Turns out you can have your goose and eat it, but only if you can cook it first!

The blog post for this week is written by Sam Powell, a Masters student of Egyptology at Swansea University and Egypt Centre volunteer.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, then you may have seen my post back in July 2019 about a figure from a funerary model (W687) with a likely provenance of Beni Hasan (who I’m pleased to report has since regained his missing arm!). In the last six months, my research into the figures from funerary models has continued with lots of exciting developments (fig. 1).

Fig. 1: ‘Re-arming’ the funerary models

My MA thesis focuses on the Egypt Centre’s collection of figures from funerary models, and, with the Egypt Centre’s help, I have been trying to gather as much information about the figures as possible in order to try and figure out where and when they were made. We have made good efforts in reuniting several missing limbs with figures (fifteen arms, two feet, and one leg to be exact!). Thanks to a grant from AIM, the figures in question will be receiving conservation treatment at Cardiff University over the next few months, which will include reattaching missing limbs. Clues such as information on the Wellcome slips, old photographs in the object files, and examination in-person were all vital in this process.

 

Fig. 2: The squatting scribes

I have grouped together a series of five figures (fig. 2), which have thus far been referred to as the “squatting scribes”—a nickname I had given them due to their closely cropped hair and the left hand with a hole for holding what I assumed was a reed pen. Last week, as I was scrolling through images online, I spotted an image of a funerary model of a man roasting a goose on a brazier (fig. 3). I remembered seeing a “weird oar” (W699) in the box in the Egypt Centre stores containing arms and oars (and other “accessories”) from tomb models (fig. 4). Could the oar actually be a goose on a spit? Sure enough, the scale and type of wood seem to match our “squatting scribe” figures; who now may need to be renamed!!! We still can’t quite figure out why there’s a hole through the goose—any suggestions gratefully received. Ken used this object for “guess the object” on his Twitter feed.

      

Fig. 3: Figure now in Cairo Museum (CCG 245)

Fig. 4: “Weird oar” (W699), now thought to be a roasting goose.

Their Wellcome slips number from 114173 through to 114176. Whilst moving paperwork to the new archive room, Ken found a list of objects in case 6772 (fig. 5), which was likely made by David Dixon during his reorganisation of the Egyptian material in the Wellcome Institute during the early 1960s. This list also shows that 114172 was checked off as having arrived in our collection, thus meaning we now had five slips describing “figure of artisan”, all coming from the 1928 Sotheby’s sale of the Tabor Collection. These slips had been highlighted in my notes as not seeming to match the figures, in particular, the dimensions seemed out. Ken and I concluded that perhaps these sizes may have included bases on which the figures sat.

Fig. 5: List of figures in Case 6772 (126), Egypt Centre archive

Identifying bases for these figures can be really tricky; they’re often made of scrap wood, or reused material such as coffins, but we have several likely candidates in the stores that seem to fit the bill. With help from a measuring tape, we’ve managed to rejig the slips to correlate with the figures. Through the process of elimination, the elusive 114172 flimsy slip in all likelihood belongs to W446.

Fig. 6: Matching bases to figures with the help of the flimsy slips

Slip 114172 has a slightly different description than the other figures, being described as a “figure squatting before ? a milling stone”, which puzzled us slightly—was the millstone still there when the object was acquired? Does that mean the figure had a base to attach the millstone to? As we went through the “accessories” box, I noticed W697 and once again an image from trawling complete examples of funerary models popped into my head—this time of a figure in front of a brazier. The object was the right size and shape to be a brazier, and the texture of gesso on the top to represent the coals. It also has a peg in the bottom to secure it to a base—could the Wellcome cataloguer have mistaken a millstone for a brazier if the goose wasn’t in situ? Ken kindly, with his photography wizardry, managed to capture the reassembled scene (fig. 6)—figure (W446), an arm previously assigned to another figure (but which fits much better with this one), the goose (W699), and brazier (W697). We measured the scene as approximately matching the sizes stated on the flimsy slip (9" x 9 ½" x 4").

Fig. 7: The composite image of W446 roasting a goose

Although we can’t say for definite that these items go together (I need to continue researching to find more parallels), they do make a very sweet scene. I just hope we find the base!

