Fragment of a stela
- Accession Number
- EC62
- Current Location
- House of Life (first floor), Stone case
- Object Type
- Architecture, Architectural element, Stela
- Period
- First Intermediate Period
- Material
- Stone/minerals
- Measurements
- Width: 310mm | Height: 280mm | Depth: 60mm
- Number of Elements
- 1
Licensing details
- Description
-
A First Intermediate Period stela fragment with a man in front holding a bow in his left hand and arrows in his right hand. He wears a broad collar. A woman stands behind him and reaches toward his head with her left hand. Both face right. '415' is written in blue pencil on the reverse, and a label with '393' is adhering to the reverse. The Egypt Centre has another 'soldier stela' on display (W1366). The predominance of soldier stelae may be a result of the civil war in this period. Nubian bowmen were frequently employed in Egypt as soldiers. Vandier suggests that only soldiers killed in action were allowed stelae, which may also explain why they appear hastily made.
- Bibliography
-
Fischer, H.G. 1964 'Inscriptions from the Coptite Nome', Rome: Biblical Institute Press 50-102. Vandier, J. 1954, 'Manuel d'archéologie égyptienne' II, Paris: A. et J. Picard et Cie, 468-9.
- Other Identity
- 393 (on paper label on reverse) | 415 (in blue pencil on reverse)
- Previous Owner
- Sir Henry Solomon Wellcome (1853–1936)
- Acquisition
- Long-term loan, The Wellcome Trust (15 Feb 1971)
- Language
- Egyptian
- Script
- Hieroglyphic
- Last modified: 07 Feb 2021