33AN1890.657

Model bakery, painted wood Two women grind grain and a third tends a small oven, while a man standing at a waist-high workspace makes flat loaves of bread dough
From tomb 420, Beni Hasan ; 11th or 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2305: Garstang excavations, 1903

Models of offering bearers: a dwarf balancing a package on his head, and a young woman carrying a basket; painted wood and linen
From the tomb of Khety, Beni Hasan 575; 11th or 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2308 and E.2306: Garstang excavations, 1903

Model showing baking, brewing, and butchering activities; painted wood In addition to the milling of grain and brewing of beer, this model shows a calf being held down with its legs tied together while a butcher slits its throat. Although meat was expensive, Egyptians ate beef as well as duck, goose, and fish from the Nile
From the tomb of Khety, Beni Hasan 575; 11th or 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2312: Garstang excavations, 1903 Figure34AN18961908E.2312

Painted details on the wooden coffin of Nefru, including granaries, a scribal palette, tools, basketry, and weapons


Tempera copy by Nina Davies of the coffin of Nefru, from her tomb at Deir el-Bahri (TT 318), 11th Dynasty
AN1939.587: gift of Nina Davies

Case 46/47
1st Intermediate Period to Middle Kingdom 9th13th Dynasties about 21251640 BC

Model boats
Boats were the principal means of travel in ancient Egypt. The river Nile served as a highway along which boatmen could row northwards with the current, or sail south with the prevailing wind. The representation of boats in the tomb was intended to ensure the mobility of the dead person in the next life, but boats also had specific funerary meanings. In an ideal funeral, the last voyage of an Egyptian was the transport of the mummy from the east bank of the Nile to the west, the territory of the dead. Within their lifetimes, Egyptians aspired to make the pilgrimage by boat to Abydos in Upper Egypt, to visit the sacred area belonging to the god Osiris, who ruled the Underworld. The journey of the sun itself was envisaged as a voyage from east to west during daylight, then a night-time crossing through the Underworld to emerge again at dawn in the east. Even the game of senet, being played aboard one of the models displayed here, could have a funerary meaning: the players progress via the hazardous moves of the gaming pieces was like the passage of the deceased through the dangerous points in the Underworld. The boats shown here are made of plastered and painted wood, with linen used for the sails and the crews clothing. Such models were included in large numbers in elite tombs of the 1st Intermediate Period and Middle Kingdom. A full set would include boats being rowed (for travel north) and under sail (for travel south).

Model of a funeral boat Four mourners sit beside the mummy, which is sheltered by a canopy. Behind the lookout man, four crew members hoist the sail; a set of oars is lashed to the gunwales. The piece of wood attached to the prow like a bow-strip may have served to take the mooring-rope. This is one of two funeral boats from the tomb of the Overseer of Land, Ma; the other was a rowing boat.
From tomb no.500, Beni Hasan; 12th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2296, from Garstangs excavations, 1902-4

Figure35AN18961908E.2296

Model of a military transport boat One of four boats from the tomb of a man named Tjau. In addition to the crew, the figures on board include a bowman standing beside the lookout man. Fixed to the canopy over the deck are animal-hide shields, and a bowcase lies under the canopy. In front, two officers sit playing senet (passing: a board-game similar to modern draughts). The helsman sits at the stern beside the large steering-oar
From tomb no.186, Beni Hasan; 9th11th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2301, from Garstangs excavations, 1902-4

Figure36AN18961908E.2301

Case 48 A Land Divided


2nd Intermediate Period 14th17th Dynasties about 16401540 BC Immigrants from Western Asia had begun to settle in the eastern Nile Delta during the Middle Kingdom, and from about 1640 a line of foreign kings established themselves in the north. Known as the Hyksos (the Greek form of the Egyptian expression rulers of foreign lands), they exerted control over the greater part of Egypt. Their names are preserved on many of the numerous scarab-seals of the time. A distinctive style of black pottery with incised decoration, known from its typesite as Tell el-Yahudiyeh ware, is particularly associated with this period. Found all over the Eastern Mediterranean and as far south as Nubia, it first appeared in Egyptian contexts in the late Middle Kingdom. Small jugs are the most typical form, and the widespread distribution of these vessels testifies to extensive trade during this period of change and movement. Although the pottery is foreign in style, analysis of the clay has shown that particular styles of jug were being produced in Egypt from local clay. Egyptian control over Lower Nubia weakened at the beginning of this period, and the rulers based at Kerma above the Third Cataract extended their power northwards. The presence of semi-nomadic people from Lower Nubia living and perhaps also serving as mercenaries in Upper Egypt is signified by the cemeteries of pan-graves in the south of the country. These shallow graves contained goods and personal ornaments characteristic of a cattle-herding culture with simple material needs. The fine hand-made pottery in these graves included the beautiful Kerma ware, reminiscent of the black-topped vessels of Predynastic Egypt. I sit united with an Asiatic and a Nubian, each man in possession of his share of this Egypt...: a stela of Kamose, last of the Theban rulers of the 17th Dynasty, records early skirmishes in the campaign to expel the Hyksos from Egypt. Some two decades later, his successor Ahmose achieved the reimposition of unified Egyptian rule and initiated the 18th Dynasty. Pan grave goods from Upper Egypt 1 Kerma beakers, with blackened top and interior, hand-made; jar of polished red ware, decorated with comb impressions, and a faience vase decorated with spirals
From grave O4, Abydos; 13th Dynasty
AN1910.692-3, 517-18: EEF excavations

Large bowl of incised black ware, filled with fat and sherds; small bowl with punctuate decoration; and kohl-pots of breccia and blue

anhydrite
From grave X 36, Hu; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.2016, 2029-30, 2037, 2214: EEF excavations, 1899

Decorated bovid (goat?) skull and horns


From grave 5477, Badari; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1925.492: BSAE and ERA excavations

Decorated bovid skull and horns


From grave X 23, Hu; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.2603: EEF excavations, 1899

Horn of an oryx (Oryx beisa), pierced with holes as though to make a flute
From Hu; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.1922: EEF excavations, 1899

Copper snake; similar examples in extended form have been identified as magic wands, but the bent shape of this one suggests it may have been worn as a neck ornament
From grave Y.458, Hu; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.1907: EEF excavations, 1899

Jewellery and other goods from the burial of an adolescent boy Found beside the head: pottery jar containing pieces of bone and other residue, remnants of rope network outside; copper axehead, and Spatha shell containing eyepaint (1930.492-4) Found on the body: silver torc and beads on the neck, beads on the elbows, shell bracelets, glazed blue beads around the waist, and bead anklets
AN1930.492-4, 1930.495, 504, 506-9, 511, 501, 499, 502, and 498 All from grave M 3170, Mostagedda; 2nd Intermediate Period Guy Brunton excavations

Faience pot stand and pottery bowl From grave 1303, Qau; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1923.560-61: BSAE and ERA excavations

Pottery bowl with incised decoration


From grave Y.323, Hu; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.2018: EEF excavations, 1899

10

Bronze tweezers on a wooden block pierced for suspension


From grave Y.434, Hu; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.1779: EEF excavations, 1899

11

Jug of Cypriot Bichrome ware, faience juglet and limestone kohl-pot


From grave 1270, Mayana cemetery K, Sidmant; late 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1921.1373-4, 1376: BSAE excavations

12

Jar with a plain dish used as a lid, decorated in

the style of Cypriot Bichrome ware


From grave 902, Qau; late 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1923.578: BSAE excavations

13

Ivory fly pendant


From grave 7196, Qau; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1924.407; BSAE and ERA excavations

14

Flasks, one with incised decoration and applied knobs, one with an undulating neck
From graves E159 and 21E, Esna; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.754, 782: ERA excavations

15

Juglet of Tell el-Yahudiyeh ware, decorated jug, pot stand of red ware
From grave 37, Tell el-Yahudiyeh; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.3499, 3491, 3536: BSAE and ERA excavations

16

Juglet of red slipped ware


From Tell el-Yahudiyeh; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.3473: BSAE and ERA excavations

17

Jug with painted linear decoration, and cup of red ware


From grave 43, Tell el-Yahudiyeh: 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.3484, 3485A: BSAE and ERA excavations

18

Vessels of Tell el-Yahudiyeh ware Juglet in the shape of a double duck body with a single head
Provenance unknown; 2nd Intermediate Period.
AN1971.946: ex Bomford Collection

Juglet with impressed white-filled zigzags, made of Nile clay


From Tell el-Yahudiyeh; 2nd Intermediate Period.
AN1888.268: EEF excavations

Juglet with impressed white-filled lines


Provenance unknown; 2nd Intermediate Period.
AN1892.1039: G.J. Chester Collection

Jug with white-filled incised decoration including spirals, made of Nile clay
Provenance unknown; 2nd Intermediate Period.
AN1896-1908 C.96: G.J. Chester Collection

19

Fragment of jug with incised white-filled lotus design


From Harageh: 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1914.671: BSAE and ERA excavations

20

Juglet, cream slipped, with painted red-brown linear decoration


From grave 2, Tell el-Yahudiyeh; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.3554: BSAE and ERA excavations

21

Scarab-seals of steatite and glazed faience, with

typical designs an ibex, illegible hieroglyphs, a bird with solar symbols, and coiled rope pattern; scarab-seals of glazed steatite with the names of Hyksos rulers Sheshi, Sekhaenre Yakbim, and Yakbim
From graves 1 and 6, Tell el-Yahudiyeh; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1896-1908 E.E.634-5 and 637-8: BSAE and ERA excavations

Provenance unknown; 15th and 16th Dynasty


AN1892.52, 193, 209: G.J. Chester Collection

Figure37Cases48to50

Case 49 The Tomb of the Lady Maket


New Kingdom 18th Dynasty about 15401292 BC

Egypt and the Aegean in the Early New Kingdom


From the late Second Intermediate Period onwards, trade flourished between Egypt and the Mediterranean, especially the Mycenaean culture of mainland Greece, the Minoan civilization on Crete, and the commercial centres of Cyprus and the Syria-Palestine coast. These trade links contributed to the wealth of a newly reunified Egypt and brought the country into wider contact with its neighbours. Distinctive pottery made in Greece, Crete, and Cyprus was imported to Egypt, where it inspired Egyptian potters to imitate the unusual shapes and designs of the foreign vessels. Both imported and locally-made pottery was discovered in a house at the abandoned workers village of el-Lahun. The house had been converted into a tomb containing twelve coffins and at least 40 bodies, which were buried over two or three generations at the beginning of the 18th Dynasty. One of the coffins held the body of the Mistress of the house Maket, according to the inscription on her silver ring. This honorary title was given to women from elite families. The tomb also contained headrests, cosmetic jars and mirrors, unusual faience vessels, and a wooden throwstick used for hunting birds. 1 Pithos-shaped pottery jar, imported from Greece (Mycenaean II)
From the tomb of Montu-her-khepeshef (TT 20), Thebes; early 18th Dynasty
AN1911.446: EEF excavations; gift of Norman de Garis Davis

Two pottery juglets, one imported from Greece (Mycenaean IIIA), the other from Cyprus or the Levant
From graves 53 (left) and 1289, Sidmant; 2nd Intermediate Period or 18th Dynasty
AN1921.1436.a, 1392: BSAE and ERA excavations

Vase imported from Crete (Late Minoan IB), and a handle decorated in similar style
From grave 137, Sidmant (vase) and probably from Sidmant (handle); early 18th Dynasty.
AN1921.1342-42.a: BSAE and ERA excavations; EEF excavations

Figure38AN1921.1342

Pottery juglet of Tell el-Yahudiyeh ware


From grave 1279, Sidmant; 2nd Intermediate Period


AN1927.1390: BSAE and ERA excavations

Pottery juglet, travertine vase, and lump of pumice


From grave 1262, Sidmant; 2nd Intermediate Period
AN1921.1318-20: BSAE and ERA excavations

Two pottery jars, a travertine kohl-pot, two travertine ear studs, and pottery model boat with miniature pots
From grave 1806, Abydos; late 17th or early 18th Dynasty
AN1926.159, 161-2, 172, 173.a-b, 169, 164-5, 167: BSAE and ERA excavations

Pottery pot stand


From grave 190, Abydos; late 17th or early 18th Dynasty
AN1926.191: BSAE and ERA excavations

8 9

Wooden throwstick
AN1890.831

Faience bead incised with a god; two scarabs and a gold ring with a scarab; faience seal with the names of King Thutmose II; gold earrings; faience leopard heads used as necklace terminals; and a necklace of beads and scarabs
AN1890.771, 777-8, 764, 784-5, 787.a, AN1912.155

Figure39AN1890.764;detailofseal

10

Two travertine vases and an ivypatterned juglet imported from Greece (Late Mycenaean II)
AN1890.812, 867, 822 Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

All from the tomb of Maket at el-Lahun; early 18th Dynasty


Figure40AN1890.822

11

Pottery figurine of a woman on a bed; serpentine kohl-pot with a woman

carved on one side; and three serpentine vases


AN1890.825, 801-4

12

Faience vase, shallow bowl, and hornshaped vessel


AN1890.815, 821, and 823

Figure41AN1890.823

13

Bronze mirror; wooden comb; a pumice stone; faience beads; stone bowl; a shell from the Red Sea; three kohl-pots of wood, travertine, and serpentine; bronze and wood kohl-sticks; two wooden kohl-tubes; and a bronze knife and two whetstones
AN1890.792-3, 790-91, 798-99, 806, 808, 814, 820, 824, 8267, 885, AN1896-1908 E.E. 531

All from the tomb of Maket at el-Lahun; early 18th Dynasty Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

14

Five pottery vases and a lid; two spindle bottles inspired by Syrian pottery forms; and four bowls, all of local manufacture
AN1890.882, 875, 863, 848, 849, 846, 860, 852, 840-3, and 878

15

Three wooden headrests. The headrest in the middle has ivory inlays, and the headrest in front could be folded in half for storage or travelling
AN1890.828-30

16

Two flasks, one of travertine and the other of painted pottery


AN1890.818, 833

17

Pottery bowl, vase, and juglet with painted decoration


AN1890.838, 837, 831

18

Four pottery juglets, one with a double body; imported from Cyprus (Late Cypriote I)
AN1890.855, 857, 887, 861


From the tomb of Maket at el-Lahun; early 18th Dynasty
Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Case 50 The Pharaohs of the New Kingdom


New Kingdom 18th19th Dynasties about 15401190 BC In the reign of Ahmose, first king of the 18th Dynasty, the Hyksos were expelled from Lower Egypt and the country was reunited. The military origins of the New Kingdom, and the acquisition of an Egyptian empire during its course, created a new model of kingship, as well as economic prosperity. Ahmose extended Egyptian influence in Nubia, breaking the power of the rulers based at Kerma. His immediate successors Amenhotep I and Thutmose I also campaigned in Nubia and the Near East, extending Egyptian control as far as the Euphrates river in Syria. The king began to be depicted as a warrior, leading his troops into battle from his chariot and returning victorious to give thanks to Amun, the local god of Thebes. Dedicating part of their revenues to Amun, the pharaohs of the New Kingdom extended his temple at Karnak, and his priesthood became one of the most powerful institutions in Egypt. Rulers strove to surpass the achievements of their predecessors; kings whose ambitions exceeded their resources usurped the monuments of others, whose names they replaced with their own. The pharaohs of the New Kingdom built for themselves, as well as for the gods. Although royal burials became less visible, hidden away in the Valley of the Kings, imposing funerary temples were erected on the western bank at Thebes. These mortuary temples ensured the survival of the kings ka (soul) through the regular provision of worship and offerings from the royal estates. The portrayal of the king as victorious warrior reached its climax in the 19th Dynasty with Seti I and his son Ramesses II, the greatest builder of all. It was reprised in the following dynasty by Ramesses III, but in reality, Egyptian domination of foreign territory was already beginning to crumble. 1 Bronze sword blade and socket The blade is inscribed with an extended titulary of Kamose, the last ruler of the 17th Dynasty, headed by a falcon sphinx trampling a prisoner. The ring at the top of the socket, which held a now-missing wooden handle, is inlaid in gold with a floral pattern and the cartouche of Kamose
AN1927.4622: John Evans Collection Figure42AN1927.4622

Bronze axehead, inscribed with the name of Ahmose, successor of Kamose and founder of the 18th Dynasty
Possibly from a tomb at Dra abu el-Naga, Western Thebes; 18th Dynasty
AN1927.4623: John Evans Collection

Figure43AN1927.4623

Two wooden cramps, inscribed with the names of Seti I. These were used to strengthen the joints between blocks of stone; the powerful name of the king gave further protection
From the cenotaph of Seti I, Abydos; 19th Dynasty
AN1933.1447, 1448: Sayce Bequest

Part of the royal titulary of Thutmose II, from the back pillar of a peridotite statue
Probably from Medinet Habu, Western Thebes; 18th Dynasty
AN1965.881: G. J. Chester Collection

Hatshepsut and Deir el-Bahri After the death of Thutmose II, his wife Hatshepsut first acted as regent for her stepson, Thutmose III, then declared herself ruler. In the eighth year of her reign she began construction of her mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahri, situated next to that of King Nebhepetre Mentuhotep, the most significant monument on the west bank at Thebes. She also moved the local cult of Hathor from the older shrine to her own. By appropriating and surpassing the past, she hoped to legitimize her usurpation of the throne 5 Limestone block. The carved and painted decoration forms a rebus of one.of Hatshepsuts names, Maatkare: the horned sun-disk can be read Re, the uraeus-serpent Maat, the upraised arms ka. After Hatshepsuts death, an attempt was made to remove all memory of her rule from history. By chiselling out the ka sign, her name was made illegible and she would be denied sustenance in the afterlife
AN1896-1908 E.4303: EEF excavations, 19067