Bibliography:

Borchardt, L. (1911) Statuen und Statuetten von Königen und Privatleuten I. Catalogue général des antiquités égyptiennes du Musée du Caire. Berlin: Reichsdruckerei.
Sotheby, Wilkinson & Hodge (1922) Catalogue of the MacGregor Collection of Egyptian Antiquities. London: Davy.

——— (1928) Catalogue of antiquities, etc., comprising the collection of Prehistoric implements, the property of Miss Carey, Egyptian, Greek and Roman antiquities, etc., comprising the collection of the late C.J. Tabor, the property of Princess Ghika, the property of Mrs O. Gregory, the property of Mrs A. Belcher, the property of Mrs de Burley Wood, the property of W. Kennett, and other properties, including Indian and South American objects; which will be sold by auction by Sotheby and Co. ... on Monday, the 12th of November, 1928, and following day. London: Sotheby, Wilkinson & Hodge.

Tooley, A. M. J., 1989. Middle Kingdom burial customs. a study of wooden models and related materials. Unpublished thesis (PhD), University of Liverpool.

A Brief Review of 2019

This week marks the first anniversary of the Egypt Centre collection blog, and so it seems appropriate to present a brief review of 2019. During this time, there have been many highlights, with just a few singled out here. It was on the 7th January last year that I officially started my position of Collections Manager at the Egypt Centre. Having the opportunity to rummage through the stores is a dream for any Egyptologist. Additionally, discovering more about the history of the collection, including individual objects, is rewarding. Even photographing and editing images, while time consuming and monotonous, is immensely satisfying (fig. 1).

Fig. 1: Selection of “Classical” objects recently photographed

Upon starting my job at the Egypt Centre, I decided to create this blog in order to present the collection to a wider audience. Fifty-two entries have been posted, many of which have been written by guests. The blog has proved very popular, with 22,248 views as of midday today! In particular, the weekly posts by students on the History of Egypt through the Egypt Centre were well received. I am grateful to all those who have contributed over the course of the year. The most popular entry was News from Luxor, which presented the reconstruction of a Middle Kingdom stela (fig. 2). Not surprisingly, those on Akhenaten and the Amarna Period were also popular. Twitter users can now follow me under the handle @DrKenGriffin, where I’ll be posting daily tweets on the Egypt Centre collection. Thanks to all those who have followed this blog, including leaving comments, and I hope you will continue to enjoy it!

Fig. 2: Reconstructed Middle Kingdom stela (EC1848)

In May, the Egypt Centre organised a successful conference, which saw sixteen speakers present research on objects in the collection. Some of the objects presented have featured in blog posts over the year, including the Old Kingdom lintel of Tjenti (W491), an unusual whistle (W247), and a model scribal palette (EC2018) of Djehutiemhat (fig. 3). The conference was held as part of the twentieth anniversary celebrations of the Egypt Centre, although we have now decided to make this an annual event. The second conference will take place over the weekend of the 23–24 May, with details to follow shortly!

Palette depicting Djehutiemhat (EC2018)

At the beginning of August, work on our new store was finally completed. Over the past five months we have moved almost 4,000 objects, finding a few surprises along the way. These two Soter shrouds (fig. 4) were found between old display panels after we had cleared one of our stores. The one on the right (EC4971) is illustrated on plate XXI of the 1906 Robert de Rustafjaell sale catalogue. Neither object appears to have been registered previously, although it is possible that we will come across some documentation in our archives. Speaking of, one of our old stores will now become our archive and research room. Work on organising both the store and archive room will continue throughout 2020. 

Fig. 4: Two new Soter shrouds (not to scale) 

Unfortunately, some very sad news reached us last Monday when were heard that Sybil Crouch had passed away. Sybil was a Labour councillor for the Castle ward, was head of cultural services where she managed the Taliesin Arts Centre, and was also a former chairwoman of the Arts Council for Wales. Sybil had been instrumental in setting up the Egypt Centre, helping to secure Heritage Lottery Funding and European Regional Development Funding. Following her retirement last year, we were invited to Mansion House to celebrate with her (fig. 5), which included staff from the Taliesin and Egypt Centre putting on a “Spectacular” performance of the can-can! We are all very grateful for the support Sybil offered over the years and our heartfelt condolences go out to all her family and friends.

