Gallery number: 44 – Upper Floor
Period: Late Period
Place of discovery: Confiscated at Mallawi
Size: Height: 42.7cm, Width: 8cm
Material: Bronze, gold
The sistrum, essentially a rattle, was associated with Hathor, goddess of music, love and joy and was used extensively in temple music for rhythm and warding off harmful spirits. It is attested from Old Kingdom times and was used throughout pharaonic history. This particularly fine example features an image of Hathor on both sides of the sistrum, wearing her Hathor wig and her distinguishing cow’s ears, as she could also take the form of a cow. Powerful protective images of rearing cobras flank her head, one with the red crown of Lower Egypt, the other with the white crown of Upper Egypt. A ring of cobras (uraei) sits on a platform to hold the loop that forms the noise box, while yet another single one rears up into the loop that contains three rods in the shape of double-headed cobras. The three rings on each rod were the source of the noise.
Gallery number: Room 19 – Upper Floor
Period: Late Period (c. 664–332 BC)
Place of discovery: Saqqara
Size: H 31.00 cm W 8.50 cm D/L 24.00 cm
Material: Bronze
Egypt had several bull cults of which the Apis cult was the most popular. This sacred bull was known by a number of names including Api, Hapi, or Hep, before the Greeks introduced the name Apis. He was the god of fertility and primeval power associated with the creator god Ptah, where he becomes Ptah’s earthly incarnation.
Worship of Apis Bull can be traced as early as the 1st Dynasty where he was associated with festive occasions and ceremonies of fertility and regeneration. He is depicted commonly as a striding bull with a solar-disk and uraeus between its horns, or as a man with a bull’s head in later times. During the Ptolemaic period, he was represented as a bearded man in robes.
Each Apis Bull was chosen according to detailed specifications to embody this god, who was the patron of artisans and the tutelary deity of Memphis. When an Apis Bull died he would be embalmed and buried in grand style within the Serapeum at Saqqara, a series of chambers and corridors that grew as space for additional burials was needed. Over the periods during which the Serapeum was in active use, thousands of pilgrims dedicated stelae and figurines to honour the Apis Bull.
This statue depicts the bull’s striding forward, leading with the left leg. A sun-disk fronted by a uraeus cobra rests between its horns, indicating its divinity. The triangular patch on its forehead was one of the markings by which the living god was identified. Around its neck, incised lines create an elaborate collar, of the type worn by humans for festival occasions. There is a dedicatory inscription on the sledge.
Gallery number: Room 19 – Upper Floor
Period: Late Period (c. 664–332 BC)
Size: H. 21 cm
Material: Schist
Osiris was the god of the deceased, master of the underworld, afterlife and lord of eternity. According to the Heliopolis Ennead, Osiris was the son of Geb and Nut, the god of the earth and the goddess of the sky respectively, and was one of at least four siblings. He was also the brother/husband of Isis, the goddess of motherhood, magic, fertility, healing and rebirth. His brother Seth was the god of war, chaos and storms; and his sister Nephthys, wife of Seth, assisted in funerary rites, working with her sister Isis in a protective role. In some versions of the mythology there is another brother, Horus the Elder (Horus the Great). Osiris was also the father of Horus (the younger).
According to Egyptian mythology, Osiris ruled Egypt, providing civilisation to his people through the knowledge of agriculture and the law. Seth was extremely jealous of his brother and killed him, dismembering and distributing the corpse throughout the many Nomes of Egypt. On the death of Osiris, Seth became king of Egypt with his sister/wife Nephthys. Isis mourned her husband, and with her great magical powers decided to find and bring him back to life. With the help of her sister Nephthys, Isis searched every Egyptian Nome, collecting the pieces of her husband’s corpse, reassembling and holding them together with linen wrappings. Isis breathed life back into his body to resurrected him and soon conceived their child Horus (the younger). Osiris then descended into the underworld, where he became its ruler.
This statuette depicts Osiris sitting on a throne in a mummified form, wearing a close-fitting enveloping garment. He holds the royal crook and flail with his arms crossed on his chest. He wears the Atef crown flanked by two ostrich feathers, adorned with the uraeus cobra. A divine beard is attached to his chin.