Painted limestone fragment, depicting a marine with a shield and axe


AN1961.399: Gift of Miss P. J. Walker, from the collection of Howard Carter

Figure44AN1961.399

Faience menit fragments, inscribed with the name of Hatshepsut


AN1896-1908 E.2729: EEF excavations 19034, 1964.221

All objects from Deir el-Bahri; 18th Dynasty, reign of Hatshepsut

Objects from a foundation deposit The objects displayed here come from one of the 16 deposits placed in the foundations of Hatshepsuts temple at Deir el-Bahri, Western Thebes. The construction of a new temple was accompanied by many rituals, beginning with the marking-out of the site. Foundation deposits were placed at the corners of the structure, and also at significant points within it. These typically consisted of food, pottery and stone vessels, jewellery, amulets, and model building tools. Many objects were inscribed with the name of the temples royal founder 8 Travertine vase and lid; model adze of wood, copper and rawhide; wooden model adze, representing the hieroglyphic sign setep; wooden model of a rocker for moving stone blocks; wooden model hoe; basketwork pot stand; reed mat, one of several used to cover the pottery in the deposit. Some of these objects are inscribed with the name of Hatshepsut beloved of Amun of Djeserdjeseru (the name of her temple at Deir el-Bahri)
From Deir el-Bahri; 18th Dynasty
AN1895.146-49, 150-52: EEF excavations

Case 51 Pottery and the Decorative Arts in the New Kingdom


New Kingdom 18th Dynasty about 15401292 BC The growing prosperity of Egypt in the 18th Dynasty is reflected in a new fashion for fine pottery, especially miniature forms. Contemporary graves have preserved a range of objects which were probably treasured possessions in life, as well as necessities for the well-stocked tomb. Beautifully crafted vessels were made for personal use, probably as containers for scented oil or cosmetics. Figure-vases were made by shaping the clay in a mould, and covering it with a slip which was polished before firing. Additional details could be added in brown or black paint. Both wild and domesticated animals were popular subjects for pottery and the decorative arts in general. A cosmetic dish in the shape of a duck, or a kohlpot adorned with a monkey, made playful references to the natural world, but also related these objects to the imagery of rebirth and sexual attraction. Craftsmen were inspired by foreign imports as well as traditional Egyptian themes. Ceramic shapes from Greece and Cyprus were copied in pottery or stone. Vases made exclusively for the tomb were sometimes decorated after firing with colourful painted designs recalling the floral garlands placed on wine jars for festive occasions. Another, but less successful, innovation was to coat pottery and stone vessels with a glossy resin similar to that used on painted coffins and walls. 1 Fish-shaped vase, moulded pottery
From grave 166, Rifa; 18th Dynasty
AN1909.128: BSAE and ERA excavations, 1907

Pottery bowl with white dots, and a travertine vase with one handle
From grave E 187, Abydos; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2446, 2345: ERA excavations, 1900

Vase in the form of a pouncing lion, moulded pottery with painted details
From tomb D 9, Abydos; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2440: EEF excavations, 1900 o

Decorated pottery juglet of Mycenaean IIIA type, and a double vase, made of two pieces of pottery joined before firing
From grave 20, Rifa; 18th Dynasty
AN1909.130, 126: BSAE and ERA excavations, 1907

Pottery vase in the form of a resting ibex, serpentine vase, and green jasper kohl-pot


From grave 1910, Hammamiya; 18th Dynasty
AN1924.416, 414-5: BSAE and ERA excavations

Bronze jug with a lotus-shaped handle


From mastaba 340, Dendera; 18th or 19th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2438: EEF excavations, 1898

Flask with hinged lid, made of a tin and lead alloy similar to pewter
From grave G 70, Abydos; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2442: EEF excavations, 1902

Figure45AN18961908E.2442

Pair of green leather shoes for a child


AN1896-1908 E.2430

Pottery vases in the form of a female offering bearer, who carries a lidded basket, and a kneeling woman; two painted pottery vases; and a complex vase made as a ring with several small vases opening into the top
AN1896-1908 E.2431-5

Figure46AN18961908E.2432

Six strings of glass and faience beads, with a carnelian pendant


AN 1896-1908 E.E.287-9, 423, 556-7: EEF excavations, 1904

All from grave W 1, Abydos; late 18th Dynasty

Vase in the form of a calf, and upper part of a vase in the shape of a woman; moulded and fired pottery
From grave D 29D, Abydos; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2670, 2669: EEF excavations, 1900

Figure47AN18961908E.2670

10

Vase in the form of a hedgehog, red polished pottery with painted details; fragment of stone bowl incised with lotuses
AN1896-1908 E.2775-6

Figure48AN18961908E.2775

Travertine vase, juglet, and kohl-pot; limestone kohl-pot; steatite kohl-pot with monkey
AN1896-1908 E.2770-4

All from grave D 11, Abydos; early 18th Dynasty


EEF excavations, 1900

11

Model stone vase with painted decoration and carved heker-ornaments


Provenance unknown; 18th Dynasty
Queens College Loan.1131

Pottery vase with a coating of plaster and Pistacia resin, inscribed in hieratic, words spoken by Nekhunefer.
Probably from the tomb of Iuya and Tuya, Thebes; 18th Dynasty
AN1955.462: Gift of M. Cassirer

12

Spindle vase and two flasks with handles. The square shape of one flask imitates a leather pouch.
AN1896-1908 E.2410, 2404-5

13

Vase in the form of a naked woman, and a frog-shaped vase; moulded pottery
AN1896-1908 E.2426-8

14

Three decorated pottery vases, pottery vase with two handles, serpentine vase with wooden stopper, and the double neck of a decorated vase
AN1896-1908 E.2407, 2416, 2418, 2415, 2424, 2428

15

Faience bowl decorated with lotus blossoms, wooden bowl, and part of a limestone bowl with residue from a scented resin inside
AN1896-1908 E.2412, 2421, 2411

All from grave E 178, Abydos; 18th Dynasty


ERA excavations, 1900

16

Pottery drinking cup with a handle; lid from a small basket; limestone kohl-pot and wooden kohl-stick; and wooden lid in the shape of a trussed duck, from a cosmetic dish; limestone kohl-pot with a fish incised on its lid; and a reed basket
AN1921.1284, 1271, 1292, 1288, 1270, 1266, 1269

17

Duck head and wing from the lid of a cosmetic dish, wood with ivory inlay; and fragment of a fish-shaped vase, moulded pottery with painted details. The fishs open mouth becomes a lotus blossom, which was the spout of the vase
AN1921.1269, 1291

All from the burial of the scribe Men-kheper, Sidmant 263; 18th Dynasty
BSAE and ERA excavations

18

Two Egyptian copies of Cypriot basering juglets, in red polished ware, and a travertine juglet in the same form
From Medinet Ghurab (pottery) and Saqqara (travertine); 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2455-6: ERA excavations, 1904; AN1886.113: G. J. Chester Collection

Case 52 Koptos and Sinai


New Kingdom 18th19th Dynasties about 15401190 BC

Harvesting the Riches of the Desert


The desert had negative aspects for the ancient Egyptians: it was the arid and chaotic red land, inhabited by nomads and wild animals. But it was also a valuable source of stones and minerals, exploited throughout the Dynastic Period. Koptos (modern Qift) is situated on the east bank of the Nile at the mouth of the Wadi Hammamat, a dry river bed leading into the desert. Natural roads like this were used as corridors to the Red Sea, the point of departure for trading expeditions. In the desert around Wadi Hammamat were stone quarries and mineral deposits including gold-bearing quartz and lead ore. The local deity of Koptos was Min. He became the guardian of the eastern desert, with epithets such as lord of the desert land and he who finds the metal, showing that his guidance was vital to mining expeditions. He was rewarded by the construction of a temple that remained in use throughout the Dynastic Period, and Koptos itself prospered as a result of its importance to trade and mining. The mountainous Sinai peninsula contains significant deposits of copper ore and cuprous stones such as turquoise and malachite. The area was under the protection of the goddess Hathor in her aspect of Mistress of Turquoise. Her temple at Serabit el-Khadim was founded in the Middle Kingdom and enlarged by successive mining expeditions. Offerings made there to Hathor ensured a good outcome for the expedition: they included glass vessels and faience objects. The blue-green colouring, mimicking that of turquoise, may have been intended to encourage the goddess to reveal the location of rich veins of stone. The temple of Min at Koptos was enlarged in the New Kingdom by Thutmose III. Little of the temple was left above ground by the time of its excavation, but there remained several of the foundation deposits, buried at significant parts of the temple during its construction. Seven were discovered, and a representative selection of objects is displayed here. 1 2 Clay double vases
AN1896-1908 E.4292, 4312

Clay vessel containing fragments of faience


AN1896-1908 E.4504

Faience beads: menit-necklace, with fishshaped beads; string of melon beads; six strings of beads


AN1896-1908 E.E.641-42, 238

4 5

Clay bread mould; clay pot


AN1896-1908 E.4500, 4519

Model grinders in travertine and sandstone, inscribed with the name of Thutmose III beloved of Min of Koptos
AN1896-1908 E.4296, 4295

Travertine vase and bowl, inscribed with the name of Thutmose III; faience model fig
AN1896-1908 E.4293-94, 4532

Complex clay vase made of five joined vessels, painted and decorated with cows, scorpions, and breasts
AN1896-1908 E.4291

Metal objects: copper adze, knife, and axehead, inscribed with the name of Thutmose III; bronze arrowheads; bronze chisels.
AN1896-1908 E.4297, 4299, 4298, 4533-4534, 4535-4538, 4639

Clay bowls, one containing flour; clay vase


AN1896-1908 E.4503, 4508, 4524

10

Scarabs and amulets of faience, glazed steatite, and blue frit


AN1896-1908 E.E.669

All objects from the Temple of Min, Koptos; 18th Dynasty


Petrie excavations, 1894

The minerals of the Sinai peninsula were exploited from the Early Dynastic Period onwards, first at Wadi Maghara. Once this site was exhausted during the Middle Kingdom, mines were opened at Serabit el-Khadim, and a temple erected there to Hathor. This was not built to the typically rigid plan of most Egyptian shrines, but took the form of a long series of small chambers, added to by each mining expedition 11 Column capital in the shape of a Hathor head, made of local sandstone
Probably early Middle Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.3942

12

Faience votive offerings; fragments of plaques depicting spotted cats; plaque with a Hathor head; bowl fragments with running ibexes and the forepart of a griffin; fragments of model throwsticks, inscribed

for Seti I and Ramesses II


AN1896-1908 E.3343, 3345, 3354, 3337-38, 3320-21

13

Glass fragments, from vessels offered in the temple


New Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.4486

14 15

Lumps of turquoise in sandstone matrix


AN1896-1908 E.3360

Pottery crucible fragment with a residue left from copper smelting, and a lump of slag, a by-product of copper smelting
AN1896-1908 E.4484A, 4484

16

Faience sistrum handle, inscribed with the name of Thutmose III; faience head of a cat
New Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.4462A, AN1911.614

17

Faience bowl fragment, decorated in black with lotus flowers and deer
New Kingdom
AN1912.57

18

Travertine vessels: fragments with the names of Ahmose Nefertari and Thutmose I; vase in the form of the god Bes, with cartouches of Ramesses II; fragment of a vessel in the form of a hippopotamus or bull, with cartouches of Merenptah, vase in the form of a dwarf carrying a vessel
New Kingdom
AN1911.408, 409, 406, 411, 407

19

Fragments of votive statues, dedicated by members of mining expeditions. Some are carved from the local sandstone, but others are of higher quality and must have been made in Egypt before the expedition set out. Royal statues were also discovered in the temple
Middle Kingdom to New Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.4471-72

14 and 15 from Wadi Maghara; all other objects from the Temple of Hathor, Serabit el- Khadim
EES excavations, 1905

20

Travertine lotus chalice, restored, and a fragment of another. Both are inscribed with the names of pharaoh Amenhotep III,

and a dedication to Hathor, Mistress of Turquoise. The horizontal line of hieroglyphs at the bottom records that the chalices were offered by the treasury scribe Panehesy, who led a mining expedition to Sinai in year 36 of Amenhoteps reign
From the Temple of Hathor at Serabit el-Khadim; 18th Dynasty
AN1911.414, 413.a: Petrie excavations, 1904-5

Figure49Cases49to52

Case 53 State Religion and Private Belief


New Kingdom 18th19th Dynasties about 15401190 BC The gods of Egypt were worshipped in temples to which ordinary people had no access. Within these worlds in miniature, gods lived a kind of daily life, tended by the priests: their images were clothed for the day, offered food, incense and praise, and put to rest at night in their shrines. When they travelled outside the temple for the great religious festivals, the images were still concealed in their shrines, carried in procession on model boats. On these occasions, however, worshippers could present oracular requests to the hidden divinity: the answer, conveyed by the movement of the shrine, would be interpreted by the priests. Such oracles were used to resolve all kinds of personal problems and legal disputes. A written request for an oracle could also be transmitted via the temple priesthood, and votive offerings and inscribed prayers, often in the form of miniature stelae, were deposited within temples and at more informal shrines in order to obtain a personal benefit, such as healing or protection. Within the home, lesser gods like Bes often figured more prominently than the major divinities. They were thought to influence lifes crucial events, such as childbirth or serious illness. Occasionally, revered human figures attained divine status and were seen as ready listeners to prayers and requests for help. Throughout the New Kingdom, state religion was dominated by the god Amun-Re and other Theban divinities such as Hathor, the goddess who protected the necropolis of Western Thebes. For two decades in the later 18th Dynasty, they were all displaced by the Aten, the divine power embodied in the suns disk. Favoured as sole god by Pharaoh Akhenaten, who came to the throne in about 1353 BC as Amenhotep IV, the Aten was presented with food and incense at altars in the open courts of a new style of temple. The cult barely outlived its founder, and in the reign of his successor Tutankhamun, Amun-Re and his divine relatives reassumed their position.

Small votive stelae of steatite and painted limestone, carved with ears to ensure that the donors prayer would be heard; and a miniature stela painted with a figure of the god Ptah
Provenance unknown; New Kingdom
AN1983.185: ex Wellcome Collection

From Saqqara; New Kingdom


AN1892.1093: G.J. Chester Collection

Figure50AN1892.1093

From the North Suburb, el-Amarna: 18th Dynasty


AN1932.1138: EES excavations

Votive models in faience: ears, eyes, Hathor heads, a Hathor cows head, a fragmentary terracotta of a woman breastfeeding, and a fragmentary faience bowl showing a donor
From the temple of Nebhepetre Mentuhotep, Deir el-Bahri; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2731, 2735, 2737, 2739, 2741-2, 2762, 871: EEF excavations, 1904

Stela of painted limestone, showing an unidentified couple adoring The Cat of the god Re, and The Great Cat, the peaceful one, in his perfect name of Atum two aspects of the same solar divinity.
From Deir el-Medina; 19th Dynasty
AN1961.232: ex Armytage Collection

Figure51AN1961.232

Wooden model phalluses


From the Hathor chapel of Thutmose III, Deir elBahri; 18th Dynasty or later
AN1926.400-1: gift of Mrs G.D. Hornblower, from the EEF excavations of 1893-1908

Pottery jar, probably for milk, with applied modelled decoration: a Hathor face, and arms holding breasts
From Qurna; 18th Dynasty
AN1892.1066: G.J. Chester Collection

Figure52AN1892.1066

The royal family worshipping the Aten: fragment of limestone column showing Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and Princess Meretaten offering to the sun-disk
From the Great Palace, el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty
AN1893.1-41 (75): Flinders Petrie excavations

Figure53AN1893.141(75)

Bronze situla for liquid offerings, inscribed with the names of the god ReHarakhte, and Akhenaten
From the Great Temple, el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty
AN1927.4104: EES excavations

Bronze tongs in the shape of hands, and a fragmentary pottery bowl containing lumps of incense (Pistacia resin) mixed with charcoal
From el-Amarna, Main City (tongs) and vicinity of the Great Temple (bowl); 18th Dynasty
AN1924.84, AN1893.1-41 (397), EES and Flinders Petrie excavations Figure54AN1924.84

Oracular petitions inscribed in hieratic on limestone ostraca; the smaller ostracon asks As for the dreams one shall see, will they be good? and the reverse side has a drawing of an eye. The text of the larger ostracon invokes the help of the deified pharaoh Amenhotep I in a matter concerning the theft of clothes
From Thebes: 19th20th Dynasty
ANAshmolean H.O. 1010, ANAshmolean H.O. 4: gift of Sir Alan Gardiner

10

Pottery stela incised with the figure of a pharaoh


From Medinet Ghurab; 18th Dynasty
AN1925.639: gift of F. Ll. Griffith

11

Fragment of pottery jug inscribed in hieratic, Nofretari to her husband Ahmose the deified Queen Ahmose Nofretari, wife of Ahmose and mother of Amenhotep I, was revered as the patron, together with her son, of the Theban necropolis
Provenance unknown; 18th Dynasty


AN1896-1908 E.2654

12

Fragments of limestone vase dedicated to the deified Amenhotep I by a man named Ipwy
From Thebes; 19th Dynasty
AN1960.1285.a,b: gift of Nina Davies