Fig. 5: Celebrating Sybil’s retirement at Mansion House (© Swansea Life Magazine)

The Mystery of the “Faience Flute”: A (so-far) Unique Musical Instrument in the Egypt Centre

The blog post for this week is written by John Rogers, a PhD student of Egyptology at Swansea University.

Last May, I was invited to present my research into the musicological collection in the Egypt Centre as part of the first Wonderful Things conference. I focussed on two exciting objects within the collection, a faience “Bes-bell” (WK44) and a mysterious item that has been described as a “faience whistle” (W247).

The Bes-bell, which came to the Egypt Centre from Woking College in 2012, is unusual in that it is made from faience rather than the usual bronze (fig. 1). There are only a few examples of these faience bells surviving today, making the Swansea example, on display in the Games and Music case in the House of Life, a rare and precious example of the musical past. These bells are incredibly small; our one is just 4cm tall. The fact that this bell was made of faience rather than bronze would indicate that it was some form of votive item (Elwart & Emerit 2019, 319–22). Acoustically its shape, even with the lip of the bell, which is now missing, would limit the loudness and sustain of the sound rung out. This would support the idea that this specific example was not for “musical” use, but rather as a protective sound—perhaps similar to bikers’ “gremlin bells”.

Fig. 1: Faience Bes-bell (WK44)

The second object, the “whistle” (fig. 2), is, to my knowledge, rather unique.

Fig. 2: A mysterious “whistle” (W247)

W247 was part of the William MacGregor collection, sold by Sotheby’s in 1922 as pottery (lot 1798), and bought by “Cousins” on behalf of Sir Henry Wellcome for four pounds, fifteen shillings (Hardwick 2011). It was part of a miscellaneous lot, which was summarily described in the sale catalogue as “a quantity of fragments in silver, pottery, wood, stone, and earthenware”. Not too promising! In fact, the lot was dominated by faience beads. However, after buying the lot, it was identified in the Wellcome archives (fig. 3) as “one (?) whistle, made up of alternate white and blue pottery rings on tube. 3¾" long (in two pieces)”.

Fig. 3: Wellcome slip for W247

The whistle then came to Swansea in 1971, receiving its current accession number W247, and is today a favourite of visitors, where until recently it was on display. A few months ago, the fragile state of this unique object led to the decision to have it sent to Cardiff for conservation, which is currently ongoing.

Fig. 4: “mouthpiece” (W247)

While there are typologies of musical instruments in ancient Egypt, W247 does not fit in any of them (Anderson 1976; Hickmann 1949). In fact, while there are many different forms of wind-based musical instrument in ancient Egypt, our mysterious “whistle” doesn’t bear a resemblance to any of them. W247 is, in fact, a complicated object. It comprises a copper-based tube, with decorative rings in alternating colour, which seem to be attached to the tube with some form of gesso. At one end is a “mouthpiece” (fig. 4) that would not be simple to play (if any wind instrument players are reading this, please get in touch with your thoughts!). Interestingly, this mouthpiece seems to have a piece of wooden material gummed inside—the purpose of this is unknown at the moment (fig. 5).

Fig. 5: View inside “mouthpiece” showing wooden material (W247)

Throughout its modern history, the decorative rings have been variously described as pottery, faience, and glass. However, it was only when scrutinising the object, earlier this year, that Ken and I realised two things. The first was that the white rings are made of bone or ivory. The second was that the blue rings are not faience but lapis lazuli (Aston, Harrell & Shaw 2000, 39–40), a material unattested on any musical instrument in ancient Egypt (fig. 6). Furthermore, searches for convincing parallels in the ancient Near East are so far rather fruitless (I would love to hear if a reader knows of any similar examples!). It may be the case that W247 isn’t Egyptian, but perhaps Mesopotamian—an avenue of ongoing research.