These kinds of statuettes were commonly offered in temples and shrines belonging to Osiris. They were found as well near temples and shrines honouring other deities or in the animal necropolis.
Gallery number: Room 19 – Upper Floor
Period: Late Period (c. 664–332 BC)
Place of discovery: Memphite Region, Saqqara North, Animal Necropolei, Temple of Nectanebo II, Temple Terrace
Size: H 22.10 cm
Material: Bronze, gold
Isis was the goddess of motherhood, magic, fertility, healing and rebirth. According to the Heliopolis Ennead, Isis was the daughter of Geb, the god of the earth and goddess of the sky respectively, and was one of at least four siblings. She was also the sister/wife of Osiris, the god of the underworld and lord of eternity. Her brother Seth was the god of war, chaos and storms; and her sister Nephthys, wife of Seth, assisted in funerary rites, working with Isis in a protective role. In some versions of the mythology there is another brother, Horus the Elder (Horus the Great). Osiris was also the father of Horus (the younger).
According to Egyptian mythology, Osiris ruled Egypt, providing civilisation to his people through the knowledge of agriculture and the law. Seth was extremely jealous of his brother and killed him, dismembering and distributing the corpse throughout the many Nomes of Egypt. On the death of Osiris, Seth became king of Egypt with his sister/wife Nephthys. Isis mourned her husband, and with her great magical powers decided to find and bring him back to life. With the help of her sister Nephthys, Isis searched every Egyptian Nome, collecting the pieces of her husband’s corpse, reassembling and holding them together with linen wrappings. Isis breathed life back into his body to resurrected him and, soon conceived their child Horus (the younger). Osiris then descended into the underworld, where he became its ruler.
This statuette depicts the goddess Isis seated on a low-backed throne, suckling god Horus. Isis wears a long wig with the vulture headdress and a modius topped by a horned sun-disk on her head and a long sheath garment. Both her face and her dress are gilded, as is the sun-disk. Her left hand supports the head of Horus, who sits, leaning back slightly on her lap, while her right-hand cradles her left breast. Horus is naked except for a blue crown with a uraeus. The statuette is placed over a modern wooden throne and base.
Gallery number: Room 19 – Upper Floor
Period: Late Period (c. 664–332 BC)
Size: H 21.50 cm W 5.00 cm L 13.00 cm
Material: Bronze, gold, silver
Imhotep was the Chief Minister to King Djoser, an astrologer, mathematician, physician and priest. Being a brilliant architect, he is credited with building Djoser’s step pyramid and funerary complex at Saqqara. Due to his achievements and favoured position, Imhotep’s name was inscribed on the plinth of Djoser’s statue found in Saqqara and exhibited in the Egyptian Museum.
Imhotep was worshipped as a deity from the Late Period until the 7th century AD. Many temples and shrines were erected and dedicated to him, especially in Memphis and Philae, where the injured and sick people believed that Imhotep would provide cures. Imhotep was associated with the Egyptian god Thoth and the Greek god Asclepius, both of whom were gods of medicine and wisdom.
This statuette of Imhotep depicts him with close-cropped hair or covering his hair with a tight skull cap, his eyes are inlaid in silver and he is wearing a short-pleated kilt with a broad gilded collar. He holds a sheet of papyrus on his lap, which is rolled up on both ends, inscribed with a votive spell. His sandaled feet rest on a small square base inscribed with the name of Imhotep and the dedicator, Pediamun, son of Bes and Irteru.
حجرة رقم: 24 – الطابق الأرضي
التأريخ: العصر المتأخر، الأسرة السادسة والعشرون، الملك أحمس الثاني (أمازيس)
مكان الاكتشاف: جبانة منف، شمال سقارة، منطقة حورمحب، مقبرة بسماتيك
بحجم:
الارتفاع: 97 سم – العرض: 29 سم – الطول: 103سم
المادة: حجر الشست الرمادي
تم اكتشاف هذا التمثال للإلهة حتحور مع تمثالين آخرين للإلهة إيزيس، والإله أوزوريس، وجميعها لشخص يُدعى بسماتيك، وهو أحد كبار رجال الدولة، والذي يحمل العديد من الأقاب منها المشرف على الأختام، وحاكم القصر.