Case 54 Egypt and the Wider World


New Kingdom 18th19th Dynasties about 15401190 BC The Hyksos domination of Lower Egypt from about 1640 to 1540 was the first time that Egypt had been occupied by a foreign power, but it also brought innovations that were beneficial. The horse and chariot were perhaps the most significant of these innovations. They became essential for hunting and warfare, and the favourite means of royal display. The portrayal of the king in his chariot, drawing his bow to shoot down an enemy or wild beast, was a typical image of the New Kingdom pharaohs. The chariot was also the vehicle for more peaceable appearances, conveying Akhenaten and his family along the road which linked the royal palace and Great Temple of the Aten at elAmarna. Grooms and inferior persons were most typically shown riding horseback, but the warlike Syrian goddess Astarte retained her image as a rider as well as a charioteer when her cult was introduced to Egypt. The expansion of Egyptian power in the course of the New Kingdom brought a wide range of foreigners into Egypt. Syrian, Hittite and Mitannian princesses joined the royal harems in marriages intended to cement diplomatic relations. Foreign personal names, transliterated into Egyptian hieroglyphs, are found inscribed on coffins and other funerary equipment. They testify to the absorption into Egyptian society of outsiders who enjoyed high status in life, and adopted the funerary beliefs of their new country. Despite this reality, the depiction of the foreigner especially as a captive remained a constant symbol of pharaonic power. Personal features, such as beards or distinctive physiognomy, or the cut and pattern of clothing, marked these stereotypical figures out as non-Egyptian in artistic representations. 1 Kohl-stick of bone, ending in a bearded foreign head, and a dolphin with attachment ring, of hippopotamus ivory. From a large deposit of bones (human and hippopotamus) and worked ivory, dumped in the shaft of an Early Dynastic tomb; most of the carved ivories were cosmetic accessories
From the bone deposit, tomb 562, Qau; 19th Dynasty
AN1923.619, 620: BSAE excavations

Double shabti of Pakharu (The Syrian) and his wife, Henwetshenu, limestone
Provenance unknown; 18th20th Dynasty
Queens College Loan.65

Figure55Queen'sCollegeLoan.65

Faience shabti of a foreigner with beard and curly hair


Provenance unknown; 21st22nd Dynasty
AN1968.776

The Syrian goddess Astarte, miniature stele of painted limestone dedicated by a woman shown kneeling in front of two offering stands; and a sketch of a woman riding sideways on horseback, probably Astarte, on a limestone ostracon
Stela: from the Ramesseum, Western Thebes; 19th22nd Dynasty Ostracon: from Thebes; 18th20th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.3897: ERA excavations; AN1942.59, gift of Nina Davies

Bearded face (leg of a pottery tripod), pottery bottle (Mycenaean IIIA2) containing oily residue, and a limestone mould for casting metal jewellery, from a large suburban house at el-Amarna. The excavators called this the Mycenaean house, believing that its architecture and contents might indicate the presence of a Greek trader. The layout is not untypical of other houses in the city, however, and the ample storage area and finds related to small-scale manufacture suggest a combination of workshop and commercial activity. Although the bearded face is that of a foreigner, the clay of which it is made is Egyptian (Nile silt)
From house T.36.36, North Suburb, el-Amarna; about 1340 BC
AN1931.485, 490, 483: EES excavations

Figure56AN1931.490

Fragment of a chariot wheel: the six composite spokes are made of elm wood and glued back-to-back. In order to prevent the wheel wobbling on its wooden axle, the nave formed by the spokes has dovetailed extensions of tamarisk wood on either side. Over the wood are the remains of rawhide binding and plaster
From the tomb of Amenhotep III (West Valley no.22), Valley of the Kings, Thebes; about 1353 BC
AN1923.663: gift of Almina, Countess of Carnarvon Figure57AN1923.663

Limestone block showing part of a chariot wheel, carved in relief and painted. The linch pin holding the wheel on the axle is decorated with the figure of a captive foreigner. The bound covering shown on the spokes was probably birch bark, and the wheel has a rawhide tyre. Behind the spokes is part of the chariot body of decorated wood, with the lower end of a bow-case shown at the left. The block would have formed part of a scene showing the royal family and officials visiting the temple of the Aten. Although the block is finished work, there are traces of the gridlines made with a string dipped in red paint which were used to draft the scene before carving
From the sanctuary of the Great Temple, elAmarna; about 13531335 BC
AN1927.4087: EES excavations

Bronze snaffle-bit, with barbed sidepieces to control a temperamental horse


From house O.47.16 (surface find), el-Amarna; about 135335 BC
AN1933.1209: EES excavations

Figure58AN1933.1209

Galloping horse: rim sherd from a bowl of blue-painted pottery


From el-Amarna; about 13531335 BC
AN1924.74: EES excavations

Figure59AN1924.74

10

Grazing horse, carved on a wooden comb


From burnt group 4, Medinet Ghurab; 19th Dynasty
AN1890.1101: Flinders Petrie excavations

Case 55 An Enigmatic Discovery at Medinet Ghurab


New Kingdom 19th Dynasty about 12921190 BC The settlement of Kom Medinet Ghurab at the opening to the Faiyum was excavated by Petrie in 1889-90. The Kom (city mound) was the site of a series of palace and harem complexes from the mid-18th Dynasty to the end of the 19th. Buried beneath the New Kingdom floor level, Petrie found several deposits of goods. Many of these artefacts had been damaged by fire, and they became known as the Burnt Groups. Their contents resemble grave goods, but there were apparently no human remains with them, and they were buried within the living-quarters. They have been variously identified as ritual deposits, robbers plunder, or rubbish pits, but no explanation is entirely satisfactory. There is no Egyptian evidence for burnt deposits of everyday objects, and most of these items were still usable and would not have been considered rubbish. The simplest explanation is that they represent the poorly-documented remains of shallow graves, dug in the ruins of one of the harems, and subsequently damaged by a fire. A recent alternative theory is that they may be the possessions of Hittite women in the harem, burnt after their death according to their law code. Later excavations at the site also revealed a number of more conventional tomb groups. 1 Objects from the burnt group of Amenhotep III, so called by Petrie because it contained a fragment of a kohltube inscribed with the name of Henuttawyneb, a daughter of Amenhotep III. Other objects are later in date. Faience vessel; faience bowl decorated in black with a leaping calf; vessel in the shape of a cucumber; pilgrim flask decorated with a figure of Bes; fragment of a kohl-tube decorated with a dancing figure; fragment of a kohl-tube of Henuttawyneb; travertine bag-shaped vessel
From Medinet Ghurab; 18th and 19th Dynasty
AN1890.901, 898, 899, 897, 905, 906, 895: Flinders Petrie excavations

All objects from tomb 605, in a cemetery south of the town. It was a small chamber at the bottom of a shaft. It contained three burials: a wooden coffin with two bodies, and a third body wrapped in matting.

Fragments of plaited hair; tall pot with painted decoration; Mycenaean stirrup jar
AN1921.1332, 1322, 1321: BSAE and ERA excavations

Strings of beads and amulets; red faience, cornelian, and red jasper earrings; faience scarab; cornelian Besamulet, on its original piece of string
AN1921.1333, 1335, 1331, 1330, 1324-1329, 1334, 1336: BSAE and ERA excavations

From tomb 605, Medinet Ghurab; 19th Dynasty

Objects from tomb 217, in a cemetery north of the town. It was probably a childs burial, disturbed by robbers. The contents were found in a basket. Travertine miniature vases; wooden kohl stick; faience imitation of a Mycenaean stirrup jar
From tomb 217, Medinet Ghurab; 18th or 19th Dynasty
AN1921.1312-13, 1311, 1310: BSAE and ERA excavations

Objects from burnt group 4 5 Bronze bowl; travertine lid; wooden bowls
AN1890.980, 977, 974-75

Wooden combs; wooden pins; bone earstuds; ivory and faience spacing beads from necklaces; red jasper earrings; strings of beads and amulets; cornelian pendant in the form of a crouching royal child
AN1890.1103, 1102, 1112, 1136A, 1109, 1134, 1133, 11141116, 1108, 1107, 1131

Pottery cup; travertine and pottery vessels


AN1890.947, 939, 940

8 9

Ivory ear-studs, glass bead, and shell


AN1890.1110, 1118, 1136

Duck-shaped travertine bowl with a painted wooden lid


AN1890.938

10

Travertine spoon in the form of a naked girl holding a bowl


AN1890.937

11

Pottery jar; faience and pottery pilgrim flasks


AN1890.952-53, 957

Figure60AN1890.953,957,with othersfromtheburntgroups

12

Bronze mirror disk; copper and bronze tweezers; two tattooing needles or awls; bronze razor; bronze knife; copper kohl stick; bronze needles; stone whetstone
AN1890.979, 1122, 1121, 1119, 1120, 1129, 1123, 1127, 1124, 1125, 978

13

Pottery bottle with three handles, possibly an Egyptian imitation of a Mycenaean vessel form
AN1890.948

Figure61AN1890.948withothers fromtheburntgroups

14

Painted wooden fragments, possibly from a box


AN1890.1130

All from burnt group 4, Medinet Ghurab; 19th Dynasty


Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

15

Wooden figure of Sobek, local god of the Faiyum


AN1889.1067

16

Two wooden figures of naked women. The curled and plaited wig of one may associate her with Hathor, goddess of dance and fertility. If their now missing bases were inscribed, statues such as these could represent the tombowner. Uninscribed, they had a more general symbolism, expressing their owners hopes for fertility in the afterlife
AN1889.1064-65

Medinet Ghurab; early 19th Dynasty


Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

All objects from tomb N, in a cemetery outside the town

Objects from burnt group 1

17

Bone bobbins; bronze mirror disk; travertine lid; ivory ear-studs; two pieces of wooden inlay
AN1890.1006, 1003, 999, 1007, 1009

18 19 20

Pot with incised potmark


AN1890.1048

Pottery and faience bowls


AN1890.1005, 1004

Faience, stone, and glass beads and amulets; beads in the shape of poppy heads, characteristic of jewellery of the 19th Dynasty; red jasper wedjat-eye amulet
AN1890.1019-1025, 1013

21

Mycenaean stirrup jar, and an Egyptian imitation made of travertine; travertine and pottery vessels
AN1890.990, 997, 995, 1045

Figure62AN1890.990,997with othersfromtheburntgroups

22

Faience, travertine, and pottery pilgrim flasks


AN1890.986, 987, 1027

Figure63AN1890.9867withothers fromtheburntgroups

23

Steatite dish inscribed with the name of Seti II. The other sides are decorated with a figure of the god Ptah, a scarab, and a king smiting a prisoner
AN1890.1017

24

Faience rings, with bezels in the form of a wedjat-eye and an ibex; faience or clay ear-studs; a shell
AN1890.1014-15, 1010, 1016

All from burnt group 1, Medinet Ghurab; second half of the 19th Dynasty
Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Case 56 Wine, Oil and Incense


New Kingdom 18th20th Dynasties about 15401070 BC The prosperity of Egypt at the peak of the New Kingdom is reflected in the variety of surviving pottery containers. These once held commodities many of them imported which were valued for both domestic and temple use. Occasionally, some residue of their original contents remains, and scientific analysis can identify the substance. Large amphorae were used for shipping and storing wine and other liquids. They could be stamped to indicate the place of origin or storage, and inscribed with details of their contents. Good wine was produced in the Nile Delta, but fine vintages were also procured from further afield. In the later 18th Dynasty, an exuberant new style of blue-painted pottery appeared. It has been found in particularly large quantities on the royal palace sites at Malqata (Western Thebes) and Amarna, and it continued in widespread use until the 20th Dynasty. The decoration is based on floral motifs perhaps a reminder of the festive garlands placed on wine-jars. Many blue-painted vessels are large containers for liquids. The rich blue colour was derived from cobalt, applied before firing. The olive was probably introduced into cultivation in Egypt during the New Kingdom, but large quantities of olive oil were also imported from the Eastern Mediterranean. Oil from Mycenaean Greece travelled in distinctive pottery stirrup jars. Smaller versions of these decorated jars contained costlier perfumed oil; the narrow spouts and stirrup handles ensured controlled pouring and no wastage. Incense for the gods was one of the luxury commodities which the Egyptians sought to obtain by trade with East Africa, Arabia, and the lands of the Eastern Mediterranean. One variety was the fragrant resin tapped from the bark of trees of the Pistacia family, growing in the coastal areas and islands of the Eastern Mediterranean.

Wine-jar, inscribed in hieratic Year 7/Very good wine of the house of the Aten/The inspector Tu. The carrot shape and the fabric are typical of the jars in which wine was transported from the oases in the western desert of Egypt celebrated for their vineyards and fine wines throughout antiquity
From el-Amarna; c.13531335 BC
AN1893.1-41 (268): Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Storage jar (restored), decorated with a hippopotamus standing on a plinth in front of a papyrus clump - probably a sacred animal. The drawing may indicate that the jar was destined for temple use, or was a votive dedication
From el-Amarna; c. 13531335 BC
AN1893.1-41 (286): Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Figure64AN1893.141(286)

Blue-painted jar, decorated with flowers and grapes; and a jar-lid


From el-Amarna; c. 13531335 BC
AN1893.1-41 (277) with (281): Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Bes-face, relief decoration from the neck of a blue-painted vessel; the god Bes, lion-masked and feather-crowned, was associated with music and dancing, as well as the protection of mother and child at the time of birth
From el-Amarna; c. 13531335 BC
AN1893.1-41 (292.a,b): Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Pilgrim flask with a slipped and polished surface. Egyptian craftsmen copied the shape of these lentoid vessels from Mycenaean Greece or Syria-Palestine, mostly for small cosmetic containers in pottery, faience, or glass. This large example could have held a substantial quantity of liquid, and the hard clay fabric and surface treatment would have prevented evaporation. The name pilgrim flask was borrowed from the early Christian use of small flasks of this shape as souvenirs containing holy water
From el-Amarna; c. 13531335 BC
AN1893.1-41 (309): Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Amphora inscribed in hieratic with the validation of an Amarna official. The text is incomplete, but of the type associated with nhh-oil (possibly to be identified as sesame oil), usually transported in this kind of vessel. The shape and fabric of the vessel denote a place of origin on the Syrian coastline, probably Ras Shamra
From el-Amarna; c. 13531335 BC


AN1893.1-41 (271): Flinders Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Two Mycenaean stirrup jars for oil, and an Egyptian imitation of a Mycenaean jar: late 18thmid19th Dynasty
Tall jar (Mycenaean IIIB): from a disturbed grave in cemetery E, Riqqa
AN1913.493: BSAE and ERA excavations

Squat jar (Mycenaean IIIB): from grave 053, Medinet Ghurab


AN1896-1908 E.2452: ERA excavations, 1904

Egyptian imitation: provenance unknown (from a rock tomb)


AN1896-1908 E.2463: source unknown

Fragmentary wallpainting showing part of an olive tree, restored


From the North Palace at el-Amarna, 1353-1335 BC
AN1927.4086: EES excavations, 1927

Figure65Cases53to58

Case 57 New Kingdom Faience and Glass


New Kingdom 18th20th Dynasties about 15401070 BC Faience is a glazed ceramic-like composition with a crushed quartz core. The Egyptians were masters at producing delicate shapes and colours in this material. In the earlier periods faience is mostly blue-green and black, but at the beginning of the New Kingdom new colours were added to the palette, including yellow, white, and dark blue. The use of these new colours in faience coincided with the manufacture of glass for the first time, and it is probable that these two inventions are in some way linked. Glass is a homogeneous material and can be manipulated in a molten state to fill moulds and create rings and beads. However, by far the most famous use of this early glass is in the production of core-formed glass vessels. Coreforming involves taking a core of clay and dung and dipping it in glass to create the body of the vessel. Thin rods of glass in contrasting colours are then wrapped around this body and smoothed flat, a technique known as trailing and marvering. Several examples of such vessels can be seen in this case. Faience was a common material in the New Kingdom, and it is likely that most people in settlements like el-Amarna owned an object made of faience perhaps a ring or some beads. Glass, however, was extremely precious, rating only just below the stones lapis lazuli and turquoise in value. Ownership of a glass vessel was largely limited to the royal court and the elite; the contents exotic oils and perfumes were probably as costly as the vessels themselves.