Fig. 6: Lapis lazuli ring (W247)

Musicology and the broader study of sound (its forms, contexts, and meanings) in ancient Egypt is a growing subject of study (Elwart & Emerit 2019; Köpp-Junk 2018; von Lieven 2016). While the theory of this discipline is a hot topic of discussion, there is still a need to make more of the source data, the objects themselves, available for research. Therefore, the opportunity to study objects such as W247 (fig. 7), and the mysteries around them, makes working on the musical material in the Egypt Centre so exciting. As part of this work, W247, along with the rest of the musicological collection at Swansea, will be fully published in the near future, including information gleaned from the conservation work being carried out at Cardiff University. This conservation provides an opportunity to take a closer look at the materials in this object. What is the small piece of wood in the mouthpiece (remains of a reed? stopper? detritus?)? Can the binding agent between the tube and the decorative rings tell us more about how this object was made? Why is it decorated with lapis lazuli, and can we find the origin of the material? But more importantly, this work will make the future of this unimposing, but invaluable, object secure for years to come.

Fig. 7: Views of W247

I am grateful to Ken for allowing me to work on the collection and to present at the Wonderful Things conference earlier this year. The dates for the second Egypt Centre conference have been announced: 23–24 May 2020. This conference is sure to build on the strengths of the first, and bring more material currently held in the Egypt Centre to light both for research and the enjoyment of all!

Bibliography:

Anderson, R. D. (1976) Catalogue of Egyptian antiquities in the British Museum III: musical instruments. London: Trustees of the British Museum.

Aston, B. G., J. A. Harrell, and I. Shaw (2000) ‘Stone’. In Ancient Egyptian materials and technology, ed. P. T. Nicholson and G. J. Shaw. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 5–77.

Elwart, D. and S. Emerit (2019) ‘Sound studies and visual studies applied to ancient Egyptian sources’. In Sounding sensory profiles in the ancient Near East, ed. A. Schellenberg and T. Krüger. Ancient Near East Monographs 25. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature. 315–334.

Hardwick, T. (2011) ‘Five Months before Tut: Purchasers and Prices at the MacGregor Sale, 1922’. Journal of the History of Collections 23, 1: 1–14.

Hickmann, H. (1949) Instruments de musique. Catalogue général des antiquités égyptiennes du Musée du Caire. Cairo: Imprimerie de l’Institut français d’archéologie orientale.

Köpp-Junk, H. (2018) ‘Sound of Silence? Neueste Ergebnisse aus der Musikarchäologie’. In Pérégrinations avec Erhart Graefe: Festschrift zu seinem 75. Geburtstag, ed. A. I. Blöbaum, M. Eaton-Krauss and A. Wüthrich. Ägypten und Altes Testament 87. Münster: Zaphon. 267–283.

Sotheby, Wilkinson & Hodge (1922) Catalogue of the MacGregor Collection of Egyptian Antiquities. London: Davy.

von Lieven, A. (2016) ‘Sounds of power: the concept of sound in ancient Egyptian religion’. In Religion für die Sinne / Religion for the senses, ed. P. Reichling and M. Strothmann. Artificium 58. Oberhausen: Athena. 25–35.

Celebrating the New Year, Ancient Egyptian Style: Fragments of New Year's Vessels

As we approach 2020, this brief blog post presents a group of objects closely associated with the New Year in ancient Egypt. New Year’s flasks are small containers in faience (glazed composition) usually bearing inscriptions and motifs related to the Egyptian New Year’s festival. Filled perhaps with perfume, oil, or water from the Nile, they would have been a gift associated with the celebration of the beginning of the year. These flasks are commonly inscribed with greetings to welcome in the New Year, as will be seen below. They were particularly popular during the Late Period, especially the reigns of Apries and Amasis of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty (Blanquet 1992; Yamani 2002). The Egypt Centre currently houses six faience fragmentary vessels, one body and five neck sections.