تُعد هذه التماثيل الثلاثة أمثلة رائعة لأسلوب النحت في هذا العصر، حيث أعاد الفن تقديم المُثل العليا للدولة القديمة بأسطح ناعمة ومستديرة تتناقض مع الصلابة الشديدة للحجر.
كانت حتحور (ملاذ حورس) تُعبد في جميع أنحاء مصر منذ أوائل عصور ما قبل الأسرات، وكانت عضوًا في ثالوث دندرة الإلهي مع الإله حورس بحديتي، وابنهما إيحي، كما كانت إلهة الفرح، والجمال، والرقص، والحياة، فعُرفت باسم سيدة الحياة، بالإضافة إلى إلهة السماء أيضًا، حيث عُرفت باسم سيدة النجوم. ارتبط اسم حتحور بالأمومة، بالإضافة إلى الأحجار الكريمة وخاصة الفيروز، والذهب، فأطلق عليها اسم سيدة الفيروز، وحملت مختلف المناجم في سيناء اسمها.
عادةً ما يتم تصوير الإلهة حتحور في هيئتها الحيوانية الكاملة في شكل بقرة، أو امرأة لها قرنين بقرة، أو امرأة بآذان بقرة. صُورت الإلهة هنا على شكل بقرة، وهي تحمي المتوفى صاحب التمثال، ويذكرنا هذا التمثال بتلك التماثيل الملكية من الدولة الحديثة، وهو بلا شك مستوحى من المقصورة الصغيرة التي تحوي تمثال البقرة حتحور، وهي تحمي الملك من معبد الملك تحتمس الثالث في الدير البحري بطيبة. نُحتت البقرة بدقة بالغة في نسبها وعضلاتها، مع وجه شُكل بصورة مدهشة، وقد قدمت ساقها اليسرى، وتم دمج قرنيها في تاجها المعتاد بقرص الشمس والصل الملكي، مع ريشتين. ترتدي حتحور عقدًا مكونًا من خيوط عديدة من الخرزات الصغيرة التي جمعت في كل طرف، ودمجت من خلال خرزتين دائريتين، أو أكثر، مع ثقل للاتزان من المينات على ظهرها (المينات هو الشعار المقدس لحتحور). صُور بسماتيك كأنه قلادة يخرج من تحت حماية حتحور بقدمه اليسرى إلى الأمام، مرتديًا باروكة شعر مستعار بسيطة وقلادة (ربما ختم). وضع بسماتيك راحة يده على نقبته الطويلة، التي كُتب عليها اسمه وألقابه، وتماشيًا مع التماثيل المصاحبة، نُقشت صيغة تقدمة القرابين حول قاعدة التمثال بالهيروغليفية.
حجرة رقم: 24 – الطابق الأرضي
التأريخ: العصر المتأخر، الأسرة السادسة والعشرون، الملك أحمس الثاني (أمازيس)
مكان الاكتشاف: جبانة منف، شمال سقارة، منطقة حورمحب، مقبرة بسماتيك
بحجم:
الارتفاع: 89.5 سم – العرض: 28 سم – الطول: 46 سم
المادة: حجر الشست الرمادي
تم العثور على هذا التمثال للإله أوزوريس مع تمثالين مصاحبين أحدهما للإلهة إيزيس، والآخر للإلهة حتحور، وجميعها لشخص يُدعى بسماتيك، وهو أحد كبار رجال الدولة، والذي يحمل العديد من الأقاب منها المشرف على الأختام، وحاكم القصر.
تُعد هذه التماثيل الثلاثة أمثلة رائعة لأسلوب النحت في هذا العصر، حيث أعاد الفن تقديم المُثل العليا للدولة القديمة بأسطح ناعمة ومستديرة تتناقض مع الصلابة الشديدة للحجر.