Core-formed and moulded glass Core-forming and moulding were the main techniques used to produce glass objects until glass blowing was discovered in the 1st century BC. 1 Chalice of turquoise-blue glass
From grave O58, Medinet Ghurab; late 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2451: ERA excavations

Bunch of glass grapes on a hooked stem of bronze and wood (restored). Probably made for suspending as an ornament
From el-Amarna; about 13531335 BC
AN1924.69: EES excavations


Figure66AN1924.69

Kohl-tube in the shape of a column with a palm-capital


From Medinet Ghurab; 18th19th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2578: ERA excavations

Vases with swagged decoration


Provenance unknown; 18th19th Dynasty
AN1920.56: gift of P.E. Newberrry, ex Bateman Collection AN1965.294: ex Spencer Churchill Collection

Cosmetic scoop in the shape of a tilapiafish, symbol of rebirth; the apple-green colour is an innovation of the late 18th Dynasty
Provenance unknown; 18th Dynasty
AN1989.85 Figure67AN1989.85

Necklace of ball and drop glass beads (restrung)


From tomb 2017, Sidmant; 19th Dynasty
AN1921.1309: BSAE and ERA excavations

Faience vessels, sculpture and inlays 7 Vase of blue frit


From grave 48, Tell el-Yahudiyeh; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.3558: BSAE and ERA excavations

Triple kohl-tube: the horizontal bands holding the tubes bear textile impressions derived from the placing of wet faience on drying cloths before firing
From Tell el-Yahudiyeh; 20th Dynasty
AN1872.301: G.J. Chester Collection

Marbled kohl-pot, miniature pilgrim flask decorated with mandrake fruits, and a copy of a Mycenaean stirrup jar
Kohl-pot from Thebes, flask of unknown provenance, jar from Tuna; New Kingdom
AN1886.283.e, AN1879.365: G.J. Chester Collection; AN1922.77: gift of Sir Arthur Evans, ex MacGregor Collection

Figure68AN1922.77

10

Lotus chalices, one with petals moulded in relief, the other decorated in black
From Medinet Ghurab and Maidum; late New Kingdom 22nd Dynasty
1890.896: Flinders Petrie excavations, gift of H. Martyn Kennard AN1910.576: BSAE and ERA excavations

Figure69AN1910.576

11

Faience bowls decorated in black with marsh and water scenes Gazelle with her fawn: from Medinet Ghurab
AN1890.1137: Flinders Petrie excavations, gift of H. Hughes

Pool with lotus flowers: provenance unknown


AN1947.289: ex Cook Collection

Fish and lotus: provenance unknown


AN1896-1908 E.2764: gift of J. L. Strachan Davidson, 1903

Faience vessels, sculpture and inlays 12 Polychrome faience shabti of a man; and blue-glazed shabti of Seti I, restored from fragments of two different figures
From grave 317, Qau el-Kebir; 19th Dynasty
AN1923.605: BSAE excavations

From the tomb of Seti I, Valley of the Kings; c. 1280 BC


AN1952.445: gift of Sir Alan Gardiner

13

Figure of a man carrying a gazelle


From temple fill, Kafr Ammar; 25th Dynasty
AN1912.607: BSAE and ERA excavations

14

Pectoral in the shape of a shrine with Isis, Osiris and a jackal-headed figure
Provenance unknown; 18th20th Dynasty
AN1936.195; gift of Miss E.M. Cochrane

15

Faience inlays, jewellery, and tiles: mandrake flower inlay, lotus necklace terminal, head and wing fragments of duck inlays, and fragments of tiles with bucolic scenes
From el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty
AN1924.115A,128,115C: EES excavations; AN1892.680: G.J. Chester Collection; AN1929.407A-C: EES excavations

16

Faience rosette inlays with bronze nails for attachment


From the palace(?) of Ramesses III, Tell elYahudiyeh; 20th Dynasty
AN1871.34: G.J. Chester Collection (from Chester and Eatons


exploration)

17

Glass and faience manufacture Material from the glass-making area at elAmarna, mostly excavated in 1893 by Petrie, one of the first archaeologists interested in the crafts and industries of ancient cities; this was one of the earliest excavations to record such material Pieces of glass with pincer marks
AN1893.1-41 (404), (407)

Glass rods
AN1893.1-41 (406)

S-shaped glass rod


AN1935.593.d

Fragments of finished core-formed glass vessels


AN1893.1-41 (395) All from Flinders Petrie and EES excavations

18

Core-formed glass vessel


Provenance unknown
AN1965.293; ex Spencer Churchill Collection

19

Glass pilgrim flask


Provenance unknown; 18th Dynasty
AN1939.36: gift of H.S. Whitaker

20

Fragments of a lid made of moulded glass


From grave D29D, Abydos; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2679: EEF excavations

21

Pottery moulds for making faience beads and rings, one with the faience still impacted; and moulded faience objects: ring, inscribed ring bezel, rosette bead
From el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty
AN1893.1-41 (626), (663), (748) and (876); AN1924.154,110A,148: Flinders Petrie and EES excavations

Figure70AN1893.141(626)

22

Fragments of polychrome inlaid faience: tile with royal name; lozenge patterned bowl; and vessel with the names of Akhenaten and Nefertiti
From el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty
AN1942.80: gift of Nina Davies AN1924.114: EES excavations (Main City, M.50.33)


AN1893.1-41 (470): Flinders Petrie excavations

23

Fragment of pottery vessel with glassy overspill, and bowl containing blue frit
AN1893.1-41 (396A),(398)

Fragment of large frit vessel inscribed with royal names


AN1893.1-41 (392)

Quartz pebbles with traces of blue frit


AN1893.1-41 (400)

All from el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty


Flinders Petrie and EES excavations

24

Fragments of vessels inscribed with royal names


From el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty

Inlaid faience bowl with the names of Akhenaten and the Aten
AN1893.1-41 (472)

Figure71AN1893.141(471)

Inlaid faience vase with the names of Akhenaten and Nefertiti


AN1893.1-41 (471)

Blue glass vessel with white-filled incised inscription including the name of Akhenaten
AN1893.1-41 (484)

Figure72AN1893.141(485)and othersfromAmarna

Base of a blue frit bowl with the names of Amenhotep III and his daughter Sitamun
AN1893.1-41 (485)

25

Faience bowl decorated with lotuses in black; the glaze has not coated the surface evenly, perhaps because it was fired at too high a temperature
From Thebes; New Kingdom
ANFortnum C.1: Fortnum Collection

26

Blue and black spherical beads: the marks inside the broken bead show how it was formed on a ball of plant fibres
Provenance unknown; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.E.227: John Henderson Collection; AN1892.670: G.J. Chester Collection

27

Raw materials for making glass and faience All glass of this period was made of three raw components: a source of silica, a flux to lower the melting point of the silica, and a colorant.

Basic ingredients Silica, in two forms: sand (from the Wadi Natrun) quartz pebbles (from the Nile
valley)

Flux, in two forms: evaporite natrun (mineral name burkeite: from the Wadi Natrun) plant ash (from the annual shrub
Salicornia)

Colorants Deep blue: cobalt-bearing alum (pink veins of pickeringite in a siltstone matrix):
(from the Dakhleh Oasis)

Blue and blue-green: malachite (copper ore: from area 14001500, Armant; Predynastic)
Queens College Loan.1227: Mond excavations

Yellow and green: lead (with antimony) galena (lead ore), from grave G18,
Abydos (Predynastic)
AN1896-1908 E.923: EEF excvations

lead bar, from house N49.13, elAmarna (18th Dynasty)


AN1921.1147: EES excavations

Case 58 Rulers from Libya and Nubia


3rd Intermediate Period 21st25th Dynasties about 1070715 BC The end of the New Kingdom was marked by poor harvests, the loss of Egyptian influence abroad, and a gradual decline in central authority. The kings of the 21st Dynasty ruled Lower Egypt from Tanis, while the High Priests of Amun the Theban branch of the ruling family controlled the South. Rulers had increasingly relied on nomadic mercenaries from Libya to bolster the strength of the army, rewarding them with land in the Western Delta and Middle Egypt. By the 21st Dynasty, Libyan families had married into royal and priestly lines. They retained their clearly Libyan names, such as Osorkon and Shoshenq, and used titles which referred to their tribal groupings. Perhaps as a result of the nomadic background of the Libyan ruling class, burials in this period became less rich. Decorated tombs were no longer built, and New Kingdom tombs were often reused for mass graves. The coffin became the main focus of funerary attention. The yellow-varnished coffins of the 21st Dynasty are covered with vignettes of the hereafter, becoming in effect a miniature universe centred on the occupant. Female goddesses such as Sekhmet and Isis grew in importance, as did child gods such as the infant Horus. Metalwork became more complex; elaborately inlaid hollow-cast bronze statues were made in large numbers and exported throughout the Mediterranean, and iron was increasingly used for weapons. During the Libyan 22nd Dynasty, the power of the Nubian kingdom of Kush increased, and under Shabaka and Taharqa of the 25th Dynasty it took direct control of the whole country. The Nubian pharaohs were careful to minimize the shock to the Egyptians of being dominated by vile Kush. In many aspects they were more Egyptian than the Egyptians, ruling from the ancient site of Memphis, restoring dilapidated shrines, and creating works of art in an archaizing style recalling the work of the New Kingdom and the Old Kingdom. 1 Yellow-varnished coffin fragment painted with a sacred boat carrying gods, towed by human-headed ba-birds
Probably from Thebes; 21st Dynasty
AN1969.531

Faience ring with a projecting bezel, decorated with a seated child god
Provenance unknown; 22nd25th Dynasty
ANFortnum R.25: Fortnum Collection

Intense glossy blue faience is characteristic of the Third Intermediate Period. Large numbers of shabtis ideally, for each person, one for each of the 360 days of the year, and an overseer for every 10-day week were

found in the mass burials of the royal and priestly families of the 21st Dynasty 3 Faience shabti of Masaharta (a Libyan name), High Priest of Amun; faience shabti of Pinedjem, High Priest of Amun
From the royal mummy cache, Thebes; 21st Dynasty
AN1884.38, 60: Gift of Gaston Maspero, through J. L. Strachan-Davidson

Faience shabti of Amenemopet, a priest of Amun, and chief draughtsman of the House of Amun; nemset-vase used for pouring libations, naming the same man
Probably from Thebes; 21st Dynasty
AN1964.705, ANFortnum C.2; Fortnum Collection

Figure731964.705(left)and ANFortnumC.2(right)

Faience shabti of the divine adoratrice Henuttawy. This post sometimes translated as gods wife of Amun was held by a celibate woman of the ruling house. In the 3rd Intermediate Period it became second in importance only to the king; Henuttawys name here is enclosed in a royal cartouche
From the royal mummy cache, Thebes; 21st Dynasty
AN1933.502: Mrs G. H. Pope Bequest

Bronze shabti of the general Wendjeba-en-Djedet. An important member of the royal court, he merited burial in one of the chambers of the tomb of King Psusennes I at Tanis
From Tanis; 21st Dynasty
AN1956.313

Iron spearhead
From Lahun, tomb 602; 3rd Intermediate Period
AN1914.702: ERA and BSAE excavations

Fragmentary limestone stela. It contains an almost identical text to a complete stela now in the Cairo Museum. This was found during excavations at Medinet Habu in Western Thebes, the site believed to be the location of Djeme, the primordial mound and burial place of the Ennead (the nine deities of creation). The text records the Pharaoh Taharqas restoration

of the wall encircling the shrine of the Ennead. A number of orthographic peculiarities, such as the writing of plurals with three singulars, are very oldfashioned. The Nubian rulers used archaisms like these to ally themselves with the rulers of the past. The text: Regnal year 3 under the majesty of the Dual King Khu-Nefertum-Re, the Son of Re Taharqa, given life like Re for eternity. He made as his monument for his fathers the six [maybe a mis-writing of nine] gods of Djeme, renewing the wall which the ancestors had made for the six gods of Djeme, surrounding their temple with a brick wall, a splendid work for eternity. For His Majesty had found it fallen into ruin, so that one could enter and leave the holy place over its northern side. He made the holy place holy (again) for its lord, who gives him life, strength and dominion like Re eternally.
Probably from Medinet Habu; 25th Dynasty
AN1941.1132: gift of Sir Alan Gardiner

Serpentine shabti of Taharqa


From Pyramid I, Nuri, Sudan; 25th Dynasty
AN1922.23: Harvard excavations 1916-1918; gift of the Sudanese government

10

Leopards head pendant of blue frit, with a cartouche on the back containing the name Menkheperre one of the names associated with the Nubian ruler Piye (about 750715 BC), who asserted Kushite control as far north as Memphis
Provenance unknown; 25th Dynasty
AN1983.168: ex Wellcome Collection

11

Glazed steatite disk inscribed with the name and titles of Montuemhat. Mayor of Thebes, 4th Prophet of Amun, and chief steward of the divine adoratrice, Montuemhat held office in Upper Egypt during the 25th and 26th Dynasties. He kept his position during the Assyrian sack of Thebes and the advent of the Egyptian 26th Dynasty
Probably from Thebes, Tomb 34; 25th26th Dynasty


AN1879.349: Henderson Collection

Stamped clay funerary cone of Montuemhat. During the New Kingdom, tomb entrances were surrounded with clay cones inscribed with their owners names and titles. The custom was revived as part of the archaizing trends of the 25th Dynasty. The inscribed disk has been sawn off in modern times
From Thebes, Tomb 34; 25th26th Dynasty
AN1972.685: Norman de Garis Davies Collection

12

Clay funerary cone of Ramosi, great scribe of the king and overseer of the granaries of Taharqa
From Thebes, Tomb 132; 25th Dynasty
AN1972.196:Norman de Garis Davies Collection

13

Faience statuette of a hunchbacked man playing double pipes


Provenance unknown; 23rd25th Dynasty
AN1872.81: G. J. Chester Collection

14

Head of a Syrian (?) woman from a bronze statuette


Probably from Thebes; 25th Dynasty
AN1872.85: G. J. Chester Collection

15

Glazed steatite dyad of Ptah and his consort Sekhmet, gods of Memphis; bronze figure of Horus as a seated royal child; limestone statue of Seth, god of darkness and confusion; and faience vessel in the form of Taweret, hippopotamus goddess of childbirth
From Cemetery B, Riqqa; probably 25th Dynasty
AN1913.503-5, 789: BSAE and ERA excavations

Figure74AN1913.789

Case 59 Royal and Private Sculpture


New Kingdom to Late Period 18th30th Dynasties about 1540343 BC The boom in temple building during the New Kingdom was parallelled by an increase in the production of private sculpture. During this period, more private statues seem to have been placed in temples than before, indicating that the king had lost his role as the sole mediator between gods and mortals. Different types of statue stressed different aspects of the owners character; a scribal figure emphasized literacy, a standing image strength. Artistic styles changed considerably over time. Some kings had themselves depicted with what appear to be personal traits, such as the snub nose and full, smiling lips of Amenhotep III. Others, such as Seti I in the 19th Dynasty, and the rulers of the 26th Dynasty, found inspiration in the more formal art of the 12th Dynasty and the Old Kingdom, commissioning works in an archaising style. Private sculptures usually showed their owners with the facial type of the king. To the extent that this does not provide a physical likeness of the owner, they cannot be called portraits. The most important part of any statue was its inscription, without which the owner would be nameless and eternally denied recognition. A type of object that is unique to the Late and Ptolemaic Periods is the trial piece or sculptors model. Made of limestone or plaster, these generally take the form of small slabs carved in raised relief with hieroglyphs, single figures, or body parts. They frequently preserve proportional grids and preliminary drawings, and their seemingly incomplete nature suggests they may have been models used by sculptors. None has been found in what can be identified as a sculptors workshop, however, and the evidence of the few excavated pieces suggests they were votive offerings. The traces of the sculptors work plainly visible on these objects may have made them suitable for dedication, the creative work of their maker mirroring the creative powers of the gods.

Head of a man, from a life-size granodiorite statue. Only part of the owners name, Hor... is preserved on the back pillar. His titles, Hereditary Prince and Count, are not unusual enough to allow him to be identified
Provenance unknown; 18th Dynasty, reign of Amenhotep III
AN1958.344: A. G. B. Russell Bequest Figure75AN1958.344

2-3

Stone inlays. Wooden objects and the walls of important buildings were often decorated with scenes made of stone,

faience, or glass inlays. The red jasper inlay of a face has the distinctive snub nose and slanted eye of Amenhotep III. The grey steatite inlay is of the Blue Crown, a domed helmet-like crown frequently worn by the king in battle scenes
Provenance unknown; 18th Dynasty, reign of Amenhotep III
AN1896-1908 E.3734: Gift of J. L. Strachan-Davidson, 1903

el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty, reign of Akhenaten


AN1925.566: EES excavations

Steatite head and torso of a man. When complete, the statuette was likely to have shown the owner as a scribe, sitting cross-legged with a roll of papyrus in his lap
Provenance unknown; first half of the 18th Dynasty
AN1962.802: Gift of Mrs M. C. Radford

5-6

Two wooden statuettes of women, from burials. A slot in the cylindrical headdress of one may have held a mirror disc. This figure is shown naked apart from necklaces and a bead belt. The head of the other is shaven, apart from a sidelock of hair indicating her youth; her elongated skull is characteristic of representations from the Amarna Period and afterwards
From Group 4, Medinet Ghurab; second half of 18th Dynasty or 19th Dynasty
AN1890.936: Petrie excavations

From tomb E 167, Abydos, second half of 18th Dynasty


AN1896-1908 E.2581: ERA excavations, 1900

Quartzite head of a prince. The round wig with a sidelock identifies the owner as a Priest of Ptah, a traditionally royal post
Provenance unknown; 18th Dynasty, reign of Thutmose IV
Queens College Loan.1203

Figure76Queen'sCollegeLoan.1203

Fragment of a wig. Light and dark woods, partly plastered and gilded, inlaid with faience and cornelian. On the interior, rawhide thongs would have attached it to another piece. The elaborate diadem depicted on this complex piece of woodwork identifies its wearer as a king. It came from a coffin or life-size statue
Provenance unknown; said to come from the royal mummy cache, Thebes; New Kingdom
AN1933.618: Sayce Bequest Figure77AN1933.618

Mask. Plaster, with traces of paint. The function of this piece is uncertain, but it is unlikely to have formed part of a statue, since it is a finished object with no means of attachment to a body. It may have served as a sculptors model for a work in stone or metal
Provenance unknown; early 19th Dynasty
AN1933.895: Sayce Bequest

10

Head and torso of a woman from a pairstatue. Her husband, called a great craftsman on the stela-shaped reverse, would originally have been carved on her right-hand side. Their names are now lost, but his title, and the use of bright white limestone, may link it to the Theban tombworkers community of Deir elMedina
Provenance unknown; 19th or 20th Dynasty
AN1958.359: Gift of Mrs J. W. Cole

11

Granodiorite head of a king or god.


From the cenotaph of Seti I, Abydos; 19th Dynasty
AN1927.4103: EES excavations

12

Limestone head of a woman. In the eyes are remains of a blue frit inlay. Late Period female statuary on as large a scale as this is rare, suggesting that the owner must have been someone of considerable importance
Provenance unknown; 26th Dynasty or earlier
AN1967.849

13

Limestone head of a man with a diadem. Although the theatrically upwardgazing eyes are reminiscent of Hellenistic sculpture, the presence of a back pillar emphasises the Egyptian origins of this

piece
Provenance unknown; late Ptolemaic or later
AN1872.365: G. J. Chester Collection

14

Plaster-cast head, of a king or deity, with black guidelines visible by the ear. It was found with similar pieces and votive bronzes, possibly deposited during a clear out of a shrine. The crown is not completely carved
Baboon catacombs, Saqqara; early Ptolemaic
AN1971.99: EES Excavations Figure78AN1971.99

15

Trial piece goddess or queen. Limestone with remains of a grid, used to determine the proportions of the figure
Superstructures of the Bucheum, Armant; Ptolemaic
AN1929.416: Mond excavations

16

Trial piece, two swallows, limestone. The swallow represented the Egyptian word wr, great
Probably from Dendera; Ptolemaic
AN1892.1166: G. J. Chester Collection

17

Trial piece, goddess or queen. Limestone with details drawn in red and partly carved. The reverse shows part of the head of a king
Provenance unknown; Ptolemaic
AN1919.50: Gift of Sir John Beazley

Figure79AN1919.50

18

Trial piece of Harpocrates, limestone.