Fig. 1: W1358

W1358 represents the body of a New Year’s flask, with the just neck of the vessel missing. It has been suggested that the slightly squashed disc shape of the body of the vessel represents the sun, a symbol of rebirth. Around the shoulders of the flask are incised bands of floral patterns, meant to echo the vegetal collar that would have been worn by a participant in a ceremonial or festival event. Hieroglyphs on the sides of the vessel read as 𓄋 𓆳 𓄤 𓈗 (wpt rnpt nfrt), the Egyptian equivalent to our “Happy New Year” (fig. 1). Unfortunately, it is currently unknown who Sir Henry Wellcome purchased this flask from, although it was possibly from the MacGregor collection sold in 1922.

Fig. 2: Wellcome slip 32802

The five neck fragments (W1359–W1360, W1362–W1364) do, however, originate from the MacGregor collection, although their acquisition history is a little more complicated. They were purchased as part of lot 466 (sixteen objects) at Sotheby’s auction house on the 17 December 1924 for the modest fee of 15 shillings. The auction catalogue and the flimsy slip in the Wellcome archives (numbers 32802 & 32803) indicate that this lot was originally part of the MacGregor collection (fig. 2). Unfortunately, this lot falls under the category of “other properties” in the auction catalogue, thus making it difficult to identify the seller. Further research is needed in order to identify the lot number of the MacGregor collection.

Fig. 3: W1359

W1359 is the best preserved of the neck fragments in the Egypt Centre (fig. 3). Two squatting baboons flank the tall neck, which is made to echo a bundle of papyrus and lotus plants. Baboons were symbols of rebirth, welcoming the sun as it arose each day. Two baboons are also preserved on the neck of W1360 (fig. 4), while only one is present on W1362 (fig. 5) The baboons are missing from both W1363 (fig. 5) and W1364, with the tall neck fragment of the latter being particularly well shaped (fig. 6).

Fig. 4: W1360

Fig. 5: W1362

Fig. 6: W1363

Fig. 7: W1364

So, on behalf of everyone at the Egypt Centre, we wish you all a wpt rnpt nfrt!

Bibliography:

Blanquet, C.-H. (1992) ‘Typologie de la bouteille de Nouvel An’. In Amosiadès: mélanges offerts au Professeur Claude Vandersleyen par ses anciens étudiants, ed. C. Obsomer and A.-L. Oosthoek. Louvain-la-Neuve: Université catholique de Louvain. 49–54.

Sotheby, Wilkinson & Hodge (1922) Catalogue of the MacGregor Collection of Egyptian Antiquities. London: Davy.

Sotheby, W. H. (1924) Catalogue of Egyptian, Greek, Roman & Babylonian antiquities, etc., comprising first and second day’s sale the collection of Egyptian antiquities, formed by the Hon. R. Bethell, third day’s sale the property of Captain Anthony Hamilton ..., part of the collection formed by the late Gustave Natorp, an Egyptian bronze solar boat for processional use, the collection formed by the late Joseph Offord, the property of H. Edwin, a bronze head of Athena wearing helmet, the property of Edward F. Elton and other properties; which will be sold by auction by Sotheby, Wilkinson & Hodge ... on Monday, 15th of December, 1924, and two following days. London: Sotheby, Wilkinson & Hodge.

Yamani, S. (2002) ‘New Year’s bottles from Tell Marqula (Dakhla Oasis)’. Bulletin de l’Institut français d’archéologie orientale 102: 425–436.

Reuniting Fragments of an Amarna Statue?

On the 23 December 1931, exactly 88 years ago today, a fragment of sandstone (excavation number 31/511) was uncovered at Amarna. This fragment (W154) is currently on display in the Amarna Case in the House of Life gallery and has recently been used during a handling session on the Amarna Period. The fragment is carved on two sides, with a table of offerings on the top and the remains of a hand underneath (fig. 1). It is thus clear that the fragment was part of statue of the king holding an offering table, a well-known style during the Amarna Period (Bosse-Griffiths 2001). The excavations at this time were directed by John Devitt Stringfellow Pendlebury (1904–1941) under the auspices of the Egypt Exploration Society (Bierbrier 2019, 421–22). According to the excavation report (Pendlebury 1951, 102) and object card (fig. 2), the fragment was found in the magazines of the “Priests’ Quarters (P. 43.1)”, which lay just to the south of the Small Aten Temple (Kemp 2013, 86–87).

