 |
|
Photo
Gallery
|
|
Statuette
of Tutankhamun, Provenance unknown, late Dynasty 18, reign of a successor
of Akhenaten (1332-1322 BCE), Bronze with traces of gold
Priests carried ceremonial boats in religious processions, and such
temple equipment could include separate elements, such as a royal
statue like this one. If complete, the kneeling king would face a
deity. The artist here has used the unusual material of black bronze,
and traces of gold remain on the king’s headdress and chest.
The statue would originally have had inlaid eyes and eyebrows. The
heavy hips and thighs, bodily curves, and elongated facial features
indicate that the statuette was created during a period of time when
Amarna styles still influenced artists and craftsmen. The general
shape of the face resembles that of Tutankhamun as seen on his other
monuments. Photo: Tom Jenkins. |
|
Statue
of Amun with features of Tutankhamun, Provenance unknown, possibly
Thebes, late Dynasty 18-early Dynasty 19 (1332-1292 BCE), Greywacke
Amun typically appears as a man wearing a tall, double-plumed headdress.
His tall headdress is missing from this statue, but his crown bears
traces of gilding. Amun wears the false beard of a deity, an elaborately
beaded broad collar, and a short kilt decorated on the belt with a
tyet-amulet, a symbol related both to the goddess Isis and to the
ankh, the hieroglyph meaning “life”. The god also holds
ankhs indicating his immortality. His hands, which have been intentionally
cut back, may represent a deliberate alteration to allow the statue
to fit into a shrine or a portable ceremonial boat used to carry it
in processions. Photo: Tom Jenkins. |
|
Monumental
Stela with Relief Scene of Royal Family with the Aten, Possibly from
Amarna, Dynasty 18, reign of Akhenaten (1353-1336 BCE), Quartzite
This rare monumental stela depicts the solar diety Aten as a disk
hovering above the pharaoh Akhenaten and his favorite wife Nefertiti.
The Aten’s rays descend toward the couple, each terminating
in a hand. Some time after the restoration of the traditional religion,
this stela was cut down, placed face down on the ground, re-inscribed,
and reused, probably as a base for a statue in the shape of a sphinx
for the later pharaoh Merenptah (1213-1204 BCE). Ironically, this
recycling accidentally preserved the decorated front of the stela
from total destruction. Photo: University of Pennsylvania Museum of
Archaeology and Anthropology. |
 |
Seal
of Amenhotep III , Provenance unknown, possibly Thebes, Dynasty
18 (reign of Amenhotep III, 1390-1353 BCE), Steatite
This seal takes the form of a prostrate king in prayer before the
god Atum, whose name appears between the king’s hands. The
inscription lists both the king’s birth name, Amenhotep, and
his throne name which he received upon coronation, Neb-maat-Re.
It also has the following titles: “The good god,” “Lord
of the Two Lands,” and “Ruler of Thebes.” Photo:
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.
|
 |
Seal
of Amenhotep III , Provenance unknown, possibly Thebes, Dynasty
18 (reign of Amenhotep III, 1390-1353 BCE), Steatite
This seal takes the form of a prostrate king in prayer before the
god Atum, whose name appears between the king’s hands. The
inscription lists both the king’s birth name, Amenhotep, and
his throne name which he received upon coronation, Neb-maat-Re.
It also has the following titles: “The good god,” “Lord
of the Two Lands,” and “Ruler of Thebes.” Photo:
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.
|
|
Statue
of an Amarna Princess, Probably from Amarna, Dynasty 18, reign of
Akhenaten (1353-1336 BCE), Limestone and pigment
Amarna art placed considerable emphasis on the six daughters of Akhenaten
and Nefertiti: Meritaten, Meketaten, Ankhesenpaaten, Nefernefruaten
Tasherit, Nefernefrure and Setepenre. These princesses appear in scenes
of the royal family worshipping the Aten and in domestic settings,
as well as in sculpture in the round. The identity of this princess
is not known. Photo: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology
and Anthropology. |
|
Relief
with Aten, Amarna, Dynasty 18, reign of Akhenaten (1353-1336 BCE),
Calcite (Egyptian alabaster)
This relief fragment shows the hands at the ends of the Aten's sun
rays, one of the deity's few visible human features. Photo: University
of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. |
|
Ring
Bezel, Amarna, Dynasty 18, reign of Akhenaten (1353-1336 BCE), Faience
Ring bezel decorated with the cartouche of Tutankhamun. Photo: University
of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. |
|
Figurine
of Ptah, Memphis, Dynasty 18, reign of Amenhotep III - Tutankhamun
(1390-1322 BCE), Polychrome Faience
Brilliantly colored and designed as part of a larger statue, this
figurine was likely set up in a shrine or temple at Memphis. The god
Ptah appears seated on a low-back throne, inscribed with the standard
epithets or descriptions of the deity. Holding a was-scepter, formed
from the hieroglyph meaning “dominion,” he wears a special
feathered garment over his usual mummiform costume – a feature
found on a few other representations of Ptah from the reigns of Amenhotep
III and Tutankhamun. This small masterpiece attests to the skill of
the workers in ancient faience workshops. Photo: Tom Jenkins. |
|
Statue
of Sekhmet, Thebes (Ramesseum), Dynasty 18, reign of Amenhotep III
(1390-1353 BCE), Granodiorite
As a warlike and protective goddess, imagery of Sekhmet often accompanied
the pharaoh into battle. With her fiery arrows, she could send plagues
and other diseases against her (and Pharaoh’s) enemies. The
Egyptians also invoked her to ward off or cure diseases. Some scholars
believe that a plague during the reign of Amenhotep III may have prompted
that king to erect numerous statues of this goddess as an appeal for
divine help. This Sekhmet statue is one of the less-common standing
types. Photo: Tom Jenkins. |
|
Statue
of Meryma’at, Thebes, Dra Abu el-Naga, late Dynasty 18 or early
Dynasty 19 (1332-1279 BCE), Limestone
Meryma’at was a barber in the cult of Amun. The inscription
on his kilt is a prayer to that god requesting offerings of food and
drink and a happy life for his ka, or life force. Barbers had an important
function in the temple, since priests had to shave their entire bodies
before performing rites. Originally a pair statue, the figure of his
wife has broken away. Her hand can be seen on his shoulder. The hieroglyphs
on his chest read “Amun”. The fleshy form of his body
reflects the Amarna style, influences of which remained even after
the period ended. Photo: Tom Jenkins. |
 |
Comb,
Amarna, Dynasty 18, reign of Akhenaten (1353-1336 BCE), Wood
Egyptians carved double-sided combs much like modern examples with
thick teeth on one side and fine teeth along the other. Ancient hairstyles,
especially those of women, were often quite elaborate. Combs like
this would have been used for both natural hair and for wigs which
were worn by both men and women. Photo: University of Pennsylvania
Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. |
 |
Molds,
Amarna, Dynasty 18, reign of Akhenaten (1353-1336 BCE), Ceramic
Excavators found a huge volume of faience and glass items, including
decorative elements like inlays for royal buildings in Akhenaten's
new royal city. This industrial activity helped support Amarna’s
economy. Thousands of faience molds, such as the ones pictured here,
attest to the massive output of small objects in that material. Some
may also have been exported and traded throughout Egypt. The popularity
of faience and glass at the time may rest in part on their shiny,
glittering, and dazzling surfaces, perhaps understood as reflecting
elements of the Aten.. Photo: University of Pennsylvania Museum of
Archaeology and Anthropology. |
|