Probably from Koptos; Ptolemaic
AN1892.1161: G. J. Chester Collection

Case 60 The Cult of the Gods


Late Period 26th30th DynastiesPtolemaic about 71530 BC

Personal Religion
From the Late Period onwards, Egyptian religion showed a new personal emphasis on the relationship between deity and worshipper. A statue or object dedicated to the god in his temple was seen as a way of procuring a direct benefit for the donor. Sculptures of private individuals showed them piously kneeling to offer divine images, and thousands of cast bronze figures and models were made to be inscribed and dedicated in temples. Many of them have been found in large groups buried within the temple precinct; presumably the shrine itself had to be periodically cleared out to make room for more. Increasingly, the deities to whom these offerings were made were local gods, and there was also a new emphasis on the worship of sacred animals.

Bronze stand for an incense bowl, the foot inscribed in demotic with a dedication by Tawennofre, maidservant of the Ibises, asking that the great god Thoth the Ibis may give life to her children. The hieroglyphs incised on the rim of the stand repeat the wish for eternal life
From area H5 (Gallery 16 of the Falcon Catacomb, North) Saqqara; Late Period
AN1971.137: EES excavations Figure80AN1971.137

Painted wooden incense holder, model of the implement used for offering incense to a god, usually made of bronze. Holding the far end of the arm, the worshipper took pellets of incense from the central box and dropped them onto hot charcoal in the cup
Provenance unknown: Ptolemaic
AN1968.559

Figure81AN1968.559

Votive instruments and vessels Mirror, sistrum, and menit-necklace were associated with the cow-eared goddess Hathor, whose worship was accompanied by music and dancing. The sistrum was fitted with bars carrying disks which jingled when it was shaken; the menit necklace consisted of strings of beads and a counterpoise which served as a handle by which they too were shaken

Bronze mirror with a wooden handle


From area 5, bronze cache 5, Saqqara; Late Period
AN1971.103: EES excavations

Bronze sistrum with cat and kittens


Late Period
AN1971.445: ex Ingram Collection

Figure82AN1971.445

Fragmentary sistrum of glazed faience


From the palace of Apries, Memphis; Late Period
AN1909.1062: BSAE excavations

Copper menit-counterpoise
From Saqqara; Late Period
AN1971.143: EES excavations

Fragmentary menit-counterpoise, bronze inlaid with gold, (inscr. hgls.)


Provenance unknown: Late Period
AN1931.644: gift of Knox-Shaw

Bronze menit-counterpoise with the head and figure of Mut


Late Period (earlier?)
AN1964.287: Gardiner Bequest

Two bronze situlae (vessels for liquid offerings); one is decorated in relief with scenes of offering to Min and other divinities, and sun boats
From the sacred animal cemetery, Dendera; Late Period
AN1896-1908 E.2402 A,B: BSAE excavations, 1908-9

Demotic papyrus recording judgements against two men, delivered in an oracle given at the temple of Khnum at Elephantine. The papyrus was found rolled, with a clay sealing bearing the symbol of an arm and hand offering a cup of incense. One man, Petra, has offended against the god Osiris during his great festival: he became drunk on the wine intended for libations, neglecting the ritual and breaking the holy silence on the Abaton (the island where Osiris was buried). The other, the priest Petosiri, has built houses encroaching on the property of others. Petra must pray to Khnum for forgiveness, and Petosiri must demolish the offending buildings and perform expiatory cult-service
From Elephantine; Ptolemaic
AN1932.1159, Papyrus Dodgson: gift of the Dodgson family and Mrs Grosvenor-Talbot Figure83AN1932.1159

Cult servants and model equipment in bronze 7 Offering-bearers with cakes


Late Period
AN1888.169 (from Naukratis): EEF excavations AN1988.11 (provenance unknown): ex Pomerance Collection

Figure84AN1988.11

Kneeling figure pouring a libation from a vase, and a standing offering bearer
From Naukratis; Late Period
AN1888.168, 170: EEF excavations, 1885-6

Priest of Thoth carrying a baboon statue


Provenance unknown: Late Period
AN1971.943: ex Bomford Collection

10

Model offering table of bronze, with a kneeling worshipper, a frog (symbol of the New Year), and jackals


From area H5, Saqqara; Late Period
AN1971.125: EES excavations

11

Model staff-terminals: left and right, with the head of Khnum; centre, a Horus spear, showing the god as a falcon carrying the weapon with which he slew Seth
Late PeriodPtolemaic
AN1888.171 (from Naukratis): EEF excavations, 1885-6 AN1986.14 AN1931.587 (provenance unknown): gift of C. Knox-Shaw

Figure85AN1986.14

12

Aegis of Khnum, crown missing, the eyes inlaid with blue frit
From area H5, Saqqara; Late Period
AN1969.467: EES excavations, 1968-9

Sacred animals and reliquaries in bronze 13 Apis bull on a wooden sledge


From area H5, Saqqara; Late Period
AN1971.100: EES excavations

14

Apis bull, standing on a base inscribed in hieroglyphs with a dedication by a priest, the Singer of Osiris-Apis, HarmaKhoros
Probably from the Serapeum at Saqqara; 26th Dynasty
AN1879.332: gift of John Henderson

Figure86AN1879.332

15

Figure of the goddess Bastet, lionheaded, with two cats; the base is inscribed with a dedication by Paiuenhor, son of Pasherenbastet
Late Period
AN1971.1004: ex Bomford Collection

16

Animal reliquaries: model coffins for an ichneumon (empty) and a falcon (containing linen and mummified fragments)
From area H5, Saqqara; Late Period
AN1971.130,136: EES excavations

17

Basalt statue of a sacred bull


Provenance unknown: Late Period
AN1947.293: ex Cook Collection

Figure87AN1947.293

Case 61 The Greeks at Naukratis


Late Period 26th30th DynastiesPtolemaic about 71530 BC

Greek Traders, Mercenaries, and Other Foreigners in Egypt


Naukratis, on the Canopic branch of the Nile, was probably established in the time of Psammetichus I (664-610 BC) as a port of trade to enhance commerce between Egypt and the Greek world. The Greek historian Herodotus, writing in the fifth century BC, reported: In old days, Naukratis was the only emporion (port of trade) in Egypt. There was no other. At Naukratis, Greeks would have imported wine, oil, and metals, amongst other goods, while Egyptians exported foodstuffs and luxury items. The site includes several Greek sanctuaries, as well as a factory for the manufacture of faience. Other objects suggest a lively Hellenic culture which continued in Egypt into the Roman period. Under the Pharaoh Amasis (570-526 BC), Naukratis may have undergone some reorganization, but its primary purpose as a port of trade continued. Recent excavations have shown that Naukratis continued to thrive throughout the Ptolemaic Period. Outside Naukratis, Egypt maintained extensive contacts not only with Greeks, who often served as mercenaries in the army, but also with other foreigners, among them Persians, Mesopotamians, Syrians and Phoenicians, Cypriots, Carians, and Nubians. Finds of foreign objects at Memphis, Dafana, Karnak, and elsewhere testify to the attraction that ancient Egyptian learning and culture held for other peoples around the Mediterranean and Near East.

Clay jar sealing with seal impressions of Amasis


From the central fort, site 25, Tell Dafana; 26th Dynasty
AN1887.2506: EEF excavations

Trade and manufacture The faience factory at Naukratis suggests a trade in jewellery, and there was probably traffic in precious metals and luxury goods between Greece and Egypt. Oil and wine were principal imports 2 Bronze plate with floral device, once inlaid with enamel
From the palace of Apries, Memphis; 26th Dynasty
AN1910.540: BSAE excavations

Two silver rings, one showing a winged bull


From the temple of Proteus, Memphis; Late Period (? Persian)
AN1909.1091-2: BSAE excavations

Glazed faience hawk amulet, and pottery moulds from the scarab factory, for making faience beads; Nubian heads and an Egyptian amulet
From Naukratis; Late Period
AN1888.222, 216.a,b: EEF excavations, 1885-6; and AN18961908 E.4572

Basalt and bronze weights, based on a unit of 9.56 gm


From Naukratis; 26th DynastyRoman
AN1896-1908 E.3810, 3812, 3818, 3822, 3824, 3814, 3816: Hogarth excavations, 1903

Tridacna shell decorated with lotus, imported from Syria or Phoenicia


From Naukratis; Late Period
AN1896-1908 G.451: BSAE excavations, 1899

Greek religion at Naukratis The Hellenion, a sanctuary dedicated to the various Greek deities, was established jointly by several Greek cities, and there were separate temples of Aphrodite, the Dioskouroi, Hera, and Apollo. Offerings of statuettes were made following Greek custom. 7 Fragment of a Chian cup dedicated to Aphrodite; woman holding a bird, limestone; and part of an Egyptian-style figure of a woman holding a flower
From the temple of Aphrodite, Naukratis; Late Period
AN1888.218, 220, AN1886.463: EEF excavations

Votive terracotta figures: a kouros head and two women, one holding a feline
From the Hellenion precinct, Naukratis; Late PeriodPtolemaic
AN1896-1908 G.77, 75, 92: BSAE excavations, 1899

Rhodian cup
Found at Naukratis, perhaps from Camirus in Rhodes; 6th century BC
AN1987.61: gift of P.M. Fraser

10

Fragments of an East Greek vase with a Dionysiac procession


From Karnak; 540530 BC
AN1924.264: gift of A.H. Sayce

11

Sherds of Athenian (black figure and red figure), Corinthian and Rhodian pottery
From Naukratis; 6th5th century
AN1896-1908 G137.44, 138.31, 11.43, 119.14: D.G. Hogarth excavations, 1903

Greek theatre and cultural events

12

Wooden tablet inscribed in Greek, dedicated to the Dioscuri by M. Decrius Decrianus, an epic and lyric poet, celebrating his victory in a literary contest
Provenance unknown; 2nd century AD
AN1930.26: gift of Mrs Hunt, ex Grenfell Collection

13

Terracotta Silenus head and theatre masks


From Naukratis; PtolemaicRoman
AN1886.477, 478: EEF excavations, 1884-5; AN1896-1908 E.4770-1: probably from BSAE excavations, 1900, or Hogarth excavations, 1903

14

Silenus head of glazed faience, from a vase; and mosaic glass inlays showing theatre masks
Provenance unknown; Ptolemaicearly Roman
AN1960.725: gift of Miss P. Walker, ex Howard Carter Collection; AN1965.322.b, 322.a, 323.a: ex Spencer-Churchill Collection

Figure88AN1960.725

Figure89AN1965.323.a

Other foreigners in Egypt 15 Bronze statuette of the Assyrian divinity Pazuzu, with incised inscription in Aramaic or Phoenician
From San el-Hagar (Tanis); Late Period
AN1892.43: G.J. Chester Collection

Figure90AN1892.43

16

Faience plaque inlaid with a cuneiform inscription in Old Persian including the formula King of Kings
From Saqqara; Late Period
AN1933.720: Sayce Bequest

17

Syrian bronze statuette of a naked woman, head and arms missing


From Thebes; Late Period
AN1872.83: G.J. Chester Collection

18

Phoenician pottery: jug with a mushroom lip, and two-handled bottle


From el-Shaghambeh; late 9th7th century BC
AN1896-1908 E.3472, E.3470: BSAE excavations, 1906

19

Glass pendants in the shape of bearded heads, Phoenician


From el-Giza, and provenance unknown (larger head); 7th4th century BC
AN1896-1908 E.E.357: G.J. Chester Collection; AN965.292 (larger head): ex Spencer-Churchill Collection

20

Sherd inscribed with Phoenician characters


From the Hellenion precinct, Naukratis; Late Period
AN1896-1908 G.124: Hogarth excavations, 1903

21

Decorated tridacna shells, imported from Syria or Phoenicia


From Memphis; Late Period
AN1910.527, AN1910.526: BSAE excavations

22

Cypriot sculpture: bearded male bust, and limestone heads


From Naukratis; Late Period
AN1896-1908 G.70: BSAE excavations, 1899; AN1888.454, AN1886.460: EEF excavations

Bearded Cypriot head


From the Faiyum: Late Period
AN1884.363: G.J. Chester Collection

23

Cypriot eye jug


From Naukratis; 6th century BC
AN1987.62: gift of P.M. Fraser

24

Small perfume flasks, probably local imitations of Cypriot Black-on-red ware


From Tell el-Retabeh, and Thebes (smaller flask); Late Period
AN1896-1908 E.3468: BSAE excavations, 1906; AN1887.2571: G.J. Chester Collection

25

Nubian heads in pottery (a stopper), and faience


From Naukratis, and provenance unknown; PtolemaicRoman
AN1896-1908 G.97: BSA excavations, 1899; AN1966.1102: gift of J.D. Beazley, ex Warren Collection

Figure91AN1966.1102

26

Greek mercenaries at Daphnai and

Memphis Greeks were renowned as mercenary soldiers as well as traders. Distinctive scale-armour and weapons show their presence at these sites Iron scale armour
From the palace of Apries, Memphis; 27th Dynasty
AN1933.1435: Petrie excavations, 1908-14, bequest of Mrs G.H. Pope

Bronze scale armour, and five bronze arrowheads


From Memphis, Palace of Apries; 27th Dynasty From the palace of Apries, Memphis; 27th Dynasty
AN1909.1085, 1086: BSAE excavations

Iron scale armour


From the central fort, chamber 18, Tell Dafana (Daphnai); 26th Dynasty
AN1887.2504: EEF excavations

Two bronze flat arrowheads, and an iron spearhead


From the camp, Tell Dafana (Daphnai); 26th Dynasty
AN1887.2498, 2505: EEF excavations

27

Limestone false-door stelae with Carian inscriptions. Carians from Asia Minor served as mercenaries in Egypt from the late 7th century on, and these stelae in Egyptian style belonged to Carians who were apparently buried in a special cemetery at Saqqara
From area H5, Saqqara; Late Period
AN1971.106, 107: EES excavations, via the Griffith Institute

28

Inscribed limestone slab with a Hadrianic copy of a decree of Ptolemy I Soter (304284 BC) honouring the arrival of new Greek colonists; the Greeks continued to establish settlements in Egypt in the Ptolemaic Period
From el-Mansha (Ptolemais); reign of the Emperor Hadrian AD 117138
AN1987.56; gift of P.M. Fraser

29

Greek figures in terracotta and stone Woman (head missing) holding a bird, painted terracotta
From Damanhur (Hermopolis Parva); Ptolemaic Roman
AN1872.1051: G.J. Chester Collection

Limestone kouros, and woman on a

couch
From Naukratis; Late Period
AN1896-1908 G.69, G.1011: BSA excavations, 1899

Lyre player and horse and rider, limestone


From Naukratis; Late Period
AN1896-1908 G.71, G.1007: Hogarth excavations, 1903

Figure92Cases60to64;above,copyofapaintinginthetombofRamose(about1390 1350BC),showinghisfuneralprocession;temperacopybyNinaDavies,AN1991.1

Case 62 Magic and Religion


Late Period 26th30th Dynasties, Ptolemaic and Roman about 715 BCAD 395 Egypt was renowned in ancient times as the home of magic. Amulets, figurines, and written spells were used to protect the individual, cure illness, or attract love. The most complex images and ritual objects were produced in the thousand years from the beginning of the Late Period until the coming of Christianity. Amulets and figurines were generally used in a more personal context than the kind of objects dedicated in major cult temples. But religion and magic were closely interrelated, and divinities such as Isis or Thoth were credited with magic powers. Their supernatural deeds were the subject of stories, and their help could be sought to deal with problems in real life. The hippopotamus Taweret (her name means The Great One), and the dwarf Bes were the particular protectors of children and pregnant women. Lion-faced and armed with a knife, Bes the fighter was considered a powerful defender against harm; in the Roman period he was portrayed as a soldier. The music-making and dancing with which he was associated were also a means of driving away harm.