Fig. 1: Statue fragment (W154)

The archives in the Wellcome Library reveal that W154 was transferred to the Wellcome Historical Medical Museum in August 1932, as part of the distribution of EES finds (Frankfort & Pendlebury 1933, 119). The transfer of objects was in receipt of the financial contribution made by Sir Henry Wellcome to the Society. The Egyptian material collected by Wellcome (approximately 20,000 objects) was distributed in 1971 to five main institutions: The Petrie Museum, The Oriental Museum (Durham), World Museum (Liverpool), Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, and Swansea University (now housed in The Egypt Centre). A substantial quantity of material transferred to Swansea originates from the EES excavations at Amarna. In total, the Egypt Centre has over 300 objects from the site, including a large quantity of pottery and some painted plaster.  

Fig. 2: EES object card for W154 (TA.OC.31-32.511)

While researching W154 for my handling class, I came across a fragment in the World Museum in Liverpool that looked quite similar to our piece. 1973.1.475 is a small sandstone fragment containing the carved fingers of a person, also from a statue (fig. 3). The EES object card (fig. 4) and publication (Pendlebury 1951, 88) indicate that it was discovered on the 3 January 1932, less than two weeks after the Swansea fragment was excavated. The find spot is recorded as P. 42.1, which relates to the king’s house to the north of the Small Aten Temple (Kemp 2013, 123–35; Pendlebury 1951, 86–89). Like the Swansea fragment, 1973.1.475 was transferred to the Wellcome Historical Medical Museum in August 1932.

Fig. 3: 1973.1.475 (World Museum, Liverpool. Courtesy of Ashley Cooke)

Fig. 4: EES object card for 1973.1.475 (TA.OC.31-32.584)

New photographs and measurements of 1973.1.475 were kindly supplied by Ashley Cooke, the Senior Curator of Antiquities at Liverpool. With the help of Photoshop, I attempted to virtually join these two fragments (fig. 5). Excitingly, they line up fairly well along the crack lines. However, the differences in measurements suggests that they do not belong together. In order to check for sure, a resin cast of W154 will be produced by the Engineering Department at Swansea University to send to Liverpool. While it seems unlikely at this stage that they do join, a recent article published in Horizon, the newsletter of the Amarna Trust, describes the potential of matching statue fragments through 3D printing (Anonymous 2019). In addition to W154, the Egypt Centre possesses around twenty statue fragment from Amarna, most originating from the EES excavations, which may join with fragments in other collections!

Fig. 5: Photoshop join of the two statue fragments

At the end of January, I’ll be starting a new Egypt Centre course on the Amarna Period, which will include weekly handling sessions (fig. 6). As with the history course, the students will write guest blog posts on the objects in the Egypt Centre collection!

Fig. 6: Flyer for new Amarna course

 Bibliography:

Anonymous (2019) ‘Matching statue fragments by means of 3D printing’. Horizon: The Amarna Project and Amarna Trust Newsletter 20: 5–7.

Bierbrier, M. L. (2019) Who was who in Egyptology. London: The Egypt Exploration Society. 5th edition.

Bosse-Griffiths, K. (2001) ‘Incense for the Aten’. In Amarna studies and other selected papers, ed. J. G. Griffiths. Freiburg (Schweiz); Göttingen: Universitätsverlag; Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. 131–134.

Frankfort, H. and J. D. S. Pendlebury (1933) The city of Akhenaten. Part II: The north suburb and the desert altars. The excavations at Tell el Amarna during the seasons 1926–1932. Excavation Memoirs 40. London: Egypt Exploration Society.

Kemp, B. J. (2013) The city of Akhenaten and Nefertiti: Amarna and its people. London: Thames & Hudson.

Pendlebury, J. D. S. (1951) The city of Akhenaten. Part III: The central city and the official quarters. The excavations at Tell el-Amarna during the season 1926–1927 and 1931–1936. 2 vols. Excavation Memoirs 44. London: Egypt Exploration Society.