Horus stelae, for protection and healing. When the child Horus was bitten by a scorpion, Thoth conjured the poison out. The stelae show Horus standing on crocodiles and holding other harmful animals, under the apotropaic mask of Bes. 1 Fragmentary limestone statuette of a priest holding a Horus-stela: the figure was probably set in a basin, so that water poured over the stela could be collected and used to cure snake or scorpion bites
Probably from Sais; 26th Dynasty
AN1990.60

Figure93AN1990.60

Fragmentary Horus-stela of limestone, incised on the base with a scene of Horus as a charioteer hunting lions, ibexes, and

scorpions
Provenance unknown; 3rd Intermediate Period or later
AN1967.1157

Horus-stela of tamarisk wood


Provenance unknown; Ptolemaic or later
AN1874.279.a: Christy Collection

Miniature Horus-stela of steatite, inscribed on the back with a magic spell


Provenance unknown; 26th Dynasty
AN1983.184: ex Wellcome Collection

Figure94AN1983.184

Faience figure of the dwarf god PtahPataikos as Horus-on-the-crocodiles, protected by winged figures of Isis and Nephthys
Provenance unknown; Late PeriodPtolemaic
AN1965.183: ex Spencer-Churchill Collection

The hippopotamus Taweret, red jasper, standing on a base of limestone inscribed with a dedication by a man named Paweher(?)
Provenance unknown; 26th Dynasty
AN1923.662: gift of Almina, Countess of Carnarvon

Figure95AN1923.662

Bes the fighter Miniature stela of limestone


From Benha; Late Period
AN1878.47: G.J. Chester Collection

Terracotta figures of Bes as a Roman soldier


AN1890.643 (from Abydos): G.J. Chester Collection; AN18961908 E.3716 (from Alexandria): gift of Margaret Murray

Magical statuette of black serpentine: the upper part of a man who may have been holding a stela or divine image. His shoulders are inscribed with spells, and he wears a pendant disk with the image of

a solar god
Provenance unknown; Ptolemaic
AN1896-1908 E.3465

Heart amulet of haematite, inscribed with a djed-pillar of Osiris on the front, and Greek letters on the back
Provenance unknown; Ptolemaic
AN1892.1197: G.J. Chester Collection

Faience pendant in the shape of a composite divinity with attributes of the gods Bes, Min and Anubis, bird and scarab wings and a crocodile tail
Provenance unknown; Late PeriodPtolemaic
AN1964.702: ex Brummer Collection

Figure96AN1964.702

Bronze statuette of a dwarf baboonheaded divinity wearing the atef-crown of Osiris and bird wings
Provenance unknown; Late PeriodPtolemaic
AN1865.172: ex Spencer-Churchill Collection

Limestone bust of Isis with a hole for the addition of a headdress


Provenance unknown, possibly made outside Egypt; late 2nd early 3rd century AD
AN1970.358

Votive libation dish of steatite with a bust of Isis


From Thebes; Roman
AN1941.1250: Evans Bequest

Gold armlet with a bust of Isis in a medallion


From the temple area, Tukh el-Qaramus; early Ptolemaic
AN1926.98: C.C. Edgar excavations, 1906; Grenfell Bequest Figure97AN1926.98

Isis nursing the young Horus, bronze figure on a wooden throne and base inscribed in hieratic
From bronze cache 2, area H5, Saqqara; Late Period
AN1971.101: EES excavations

Horus as a child, bronze


From bronze cache 2, area H2, Saqqara; Late Period
AN1971.102: EES excavations Figure98AN1971.101

10

Harpocrates with the club of Herakles and the atef-crown, bronze


Provenance unknown; Roman
AN1973.569

Figure99AN1973.569

11

Terracotta figure of Isis nursing Harpocrates


Provenance unknown; Roman
AN1887.256: G.J. Chester Collection

Harpocrates in the doorway of a shrine with festive garlands, terracotta with traces of paint
Provenance unknown; Roman
AN1889.934: G.J. Chester Collection

12

Osiris Canopus, terracotta


Probably from Hawara; Roman
AN1889.1240: gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Isis with the attributes of Thermuthis, cobra goddess of the harvest; terracotta
Provenance unknown; 2nd3rd century AD
AN1956.959: ex Ingram Collection

Figure100AN1956.959

Isis and Serapis as snake-divinities, guardians of the prosperity of Egypt; sunk relief in limestone
From Naukratis; Roman
AN1888.257: EEF excavations

13

Harpocrates as a priest carrying the image of Osiris Canopus, terracotta


Provenance unknown; Roman
AN1982.1111: Crowfoot Bequest

14

Limestone bust of Serapis, and terracotta heads of the god wearing the modius (corn-measure) headdress PtolemaicRoman
AN1964.301 (provenance unknown): Gardiner Bequest; AN1872.413 (from Alexandria): G.J. Chester Collection; AN1982.899 (provenance unknown): ex Wellcome Collection

Serapis enthroned as Jupiter: pottery lamp handle


Provenance unknown; Roman
AN1948.62

15

Votive libation dishes of steatite, with Isis, Serapis and Horus


Roman
AN1891.501 (provenance unknown): G.J. Chester Collection; AN1932.661 (provenance unknown): gift of Sir John Beazley; AN1941.1251-2 (from Thebes): Evans Bequest

16

Pottery lamps with busts of Isis and Serapis above an altar; and a bust of Serapis on the handle Roman
AN1967.280 (provenance unknown); AN1888.770 (from Hawara): Flinders Petrie excavations

Case 63 Greek and Roman Faience and Glass


Ptolemaic Roman Periods 332 BCAD 395 During the Ptolemaic and Roman Periods, there were industrial-scale facilities producing faience, a glazed ceramic for which Egypt was famous. A wide variety of colours and techniques were used; many vessels were given a raised or relief decoration, which was produced in a multi-part mould, in just the same way as modern cups and saucers are made. After moulding, the faience was painted and stacked, each item separated from its neighbours in the stack by small clay cones, called stilts, to stop them sticking to each other. The stacks were then put into large vessels known as saggars, and a number of these saggars placed in the kiln and fired. Sometimes accidents happened in the kiln perhaps it was too hot, or something broke in the heating. This created large collapses, breaking the saggars and the faience; since they were so hot, they fused together and to the kiln floor. These wasters then had to be chipped off the floor of the kiln, and were thrown away. Great piles of wasters are often found in excavations of ceramic workshops. The glass of this period was different to that produced in the New Kingdom, both in raw materials and style. All Roman glass is made from a soda-rich mineral known as natrun, the major source of which is thought to have been the Wadi Natrun in Egypt. Egypt was therefore very important to the Roman glass industry, and several large factories were built. Two major developments in glassmaking occurred in this period. The more important was the invention of glass blowing, making the rapid production of glass vessels possible for the first time. Secondly, mosaic glass was invented: a picture or pattern was made up of large rods of glass, fused together and then drawn into a long thin rod, the design thus becoming smaller and smaller.

Glazed faience vessels, statuettes and amulets 1 Canopic jar, djed-pillar amulets and wing-appliqus, with traces of gilding on the larger wings
From cemetery E, tomb 460, Abydos; Ptolemaic
AN1912.528-533: EEF excavations

Canopic jar with a hawk-headed lid


From cemetery G, Abydos; 30th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.3462: EEF excavations, 1900

Thoth as a baboon holding a wedjat-eye; and an openwork wedjat-eye bead


Provenance unknown; Late Period and Ptolemaic
AN1964.288: Gardiner Bequest; AN1950.167

Amuletic figures: Taweret holding a sasign; seated Osiris; Ptah; and the dwarf Ptah-Pataikos
Provenance unknown; Late Period
AN1965.177, AN1965.181; AN1965.179: ex Spencer Churchill Collection; AN1933.1441, Pope Bequest

Figure101AN1965.177

Figure102AN1933.1441

Plaque in the shape of a hawk


Provenance unknown; PtolemaicRoman
AN1938.307: gift of A.H. Bird

Plaque of blue frit with cartouches containing the names of Apries (ruled 589570 BC)
Provenance unknown; 26th Dynasty
AN1991.293: ex Ernest Brummer Collection

Cartouche-shaped plaque with the name of Philip Arrhidaeus


From the foundation deposit of the temple, Tukh el-Qaramus; 323316 BC
AN1888.239: EES excavations

Figure103AN1888.239

Plaque with a centaur hunting deer


From Akhmim; Ptolemaic
AN1889.505: G.J. Chester Collection

Locust with feline features, and cockerel


Provenance unknown; Late Period and Ptolemaic Roman
AN1965.178: ex Spencer-Churchill Collection; ANFortnum C.9:


Fortnum Collection

10

Head of an oriental
Provenance unknown; Ptolemaic
AN1966.1100: gift of Sir John Beazley

11

Vase with appliqu decoration of leaves


Provenance unknown; 1st century AD
AN1978.739: Reitlinger Bequest

Figure104AN1978.739

12

Ring decorated in relief with a wreath of leaves


From Thebes; PtolemaicRoman
AN1939.90: gift of P.E. Newberry

13

Alabastron of opaque blue glass


Provenance unknown; Late Period
AN1975.419: gift of John Bryson

14

Mosaic glass inlays with Egyptian motifs, including the arm of a figure wearing patterned textile, and a pleated kilt; and classical motifs
Provenance unknown (except for E.3739); Late PeriodRoman
AN1965.321, 324, 318, 320.a: ex Spencer-Churchill Collection; AN1983.166: ex Wellcome Collection; Oldfield coll. 24; AN1896-1908 E.3739 (from Behnesa): EEF excavations, 1903; Oldfield Collection 26; AN1965.323.b, ex Spencer-Churchill Collection

Figure105AN1965.321

Figure106AN1965.324

15

Bars of mosaic glass for slicing into inlays


Provenance unknown; PtolemaicRoman
AN1965.314.a,b: ex Spencer-Churchill Collection

16

Bowls of mosaic glass


Provenance unknown; PtolemaicRoman
AN1945.7-8

17

Fragments of moulded bowls


Provenance unknown, PtolemaicRoman
AN1925.666: gift of F.Ll. Griffith; AN1927.6214.f, 6214.j, 6215: John Evans Collection

18

Plaque of mosaic glass with lotus and other flowers


From Ihnasya; PtolemaicRoman
AN1910.481: EEF excavations, 1904

Figure107AN1910.481

19

Fragment of engraved glass dish


From Thebes; Roman
AN1939.96: gift of P.E. Newberry

20

Glass lens
From Akhmim; Roman
AN1890.493: G.J. Chester Collection

21

Pharaoh making an offering: glass inlays, probably for the decoration of a wooden shrine
From a tomb at el-Lahun; Late Ptolemaic early Roman
AN1896-1908 E.3745: EEF excavations, 1902

Material from the Memphis faience kilns 22 Pottery stand for a saggar, luting strips for sealing a saggar
AN1910.568 (Kom Hellul kilns); AN1910.528 (unidentified kiln)

Bowl with stilt marks, and clay stilts for supporting vessels
AN1922.79 (provenance unknown): gift of Arthur Evans, ex MacGregor Collection AN1910.534 (unidentified kiln): BSAE and ERA excavations

Wasters: pile of dishes, and two bowls


AN1896-1908 E.3749 C (Kom Hellul kilns)

Fragment of a jar lined with blue frit, and pills of blue frit
AN1910.567 (2), 564 A (Kom el-Qalama kilns)

Fragment of a saggar coated with glaze


AN1910.566 (1) (Kom Hellul kilns)

All from Memphis; PtolemaicRoman

23

Fragments of a marbled plate with stilt marks, a dish with vine border, and vase decorated in relief with a donkey laden with amphorae
From Memphis; 1st2nd century AD
AN1913.808, 802; AN1910.544 (Kom Hellul kilns): BSAE and ERA excavations

Case 64 Alexandria
Ptolemaic and Roman Periods 332 BCAD 395 Alexandria was founded by Alexander the Great in 332 BC on the site of the Egyptian settlement of Raqote (Rhakotis). A natural harbour, located on the Nile Delta, it was developed as Egypts major port. Its lighthouse, Pharos, was one of the wonders of the ancient world. From 305 BC, Egypt was ruled by the Ptolemaic kings and queens descended from Ptolemy, one of Alexanders generals. After the Battle of Actium in 31 BC and Cleopatras death in 30 BC, it became part of the Roman Empire, and a key source for its grain. Alexandrias harbours were perfectly located for Roman trade between the Mediterranean and the Nile Valley, overland to the Red Sea, and on to India. The city became the second largest of the Roman Empire. During the fourth century AD, Christianity became increasingly wellestablished in Alexandria. The last major pagan temple, the temple of Serapis, was closed in 391. Alexandria had a grid plan typical of a Greek city, and a colonnaded main street. Although it had buildings indicative of a Greek cultural life, such as its famous Museum and Library, the Egyptians influenced other aspects of the citys culture, such as religion and architecture. Many of the material remains are an amalgam of Egyptian and Greek or Roman features; others are distinctly one or the other. 1 Coins of the Citys Greek Rulers Alexander the Great (332323 BC) Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285246 BC) and Arsinoe II (d.270 BC) Ptolemy III Euergetes I (246221 BC) Ptolemy IV Philopator (221205 BC) Ptolemy V Ephiphanes (205180 BC) Ptolemy I Soter I (305285 BC) Arsinoe II, wife of Ptolemy II (d.270 BC) Berenice II, wife of Ptolemy III (246221 BC) Arsinoe III, wife of Ptolemy IV (221205 BC) Cleopatra VII (5130 BC) Bronze coin of Ptolemy III Euergetes I (246221 BC) showing eagle on back

All British Museum electrotypes, except for Ptolemy I (HCR 1956.04.27.01 (14.09 g.): gift of Miss Jean Kirk) and Ptolemy III (HRC Douce 1001 (74.42 g.):Douce Collection)

Ptolemaic Queens Under Ptolemy II Philadelphus a royal cult was established for the worship of the Ptolemaic kings and queens, beginning with his wife Arsinoe. Faience libation vessels (royal oinochoai) with relief decoration representing a queen beside an altar were used for cultic purposes. The figures, made separately for applying to the vessels, often survive as fragments. 2 A complete figure and upper and lower fragments from three different vessels
AN1909.347 (from Alexandria): gift of A.J. Evans AN1892.1025 (provenance unknown): G.J. Chester Collection AN1896-1908 E.3720 (from Naukratis): Hogarth excavations, 1899

Figure108AN1909.347

Trade by land and sea 3 Pilgrim flask of St Menas, showing a boat


From Alexandria; 5th7th century AD
AN1889.81: G.J. Chester Collection

Stamped jar handles from amphorae used to ship wine from the Greek islands
Found in Alexandria; Ptolemaic
AN1872.503, 513: G. J. Chester Collection

Terracotta camels, saddled, laden with amphorae, and with a rider (head missing)
From Qift, Nag Hammadi, and the Faiyum; 2nd 3rd century AD
AN1921.1075: gift of F.Ll. Griffith; AN1892.1176 and AN1872.409: G.J. Chester Collection

Figure109AN1921.1075

Monumental City of Greeks and Egyptians Both traditional Egyptian architecture and the classical architectural orders were used in the monumental buildings of Alexandria 6 Model column capitals of faience: Egyptian papyrus and palm capitals (fragmentary necks from faience pilgrim flasks), and a model Corinthian capital
Papyrus and palm capitals: Late Period


AN1998.109 (provenance unknown); AN1933.143 (from Tell Basta): Sayce Bequest AN1887.2603 (from Karnak): G.J. Chester Collection

Corinthian capital: PtolemaicRoman


AN1989.138 (from Alexandria): ex Moustaki Collection

Limestone corner volute from an Ionic capital


From Alexandria; Ptolemaic or Roman
AN1896-1908 G.1204: gift of Mary Grainger

Coloured building stone from Egypt and the Mediterranean Onyx alabaster, and red porphyry from Mons Porphyrites, both Egyptian; green porphyry from Sparta; Carystian green from Euboea (Cipollino); grey granite from Mons Claudianus, Egypt; and Breccia di Settebasi from Skyros.
From Alexandria; Roman
AN1871.43: G.J. Chester Collection

City of the Living and the Dead As the modern city of Alexandria expanded at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, construction and roadworks revealed its ancient cemeteries. The tombs contained objects of daily life, like those displayed here. Early burials in the Ptolemaic city included cremations, following the Greek custom, as well as inhumation 9 Hadra vase for burial of the cremated bones of Nikostratos, a Chian envoy
From Alexandria; probably 209 BC
AN1920.250: gift of J.G. Milne

10

Pottery pyxis with a lid


Alexandria; 2nd century BC
AN1987.63: gift of P.M. Fraser

Faience Vessels Vessels of faience, a traditional Egyptian material, were made in shapes reflecting Greek influence, but their decoration combined Egyptian motifs, such as the god Bes, with classical ones, such as griffins 11 Fragments of faience vessels with moulded and bichrome decoration Bes-mask on a jar
Provenance unknown; Ptolemaic
AN1924.45: gift of F.Ll. Griffith

Bowl with horseman; neck of vase with a griffin; and lotus bowl with griffins flanking a palmette
From Memphis; Ptolemaic
AN1913.552, AN1913.809(1), and AN1910.549(2): BSAE


excavations, 1909-10 and 1912-13

12

Faience vase
Provenance unknown; Ptolemaic
AN1888.1455: ex Chambers Hall Collection

Figure110AN1888.1455

13

Bichrome bowl and lotus bowl, faience


From Memphis; Ptolemaic
AN1911.356, AN1913.793: BSAE and ERA excavations

Figure111AN1911.356and AN1913.793withsimilarbowl

14

Terracotta figures Alexandrian craftsmen depicted subjects from everyday life and the theatre, as well as mythology. Similar figures were also made in marble and bronze. Dwarf with a jar, riding a goose
Provenance unknown; PtolemaicRoman
AN1944.61: gift of J.D. Beazley, ex Gayer-Anderson Collection

Dwarf carrying a jar


From the Faiyum; PtolemaicRoman
AN1882.35: G.J. Chester Collection

Old woman with basket


From Hawara; PtolemaicRoman
AN1888.783: Flinders Petrie excavations, gift of H. Martyn Kennard

15

Pottery lamps, mould-made; the decorative motifs include a torch, and a lamp on a stand ranging in date from the 2nd to the 1st century BC:
From the Faiyum, attributed to an Alexandrian workshop;
AN1872.447: G.J. Chester Collection

provenance unknown, attributed to an Alexandrian workshop;


AN1948.255: ex Sydenham Collection

provenance unknown;
AN1889.1272: gift of H. Martyn Kennard

from Athribis;
ANLamp.245

provenance unknown, attributed to the Alexandria region;


AN1950.55: ex Rugby School Collection

from Alexandria;
AN1872.448: G. J. Chester Collection

City of Pagans, Jews and Christians 16 Ivory and bone panels and strips of beading, used to decorate wooden objects, such as boxes; the figure of Dionysus is carved on the panels panels and beading
from Shurafa, attributed to an Alexandrian workshop
AN1912.608, 610, 613, 611.a-e; 612: BSAE excavations, 1912

bone figure panels, one in reverse, showing the structure of the bone
AN1963.1395 (provenance unknown): gift of Helen Landon; AN1949.8 (provenance unknown): ex Cookson Collection AN1912.609 (from Shurafa: BSAE excavations)

All 3rd6th century AD

Figure112AN1912.608,610,613

Bone gaming pieces


From Alexandria, and provenance unknown; Roman
AN1884.205 and AN1892.870: G.J. Chester Collection

Incised bone roundel with bust of woman


Provenance unknown; 4th century AD
AN1892.874: G. J. Chester Collection

Incised inlay of a woman


From el-Sheikh Ibada (Antinoopolis); 4th century AD
AN1914.606: EEF excavations

17

Flasks of St Menas, from the pilgrimage church of Abu Mina, west of Alexandria, site of a holy water source. According to legend, the body of the soldier-martyr Menas was carried there by camels, which sometimes appear with him on the flasks. Other motifs shown in the moulded decoration include a Nubian head, equalarmed cross, and the Greek inscription Of St Menas. These flasks, found in large quantities in Alexandria, were also taken home by pilgrims from as far away as Britain
All 5th 7th century AD


AN1896-1908 E.3805 (provenance unknown); AN1891.117

(from Akhmim): G.J. Chester Collection;


AN1888.315 (provenance unknown):

G.J. Chester Collection;


AN1882.42 and AN1872.492 (from Alexandria):

G.J. Chester Collection

18

Roman and Late Roman pottery lamps: the moulded decoration shows motifs which reflect the variety of religions practised in Alexandria and the surrounding area, as well as purely secular features
1st2nd century AD:

rosette decoration; three-cornered form; and a racing quadriga


AN1871.120 (from Alexandria); AN1896-1908 R.323 (from the Faiyum); AN1872.1107 (from Alexandria): all G.J. Chester Collection

1st2nd century AD:

debased scarab motif; lamp handle with sacred cobra; lamp handle with bust of Serapis; a foot
AN1878.149 (from the Faiyum); AN1872.491 (from Tell el-Yahudiyeh); AN1872.487 and AN1872.1122 (from Alexandria): all G.J. Chester Collection

4th5th century AD:

debased frog motif; Jewish menorah; Chi-rho monogram of Christ


AN1872.1119, 1114, 478 (all from Alexandria): all G.J. Chester Collection

Case 65 A Beautiful New Year


Late Period 26th30th Dynasties, Ptolemaic and Roman about 715 BCAD 395

Festive and Everyday Pottery


From the Late Period onwards, there were many more foreigners in Egypt, as well as a great increase in imported commodities. A wider range of foreign pottery was present, together with stylistic and technical changes in Egyptian pottery. The kick-wheel was introduced by the Persians in the 6th century BC, to judge by representations of this improved type of wheel, which left the potter with both hands free to shape the vessel. Finer wares began to be produced as a result of better preparation of the clay. Amongst the profusion of vessel types, two traditional forms continued to be made, with contemporary modifications. The pilgrim flask which had appeared in the New Kingdom acquired a special function as a New Year flask, moulded in faience, with a decorative floral collar and a neck in the shape of a column flanked by baboons. Hieroglyphic inscriptions on the sides of these flasks expressed good wishes for the New Year an event which coincided with the arrival of the annual Nile flood in summer. Later moulded flasks in this shape bore surface decoration of a kind that might have been applied to leather water bottles, but they seem to have had a similar festive purpose. The association of the god Bes with vessels continued in the addition of modeled approximations of his facial features to jars. The black-glazed pottery produced in the Ptolemaic Period was especially suited to sculptural effects, and miniature moulded flasks were produced in the shape of heads, including that of Bes. With the coming of Christianity, this form of vessel was adapted for the new requirements of pilgrimage souvenirs.

Amphora from Chios, originally holding imported wine, with an incised mark
From area H5, Saqqara; late 6th century BC
AN1971.118: EES excavations

New Year flask of glazed faience


Provenance unknown; Late Period
AN1964.294 Gardiner Bequest

Jar with applied eyes and hands, in the style of a Bes-vase


From area H6, Saqqara; Late Period
AN1971.91: EES excavations

Jug of polished red-slipped ware


From Nabesha; Late PeriodPtolemaic
AN1887.2476: EEF excavations

Lamps
Probably from Naukratis; Late Period
AN1896-1908 G.1050-1: EEF or Hogarth excavations

Pottery torch-holder with remains of a charred torch


From area H5, Saqqara; Ptolemaic
AN1971.119: EES excavations

Brazier supports with moulded decoration in the form of satyr heads: broken from the rims of pottery braziers, where they served to hold the cooking-pot above the fire
From Naukratis; Ptolemaic
AN1896-1908 G.1139 and AN1888.182: EEF excavations

Miniature amphorae with moulded decoration


From Naukratis: Ptolemaic
AN1896-1908 G.1014-15: Hogarth excavations,1903

New Year flask of black-glazed pottery


Provenance unknown; Ptolemaic
AN1889.1236: gift of H. Martyn Kennard

10

Moulded black-glazed pottery: flasks in the form of Bes-heads, double female heads, and the neck of a flask with male and female heads
From Qift (Koptos), and provenance unknown; Ptolemaic
AN1892.1090-91: G.J. Chester Collection; AN1954.91: gift of Mrs Bowden-Smith; AN1966.1063: gift of Sir John Beazley

11

Pottery incense-burner in the shape of an altar


From Hawara; 2nd3rd century AD
AN1888.780: Flinders Petrie excavations, gift of H. Martyn Kennard

12

Cup with ring handles, decorated with a festive dancer; one of a small group of such bowls, made of fragile ware, possibly for funerary use
From the Osireion, Abydos; 1st2nd century AD
AN1926.212: EES excavations

13

Base of a red slip bowl with stamped decoration


From Oxyrhynchus; 5th century AD
AN1938.742.a: Grenfell and Hunt Collection

14

Base of a red slip bowl stamped with a Chi-Rho monogram surrounded by cord circles


Provenance unknown; 5th century AD
AN1892.1054: G.J. Chester Collection

15

Painted pottery flask in the shape of a mans head, associated with the pilgrimage shrine of St Menas
From Alexandria; 6th7th century AD
AN1872.1078: G.J. Chester Collection

16

Painted wooden vase, perhaps a cosmetic jar


From the Faiyum, probably Fag el-Gamus; 4th5th century AD
AN1896-1908 E.3657: EEF excavations, 1902

17

Water-jar with integral strainer, decorated with scenes of love-making


From Antinoopolis; 6th7th century AD
AN1914.627: EEF excavations

18

Fish plate, possibly made for liturgical use


Provenance unknown; 6th7th century AD
AN1972.1745

Figure113AN1971.1745

Figure114Cases63to66

Case 66 Christianity and the Coptic Church


Late Roman and Christian Egypt AD 284 onwards The Christian religion began to attract followers in Egypt during the first century AD, but its progress was marked by phases of persecution. This reached a peak under the Emperor Diocletian in the late 3rd century, but ended with the acceptance of Christianity in the Roman Empire under Constantine. By the late fourth century, it was the Christians of Alexandria who were taking aggressive action against the pagans. Egypt was celebrated as the first home of monasticism, the creation of St Antony the Great, who was born in the mid-third century. Visitors travelled from afar to see the desert monasteries and hermits, and also the great pilgrimage church of St Menas, west of Alexandria. Later, mediaeval pilgrims to the Holy Land would pause in Cairo to see the sites traditionally connected with the childhood of Christ, brought to Egypt by Mary and Joseph to escape Herods persecution. After the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451, the church in Egypt distanced itself from the Christian majority over the question of the single or dual nature of Christ. It retains its distinctive character to the present day. In daily life the Coptic language, the last form of native Egyptian, was gradually supplanted by Arabic from the later seventh century on, but it is still used in church liturgy. Church furnishings and metalwork display features of form and decoration which go back to the earliest Christian art in Egypt.

Parts of a wooden cross inscribed in Greek, In peace was laid the soul of Peter
Probably from the cemetery at Hawara; 4th5th century
AN1888.762: gift of Flinders Petrie

Small pendant crosses of lead, bronze, rock crystal, mother of pearl, wood and bone (in the shape of an ankh-sign); a bronze cross in the shape of the Chi-Rho monogram and two rings with pendant bronze crosses; the smaller also has a bronze coin (a follis of Constantine, AD 325330)
4th7th century
AN1891.522 (provenance unknown): G.J. Chester Collection; AN1982.67 (from Thebes): Crowfoot Bequest; AN1933.690 (provenance unknown): Sayce Bequest; AN1891.178 (from Akhmim); AN1933.689: Sayce Bequest; and AN1887.2716 (from Medinet Habu): G.J. Chester Collection; AN1935.38 (from Medinet Habu): Sayce Bequest; AN1982.75-76 (from Thebes): Crowfoot Bequest

Wing of a triptych, showing an angel; paint and gilding on plastered wood


Provenance unknown; 6th7th century
AN1884.367: G.J. Chester Collection

Figure115AN1884.367

Carved bone pendant in the shape of a stela, showing a saint on horseback spearing a crocodile
From Akhmim; 5th7th century
AN1891.182: G.J. Chester Collection

Pottery pilgrim-flasks showing St Menas flanked by camels, and riding on a horse


From Alexandria (larger flask) and Cairo; 5th7th century
AN1933.717: Sayce Bequest; AN1892.676: G.J. Chester Collection

Figure116AN1933.717

Front of a woollen tunic, tapestry-woven with a pendant cross, praying figures, and busts of saints in medallions
Provenance unknown; 7th8th century
AN1968.563

Figure117AN1968.563

Pottery ostracon inscribed in Coptic with a hymn to Jesus: Alleluia! Praise the Lord, Call upon his holy name! Alleluia! Praise the Lord! For he is a saviour, And his goodness endures for ever... The hymn is reminiscent of the Psalms
Possibly from Thebes; 6th8th century
AN1923.664 (CO 25): gift of W.H. Buckler

Bronze hanging lamp and a lamp or censer, both with dedicatory inscriptions in Arabic
From Old Cairo (Fustat); 19th century?
AN1885.771-72: gift of A.J. Butler

Figure118AN1885.771,detail

Processional cross with the monogram of Jesus Christ in Coptic, and an Arabic dedicatory inscription, Reward, O Lord, those who labour in the Kingdom of Heaven; fan with a wooden handle, decorated in repouss with a pair of seraphim; and benedictory cross and spoon for administering the sacrament. All of base silver
From Old Cairo (Fustat); 19th century or earlier
AN1885.774, 773, 775-6: gift of A.J. Butler

10

Bronze pyxis, censer, and cruet for communion wine


From Medinet Habu; 7th century
ANFortnum B.202-4: Fortnum Collection

11

Eucharistic bread, stamped with crosses and inscribed Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal
19th century
AN1872.599.d (from Cairo): G.J. Chester Collection; AN1893.245 (from Aswan): gift of A.J. Butler

Case 67 Living in Roman Egypt


Daily Life
1 Multiple lamp, decorated with garlands
From the Faiyum; Roman
AN1872.486: G.J. Chester Collection

Fragment of wall painting, a womans head


From the Faiyum; 1st century AD
AN1888.343: G.J. Chester Collection

Pottery inkwell, reed pen and miniature wooden writing board on a card
Provenance unknown; Ptolemaic-Roman
AN1950.139: gift of Mr and Mrs A.J. Forster AN1935.98.a: gift of Mrs A.S. Hunt AN1896-1908 E.3671 Figure119AN1935.98.a,and AN1950.139andasimilarpen

Faience tray and decorated ivory hairpin


From Oxyrhynchus and provenance unknown; 1st-2nd century AD
AN1896-1908 E.3301; AN1891.485: G.J. Chester Collection

Earrings: hoop with hooks for fastening to the ear, threaded with pearls and beads of beryl, gold; and a hoop with hooked fastening, threaded with pearls, beryl, gold beads with granulated decoration, and coiled wire
From Giza and Saqqara; 2nd century AD
AN1873.122.g, .h and .i: G.J. Chester Collection

At the Races 6 Charioteer, fragmentary terracotta figure showing the upper half of a figure, wearing a leather corslet and helmet
From Hawara; 2nd-3rd century AD
AN1888.736: Flinders Petrie

Horse bedecked with garlands, terracotta


Provenance unknown; 2nd-3rd century AD
AN1975.422

Pottery ostracon inscribed in Greek with an order to deliver wine rations to five grooms, a started and a chaser 11 jars exactly, for six days; from a group of documents relating to Oxyrhynchus
From Oxyrhynchus; early 4th century AD
ANAshmolean G.O. 324

Nile landscape 9 Bronze crocodile, bronze figure of a dwarf gathering lotus in a papyrus boat, and a piece of mosais glass depicting lotuses
Crocodile: provenance unknown;
AN1986.13

Figure120AN1982.1120

Boatman (probably the terminal of a spoon): from el-Simbillawein, in the Nile Delta;
AN1982.1120, ex Fouquet Collection

Mosaic glass: provenance unknown;


AN1965.319, ex Spencer Churchill Collection Figure121AN1986.13

Depictions of Nile landscape were a popular decorative feature all over the Roman world, but like Chinoiserie in European art they bore only a passing resemblance to the real landscape and inhabitants of Egypt 10 Objects from the burial of a child in the Roman cemetery at Hawara The grave is dated to the second half of the 4th century AD by the bronze coin (Constantius II, Constantius Gallus Caesar, or Julius Caesar) found in the wooden box. The burial was apparently that of a girl; in addition to the selection of items shown here, it included a leather workbag full of dyed but unspun wool, bodkins, and lengths of reed hich may have been spools for taking spun thread; and a quantity of fragmentary clothing. Displayed here: wooden box containing dried lotus seeds and the coin; dolls teaset consisting of a copper bowl and base fragment of a

Figure122AN1888.813

Figure123AN1888.814,816,817

red slipware bowl (Eastern Sigillata A); a frog lamp with remains of burnt wick inside; painted terracotta fertility figure of a woman with hands in the praying position; rag doll made from scraps of tapestrywoven clothing, with real hair; a selection of leather and plant fibre (rush and palm-leaf) sandals from a total of eight pairs or single shows and sandals in the burial; and a bone amulet in the shape of an ankh-sign
From the cemetery at Hawara; 4th century AD
AN1888.813-14, 816-17, 812, 818; selected footwear from the group 804-810; 815:gift of H.M. Kennard, from Flinders Petries excavations

Figure124AN1888.818

Figure125AN1888.815

Figure126AN1885.809

11

Toy bird, carved of wood, with a pair of solid wheels attached by pegs; a cord or thong with which to pull it along could have been threaded through the holes in its head
From the cemetery at Hawara; late Roman
AN1888.763: Flinders Petrie excavations

Case 68 I am a good scribe for my Lord...


1 Statue of a priest of Thoth, carrying a baboon The god Thoth was associated with wisdom, writing, and the moon. The priest who dedicated this limestone statue served in Thoths main temple at Ashmunein. He wears a priestly leopard skin and carries a bag of scribal tools. The baboon is one of two animals, along with the ibis, that were sacred to Thoth
Probably from Ashmunein; 19th Dynasty
AN1961.536: purchased with grants from the National Art Collections Fund and the France Fund Figure127AN1961.536

Statuette of a baboon, gilded haematite


Provenance unknown; Late Period
AN1971.1158: ex Bomford Collection

Statuette of Thoth, faience. Thoth was usually depicted with a human body and the head of an ibis, one of his sacred animals
Provenance unknown; Late Period
AN1964.286: Gardiner Bequest, ex Grenfell Collection

Bronze statue of Imhotep reading from a papyrus roll. Imhotep, who was responsible for planning the Step Pyramid of King Djoser in the 3rd Dynasty, was worshipped in later times as a god of healing and wisdom
Provenance unknown; Late Period
ANFortnum B.5: Fortnum Collection

Ptolemaic and Roman terracottas The terracotta figures produced in Egypt during the Ptolemaic and Roman Periods (305 BC AD 395) reflect aspects of daily life, including pets, furniture, the types of statuary that would have been seen in public spaces, and figures associated with popular entertainment, particularly comedy and sport

Figure128AN2004.635

Cat with collar and a bell


AN1889.1227: gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Painted goose
AN1933.430: Sayce Bequest

Female votary on an upholstered couch, her arms raised in worship


AN1921.1167

Maltese dog wearing a collar with three bells


AN1949.746: A.S. Hunt Collection

Figure129AN1987.189

Three satirical figures from Alexandria: a sheep (?) posing as a beautiful woman; an ass-headed teacher; and a victorious monkeyjockey
AN2004.63-5

Victorious Ptolemaic ruler, his horse rearing over an enemy


AN1987.189

Guardian statue of a herm in a cloak


AN1872.1037: Chester Collection

Case 69 Be a scribe...
Scribal schools were the main form of institutional education in pharaonic Egypt, and they produced the small elite (perhaps 1% of the population) who were literate. This education was exclusively for boys, and there is little evidence that any women were literate. Scribal training brought the prospect of a comfortable professional life, perhaps even high-ranking office. Amongst the classic texts that school pupils had to copy, several described the advantages and power that the scribe enjoyed. In the 12th Dynasty, the town of el-Lahun was home to the workmen, officials, and scribes involved in building and maintaining the pyramid complex of King Senwosret II. Excavations yielded many objects inscribed with official titles or stamped with the seal of the royal household, since the town was funded by the state.