Pharaohs, Queens, and Priests: The Graeco-Roman Period in Swansea

Three third year students of Egyptology at Swansea University, Mollie Beck, Gabrielle Stanley, and Hannah Rawlings write the blog post for this week.

We have reached the tenth week of our course and, unfortunately, our last session. This week we focused on six objects from the Graeco-Roman Period, more specifically the Ptolemaic dynasty (c. 302–30 BC). The Ptolemaic dynasty was a very dramatic period full of scandals and murder. The capital moved to Alexandria and Egypt was ruled by the Macedonian-Greek family, the “House of Ptolemy”, until the Roman conquest in 30 BC (Manning 2010).

Fig. 1: Ptolemaic queen (W194)

W194 is a black granite female head of a Ptolemaic queen from a life size statue (fig. 1). This object was a part of the MacGregor collection (1672) and purchased by Wellcome in 1922. Based on stylistic factors, the statue can been dated to the early Ptolemaic Period (Ashton 2001; Brophy 2015) and it is suggested that the queen depicted is either Berenice II or Arsinoe III. Berenice II was married to Ptolemy III Euergetes I, the third king of the dynasty (c. 246–221 BC) and Arsinoe III was the daughter of Berenice II who was married to her brother Ptolemy IV Philopator (c. 221–205 BC). Women in the Ptolemaic Period were very influential and queens had a lot of power; both Berenice and Arisinoe were very involved with the government and the state (Minas-Nerpel 2019). An interesting factor about this statue fragment is that the lower part of the face was re-cut, this could be a result from a mistake the sculptor made, a repair done to fix damage, or the statue was later reused by someone else. There is also traces of glue on the nose which tells us that it had broken off and was repaired at some point. In fact, the MacGregor catalogue mentions this restoration, thus indicating that it was done prior to the sale in 1922. The female figure wears a textured wig with a headband running around the top part of the wig. On her forehead the remains of a uraeus can be seen, but unfortunately it has been damaged. The wig shown is one that was popular among queens of the Ptolemaic Period. An interesting feature of this head is that the support pillar along the back of the head has been smoothed and should have had an inscription on it, although it is blank. This could suggest that the statue was never finished, explaining the re-carving of the lower face.

Fig. 2: Door shrine (EC485)

EC485 is the left side of a shrine door (fig. 2). This object was also purchased from the MacGregor collection (lot 645), but unfortunately the provenance is unknown. This object is particularly important because wooden examples of these do not usually survive or are not preserved well and it helps us get an idea of how these shrines were constructed. The carved wood is decorated with gesso on the front and it is also possible that it was gilded with gold leaf, although there are no traces of the latter surviving. The gesso is inscribed with a king kneeling and presenting an offering of incense to the god within the shrine. The king wears the blue crown, which is debated among scholars as being either the war crown or a representation of the living king at the time (Hardwick 2003). He also wears other kingly regalia such as a kilt, a uraeus on the forehead, and a broad collar. An interesting aspect of this object is the fact that it features a blank cartouche in the top right-hand corner. Scholars have also debated the meaning of this as it could reflect the period—no one knew who was king as there were so many in a short period of time so they left the cartouche blank—or it could be a general representation of the king, not specific to anyone. The blank cartouche is a trend of the late Ptolemaic Period, which perhaps gives us an estimated date. The hole for the tie where both doors would be tied together and then sealed can be seen on the right side. The right door would most likely have the same image but mirrored with the statue of the god inside the shrine.       

Fig. 3: Mummy mask (W917)

  

Object W917 is a colourful mummy mask that dates to the late Ptolemaic Period/early Roman Period (fig. 3). It is made of cartonnage but has been beautifully decorated with various different colours of paint. For the face of the mask, gold leaf has been used in order to show that this person has died and become an Osiris, and so has the gold skin of the gods. In addition, blue paint has been used for the hair as lapis lazuli is the colour of the hair of the gods. A headband has been added with decoration of squares of colour with white flowers in the centre. This pattern continues the whole way around until the back where there is a knot painted on. Is this simply decorative or does it represent the “crown of justification” (mꜣḥ n mꜣꜥ ḫrw), which is meant to represent triumph over death in the afterlife (Riggs 2005, 81–82)? This mask has been left without an inscription and it is quite difficult to tell the gender of the person being represented.