Fragment of wood inscribed in hieroglyphs with the titles of an official named Ankhy
From el-Lahun; 12th Dynasty
AN1914.677: BSAE and ERA excavations

Stone palette with practice carvings of hieroglyphs, including a bee and four birds
Provenance unknown; New Kingdom
AN1933.325: Sayce Bequest

Model of a seated scribe, with a writing tablet on his knee; painted wood
From grave 268, Beni Hasan; Middle Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.4139: Garstang excavations, 1903

Figure130AN18961908E.4139

Mud was used to seal the mouths of vessels and rolls of papyrus. Stamped impressions identify the source of the contents, or the owner of the document 4 Mud cover from a jar, with three seal impressions
AN1889.1156: gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Two glazed steatite scarabs with stamp bases; an unfinished scarab seal, carved from limestone; and a

limestone stamp
AN1892.269; AN1914.63: G. J. Chester Collection; gift of Mrs. Twining AN1921.1402: BSAE and ERA excavations AN1889.1170: gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Mud sealings from papyrus rolls


AN1889.1157, 1164, 1161, 1169: gift of H. Martyn Kennard

All from el-Lahun; 12th Dynasty except steatite scarabs, provenance unknown; Middle Kingdom and 15th Dynasty

Fragmentary writing tablet made of wood covered with linen and plaster, and inscribed in hieratic
From el-Lahun; 12th Dynasty
AN1890.760: gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Pen case, known as a scribal palette, with reed pens in a compartment covered by a sliding door. Two circular wells hold black and red pigment. Red ink was used for drafts or to highlight parts of a document
From the burial of Neteruhotep, grave 75, Beni Hasan; Middle Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.1989: Garstang excavations, 1903

Figure131AN18961908E.1989

Limestone ostracon inscribed in hieratic with part of a text known as The Satire of the Trades. A father taking his son to scribal school praises the scribes profession by comparison with other, menial types of work
Probably from Deir el-Medina; 19th or 20th Dynasty
ANAshmolean H.O. 356: Gift of Sir Alan Gardiner

Case 70 Language and Script


Ancient Egyptian belongs to the Afroasiatic family of languages. In its written form over 4,000 years, the language went through several stages of evolution. Modern scholars have divided it into three periods roughly corresponding to the major divisions in chronology: Old Egyptian (the language of the Old Kingdom), Middle Egyptian (the classical language in which the texts studied at school were written), and Late Egyptian (used from the later New Kingdom on). Late Egyptian evolved into Demotic, and finally Coptic.

Demotic papyrus with a request for an oracle. A father asks the crocodile god Soknopaius: If it is my good fortune to give Tetiosiris, my daughter, as wife to Sebekmen son of Kriton, may this letter be brought to me
From Dimai (Soknopaiou Nesos), in the Faiyum; 2nd century BC
AN1968.31

Demotic script, corresponding to the linguistic age of that name, came into use in the 7th century BC. It continued to be used until the 5th century AD, in parallel with Greek, which had been the other standard language and script in Egypt since the Ptolemaic Period 2 School writing board, wood coated with lime wash. On one side dated March AD 544, the first and fourth columns have exercises in the syllabification of Greek words beginning with the letters delta and epsilon. In the narrower columns are multiplication tables for 4 and 5, beginning with 4 x 1 = 4. The exercises continue to the other side (dated a year later). The board was probably one of a set tied together
Provenance unknown; 6th century AD
AN1982.1119

School writing board, wood coated with plaster. Both sides are inscribed in hieratic with eight lines from the Hymn to the Nile Flood. One side also has three unrelated columns of vocabulary and some drawings: the head of a divine falcon, and a bee, plus details of a bees head
From Qurna, Western Thebes; 19th Dynasty

Figure132AN1948.91


AN1948.91: the gist of Sir Alan Gardiner

Other languages and scripts in Egypt 4 Cuneiform tablets from el-Amarna


About 1353-1335 BC

Part of a letter, probably from a Hittite king to the king of Egypt. Only the second half of some lines are preserved; they contain references to slander and someones murder. The cuneiform script was used to write various languages of the Ancient Near East, and the diplomatic archives at elAmarna contained tablets made and inscribed within Egypt, as well as sent from abroad
From building 19 (Record Office)
AN1893.1-41(408) (EA 43): Flinders Petrie excavations, gift of H.M. Kennard

Part of an Egyptian-Akkadian vocabulary, possibly written by a foreign scribe as an aid to learning Egyptian. The left-hand side contains Egyptian words, the right Akkadian, and the tablet is apparently made of Egyptian clay. The listed words include Egyptian equivalents to shekel weights, and household items: house, door, bolt chair, bed, table
From house O.49.23 in the main city
AN1921.1154 (EA 368): EES excavations

Wooden labels written with ink inscriptions (apparently personal names) in Demotic on one side and Aramaic (the administrative language of the Persian Empire) on the other
From the palace of Apries, Memphis; 27th Dynasty
All from the group AN1910.725-36: BSAE excavations

Jar labels Although potsherd and flakes of limestone (ostraca) were regularly used as cheaper alternatives to papyrus, some potsherds are simply inscribed with a record of the pots content or destination 7 Wine label on fragment of bluepainted jar; the hieratice inscription runs according to the usual Amarna formula, with a year date (missing) and identification, Wine of the House of the

Aten
From el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty
AN1893.1-41 (270): Flinders Petrie excavations

Label for a wedding present;top of a jar (contents unknown), inscribed in Greek Good luck to the bride and groom. Theodorus
Provenance unknown; 5th to 6th century AD
ANAshmolean G.O. 148

Written magic 9 Silver foil inscribed with a magical text for John, son of Benenata. The first six lines are written in Greek, and the text thereafter is a mixture of Hebrew and Greek, consisting of personal names and magical formulae. The foil would have been rolled up and placed in a phylactery, a leather pouch or metal cylinder which John kept on his person as a protective amulet
Provenance unknown; Roman
AN1921.1121: gift of J.G. Milne, ex Amherst Collection

Case 71 Scarlet and black


The draughtsmans art
Egyptian paintings and sculptures were made by a team of individuals responsible for specific areas of work. Quarrymen and stonemasons would provide a smooth surface to work on, and scribes composed the texts. The painting and carving of the decoration was the speciality of skilled sculptors and draughtsmen, who laid out the design with reed pens and two colours of ink. The first draught was made in red ink, which was then reinforced and corrected in black to produce the final design. Draughtsmen and sculptors often used the discarded flakes of limestone that littered building sites to try out ideas, to copy existing paintings, or simply to doodle on. Many of the decorated ostraca now in the Ashmolean were collected and given by the British epigraphers and artists Norman and Nina de Garis Davies, who worked on the recording of Theban tombs from 1908 to 1939. Some of their copies of Egyptian tomb-paintings are also on display in the Egyptian galleries. 1 Hieratic papyrus: a letter from the draughtsman Hormin to his father the draughtsman Hori. Hormin asks Hori to ...speak with the leaders, to call up that servant of yours, so he may give me a hand in the drawing: I am alone, for my brother is ill. Those of the right side have carved a chamber more than the left... This papyrus reveals how a decorative scheme (here, carving and painting a royal tomb) was usually executed. Two gangs of masons, draughtsmen, and sculptors - the left and the right would have set to work on opposite sides of the royal tomb. Hormin came from a family of draughtsmen; the posts were often passed on from father to son
From Deir el-Medina; 20th Dynasty
AN1958.112: gift of Sir Alan Gardiner

Limestone trial piece showing a beginners attempts at cutting the hieroglyph t (a semi-circular loaf and lips)
From the Great Palace, el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty
AN1937.867: EES excavations Figure133AN1937.867

Red ink drawing of a man with a shaven head or close-fitting cap. The surface is too smooth for an ostracon, and it is probably a preliminary sketch from a wall that was never carved
From Qurna, Western Thebes; Middle Kingdom
AN1945.63: gift of Nina Davies

Pottery ostracon with a sketch of a house. The plan shows, a series of rooms around a courtyard, is still used in Egypt today
From el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty
AN1936.644: EES excavations

Head of a man. His pursed mouth, shaggy hair and wispy beard may indicate that a specific individual is being depicted or caricatured
From Western Thebes; 19th20th Dynasty
AN1945.20: gift of Nina Davies

Head of a king or prince


From the Valley of the Kings, Thebes; 20th Dynasty
AN1933.804: Sayce Bequest

Figure134AN1933.804

Design for a ceiling, painted in black, red and yellow. Parts of the red preliminary drawing are visible
From Deir el-Bahri, Western Thebes; New Kingdom
AN1896-1908 E.2724: EEF excavations, 1904

A dog attacking an ibex. Scenes of the chase became popular in private

tombs of the 18th Dynasty; the depiction of animals in movement allowed the draughtsman more scope to depict poses based on observation
From Qurna, Western Thebes; 18th Dynasty
AN1945.14: gift of Nina Davies

Case 72 Living in the New Kingdom Music and games


1 Reed pipe, a hippopotamus ivory clapper (clappers were used in pairs, like castanets), and a fragment of a hippopotamus ivory wand incised with images of demons, used in casting spells to assist in childbirth. Percussion instruments, harps, lutes and lyres, and wind instruments have survived. Songs also accompanied the incantation of protective spells
AN1921.1433 (from grave 1805, Sidmant): BSAE and ERA excavations AN1912.527 (provenance unknown) AN1896-1908 E.2336 (from tomb E10, Abydos): ERA excavations, 1900

Figure135AN1912.527

Gaming pieces of faience and wood: one human-headed, one lion-headed gaming piece; a set of conical and domed faience gaming pieces; a throwstick with a canine head; and a painted pottery die. As well as being favoured pastimes throughout Egyptian history, boardgames had religious connotations: the successful passage of ones pieces across the board recalled the souls hoped-for entry into the underworld
AN1921.1267 (from grave 263, Sidmant): BSAE and ERA excavations AN1885.64 (from Thebes): G. J. Chester Collection AN1896-1908 E.2704-5 (from tomb D29, Abydos): EEF excavations AN1886.822.a (from Thebes): G.J. Chester Collection

Living in the New Kingdom Well-to-do Egyptians took with them to their tombs all the things associated with a comfortable lifestyle, which they expected to continue in the afterlife Personal grooming and dress 3 Curler, knife, and razor; bronze
AN1927.1296 (provenance unknown): Evans Collection AN1896-1908 E.2341-42 (from tomb E10, Abydos): ERA excavations, 1900

Bronze mirror with an ivory handle; bone hairpin; wooden comb


AN1913.393 (from tomb D226, Abydos): EEF excavations AN1896-1908 E.2696 (from tomb D29, Abydos): EEF excavations AN1892.654 (provenance unknown): G. J. Chester Collection

Ivory kohl-tube decorated with a naked woman; an ivory cosmetic tray in the shape of a bound ibex
From a deposit of bones and ivories in tomb 562, Qau
AN1923.621-22: BSAE and ERA excavations

Figure136AN1923.621

Figure137AN1923.622

Pink leather sandals; the upper straps are lost


From tomb N, Medinet Ghurab
AN1889.1068: Petrie excavations; gift of H. Martyn Kennard

Childbirth and nursing 7 Part of a polished red ware vessel, modelled as a nursing woman; possibly a container for milk
From Sidmant, grave 243; 18th Dynasty
AN1921.1290: BSAE and ERA excavations

Figure138AN1921.1290

Model of a woman lying on a bed; at the foot, another woman nurses a child. Such fertility figures of nude women have been found in houses,

and the tombs of men, women, and children. They ensured the pleasurable and successful production of offspring
From tomb 408, Medinet Ghurab; late 18th Dynasty
AN1921.1315: BSAE and ERA excavations

Case 73 Living in the New Kingdom: cosmetic vessels and jewellery


1 Broken travertine kohl-pot with remnants of kohl (eyepaint made of galena, a lead ore) in a reservoir much smaller than the pot - an old trick in cosmetic packaging
From tomb E143, Abydos; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2389: ERA excavations

Glazed steatite kohl-pot, carved as an inner tube and outer openwork shell
From grave E265, Riqqa; 18th Dynasty
AN1913.480: ERA excavations

Serpentine kohl-tube in the shape of a vessel held by a baboon


From tomb E10, Abydos; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2339: ERA excavations

Leather kohl-tube, and a wooden kohl-stick; wood kohl-pot and lid, inlaid with ebony and ivory and wrapped up in linen
From tomb 287, Beni Hasan; Provenance unknown; both New Kingdom
AN1950.210; AN1896-1908 E.2688: Garstang excavations

Kohl-pots of blue anhydrite, a hard stone used especially for containers like these
From tomb E 143, Abydos; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2384, 2386: ERA excavations

Bronze kohl-stick
Provenance unknown; New Kingdom
AN1933.937: Sayce Bequest

Ivory kohl-tube in the form of a papyrus-bundle column; ivory cosmetic tray


From tomb D29D, Abydos; 18th Dynasty
AN1896-1908 E.2688, 2678: EEF excavations

Wooden cosmetic tray in the shape of a duck


From grave 243, Sidmant


AN1921.1268: BSAE and ERA excavations

10

Steatite pair statue of the royal scribe and officer Huy, and his wife, Nay, a chantress of Amun. Nay holds a mandrake fruit and wears a lotus hair-band; these, and her revealingly-cut and pleated linen dress, emphasize her sexual allure
Provenance unknown; end of the 18th Dynasty
AN1964.296: Gardiner Bequest Figure139AN1964.296

11

Pierced ears became fashionable during the early 18th Dynasty, and a variety of earrings and ear-studs were worn. Larger rings with no visible means of attachment are also known; these may be ear-rings or hair-rings, twined into tresses. Blue glass and travertine ear-studs; two gold earrings; red jasper hairrings
AN1931.617 (provenance unknown): Knox Shaw AN1886.883 (provenance unknown): G. J. Chester Collection AN1962.792.a-b (provenance unknown): gift of Mrs M. C. Radford AN1933.39.c (provenance unknown): Sayce Bequest AN1890.1113 (from Gurob, burnt group 4): Petrie excavations

12

Inscribed bronze finger-ring; faience scarab with gold swivelmount


Provenance unknown; New Kingdom
AN1982.946: Wellcome gift, ex MacGregor Collection; ANFortnum R.5: Fortnum Collection

13

Faience necklace with beads in the form of lilies and the goddess Taweret
From grave 265, Riqqa; New Kingdom
AN1913.478: BSAE and ERA excavations

14

Faience bead in the shape of a frog


From el-Amarna; 18th Dynasty
AN1929.411: EES excavations

Figure140AN1929.411

15

Gold amulet in the shape of the falcon-headed god Horus


Provenance unknown; New Kingdom


AN1964.313: Gardiner Bequest

Case 74
The workmens village at Deir el- Medina
The craftsmen who worked on the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings throughout the New Kingdom lived in a compact village of about 70 houses, tucked away in a valley in Western Thebes. Thanks to the quantity of documents that have survived from the village, more is known about this small community than any other group of people in ancient Egypt.

Limestone ostracon inscribed in hieratic by the scribe Amennakht with two poems composed by him. The side exhibited contains a poem praising the city of Thebes: ...the bread there is finer than a goose-fat doughnut, her water is sweeter than honey.... The red dots above the lines are verse points, which were used to indicate rhythmic units in literary texts, possibly similar to linebreaks in a poem
From Deir el-Medina, Western Thebes; 20th Dynasty
ANAshmolean H.O. 25: gift of Sir Alan Gardiner

Limestone ostracon with a drawing of a man offering a loaf to a snake headed goddess suckling a child, a characteristic depiction of Renenutet, personification of the harvest and nursemaid to the divine king. She became associated with Meretseger and was also worshipped at Deir el-Medina
From Deir el-Medina, Western Thebes; New Kingdom
ANAshmolean H.O. 49: gift of Sir Alan Gardiner

Figure141HO49

Hieratic papyrus: part of a will made by a woman named Naunakhte, distributing her property amongst five of her eight children. She disinherits the three children who did not treat her well. The papyrus is dated to year 3 of Ramesses V (c. 1145 BC) and was written by the scribe Amennakht. His name appears in the eighth line on the right-hand side of this sheet,

Figure142AN1945.97(4)

where Naunakhtes heirs swear before the local tribunal to follow her wishes
From Deir el-Medina, Western Thebes; 20th Dynasty
AN1945.97 (4): gift of Sir Alan Gardiner

Limestone ostracon inscribed with hieratic signs, numbers, and unusual marks. These marks probably represent personal names, and the numbers record the amount of items (probably pots) made by or delivered to them. Full literacy was rare, but more people would have been able to make their mark, as shown here
From Deir el-Medina, Western Thebes; 20th Dynasty
ANAshmolean H.O. 1093: gift of Sir Alan Gardiner

Fragmentary limestone ostracon with a hieratic inscription recording the resolution of a dispute over a hut inherited by the workman Wennofer. The inscription is unusual in being incised and filled with blue frit, a technique used for formal hieroglyphic inscriptions. Perhaps Wennofer set this ostracon into a wall of the disputed hut like a stela
From Deir el-Medina, Western Thebes; 20th Dynasty
ANAshmolean H.O. 655: gift of Sir Alan Gardiner Figure143AshmoleanHO655

Model sandal of wood inscribed the Servant in the Place of Truth on the west of Thebes, the standard title for a tombworker from Deir el-Medina. The Place of Truth was the Valley of the Kings
From Deir el-Medina, Western Thebes; New Kingdom
AN1952.206

Limestone stela dedicated by the Servant in the Place of Truth Amenpahapy. The six serpents represent the cobra-goddess Meretseger (Mistress of Silence), who was associated with the Valley of the Kings. The stela may have been placed in a rockcut shrine along the path from Deir el-Medina

to the Valley of the Kings


From Deir el-Medina, Western Thebes; 20th Dynasty
AN1945.15: gift of Nina de Garis Davies

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