Fig. 4: Roman coffin fragment (W1042a)

W1042a is a coffin fragment dating to the Roman Period (fig. 4). This is an interesting piece as it has previously been suggested by some scholars to be a fake due to the unusual hieroglyphs. However, they just do not conform to the typical stylistic traits of the period and do actually make sense. They read ‘Life to the good god. Horus, Isis and Osiris, Khentyimentyu, the great god, lord of Abydos, the eldest son, first born of Geb’ (fig. 5). Stylistically this object can be traced to Tuna el-Gebel as several other similar coffins have been excavated there (Kurth 1990). This place was the necropolis for Hermopolis, which became a popular city during Roman Egypt. In the upper register, we have the deceased dressed as a priest worshipping the Goddesses Nekhbet, who wears the Hedjet-crown of Upper Egypt, and Wadjet, who wears the Deshret-crown of Lower Egypt. They are shown in snake form and are resting on the wings of Khepri who is shown as a beetle. He is meant to be pushing up the solar disc but this has been removed and now a number (6) in its place. In the lower register we have the deities Isis, Osiris, Nephthys, and perhaps Re. The two gods are sitting and each is holding a was-sceptre and an ankh. The two goddesses each have their names on top of their head and are standing in a praising gesture toward the gods.

Fig. 5: Hieroglyphs on Roman coffin fragment (W1042a)

Bought at auction by Henry Wellcome in 1931 (lot 12), the next artefact (W1043) that we examined was the stela of Pamenes (fig. 6). With Ken’s help, we were able to read the majority of the four lines at the bottom of the stela, which is an offering dedicated to Re-Harakhty. The four lines list his epithets and the offerings of the usual bread and beer in addition to other provisions for the ka of Pamenes. The final line tells us the name of his parents, Herefernit and Satweret. The central register of the stela depicts the deceased, Pamenes, in the garb of a priest with his arms raised in adoration before Re and Osiris. Above this is the winged sun-disc that has a central column of red dots that represent the rays of the sun that hit the hieroglyph for the sky, flanked by two snakes wearing the crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt respectively.

Fig. 6: Ptolemaic stela (W1043)

This course has been extremely interesting and we are so fortunate to have had this opportunity. It has been such a great way to become more familiar with the Egypt Centre collection and take a chronological trip through ancient Egypt. The vast areas that are covered by objects at the Egypt Centre is incredible and Ken has presented amazing information and knowledge.

Bibliography:

Ashton, S.-A. (2001) Ptolemaic royal sculpture from Egypt: the interaction between Greek and Egyptian traditions. BAR International Series 923. Oxford: Archaeopress.

Brophy, E. (2015) Royal statues in Egypt 300 BC–AD 220: context and function. Archaeopress Egyptology 10. Oxford: Archaeopress.

Hardwick, T. (2003) ‘The iconography of the Blue Crown in the New Kingdom’. Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 89: 117–141.

Kurth, D. (1990) Der Sarg der Teüris: eine Studie zum Totenglauben im römerzeitlichen Ägypten. Aegyptiaca Treverensia: Trierer Studien zum Griechisch-Römischen Ägypten 6. Mainz am Rhein: Philipp von Zabern.

Manning, J. G. (2010) The last pharaohs: Egypt under the Ptolemies, 305–30 BC. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

Minas-Nerpel, M. (2019) ‘Ptolemaic queens as ritualists and recipients of cults: the cases of Arsinoe II and Berenike II’. Ancient Society 49: 141–183.

Riggs, C. (2005) The beautiful burial in Roman Egypt: art, identity, and funerary religion. Oxford studies in Ancient Culture and Representation. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Sotheby, Wilkinson & Hodge. (1922) Catalogue of the MacGregor Collection of Egyptian Antiquities. London: Davy.

Sotheby & Co. (1931) Catalogue of Egyptian, Greek, Roman, South American, Arabian and Indian antiquities, etc. savage art, etc. Monday the 27th July 1931. London: Sotheby and Co.