كان أوزوريس إله الموتى، وسيد العالم السفلي، والعالم الآخر (الآخرة)، ورب الأبدية، ووفقًا لتاسوع هليوبوليس، كان أوزوريس ابن جب، إله الأرض، ونيت إلهة السماء، وكان زوج/شقيق إيزيس، إلهة الأمومة، والسحر، والخصوبة، والشفاء، والبعث، وكان أيضًا شقيق ست، إله الحرب، والفوضى، والعواصف، ونفتيس التي كانت صورة طبق الأصل لإيزيس، والإله حورس الأكبر (حورس العظيم) في بعض روايات الأسطورة، كما كان أيضًا والدًا لحورس (الأصغر).
وفقًا للأساطير المصرية، حكم أوزوريس مصر وعُلم الزراعة، وأعطى القوانين والحضارة للسكان، وكان ست يشعر بالغيرة الشديدة من أخيه، فقتله، وقطع جثته إلى أشلاء، ووزعها في جميع أنحاء مصر، وبهذا أصبح ست ملكًا على مصر، مع أخته وزوجته نفتيس، التي شعرت بالأسف على أختها إيزيس، التي كانت تبكي إلى ما لا نهاية على زوجها. قررت إيزيس بقواها السحرية العظيمة العثور على زوجها وإعادته إلى الحياة، وبمساعدة نفتيس، تجولت إيزيس في جميع الأقاليم المصرية، وجمعت قطع جثة زوجها، وأعادت تجميعها وربطها بلفائف الكتان، ونفخت روح الحياة في جسده وبعثته، ليصبحا سويًا مرة أخرى، وسرعان ما حملت طفلًا بطريقة سحرية، هو حورس (الأصغر). نزل أوزوريس بعد ذلك إلى العالم السفلي، ليصبح حاكمًا له.
يُصور هذا التمثال أوزوريس جالسًا على العرش في شكل محنط، يرتدي عباءته الحابكة، ولحية إلهية متصلة بذقنه، وتاج الآتف محاط بريشتين من النعام، مزينًا بالكوبرا، ممسكًا بالعصا الملكية، والمذبة، وذراعيه متقاطعين على صدره.
نُقشت حول قاعدة التمثال صيغة تقدمة القرابين بالهيروغليفية، بينما لم ينقش العمود الخلفي للتمثال.
Gallery number: 24- Ground Floor
Period: Late Period
Dynasty: 30th dynasty (c. 380-343 BC)
Size: Height 60 cm; Width 53 cm; Length 38 cm;
Place of discovery: Thebes East, Karnak Temple (Ipet-Isut), Precinct of Amun, Court of the Cachette, Karnak Cachette
Material: Granodiorite
Group statue of Pa-shery-n-ta-isui, with his wife Nefrt-iy-u and their son Ash-akhet, together on one seat with a high semi-rounded backrest. Pa-shery-n-ta-isui was Mayor of Xois Khasut, modern day Sakha in Kafr El-Sheikh Governorate. He is depicted seated in the centre wearing a smooth wig, his ears are well exposed. He wears a long robe that only reveal his feet and his left hand, which is flat on the chest, projects from the robe held by the right fist. The V-neck of the robe is strongly marked revealing the garment worn underneath.
On the right, his son Ash-akhet is wearing the same wig and a garment composed of a long skirt held by a cord that passes around the neck and is tied on the front part of the costume. He holds a piece of cloth in his right hand, while his left arm is placed behind Pa-shery-n-ta-isui and probably joining the right arm of Nefrt-iy-u. On the left, his wife Nefrt-iy-u is dressed in the traditional women’s costume and wears a smooth wig revealing her ears. Her left hand is placed flat on her knees.
Five columns of hieroglyphic inscription are engraved on the garments of the group and between their legs. Both sides of the seat are also engraved with six vertical lines of hieroglyphic text, one of which is continued on the upper edge of the seat’s back. On the back of the seat a very long text of twenty-four columns, divided into two parts can be read. The first is composed of seven columns, written from right to left; while the other has seventeen, written from left to right.
The provenance and date of this statue have long been uncertain, but both are now assured through a series of archival documents.
Gallery number: 24 – Ground Floor
Period: Late Period
Dynasty: 26th Dynasty, reign of Psamtek I Wahibre, (c. 664-610 BC)
Size: H 74.00 cm W 62.60 cm D/L 47.50 cm
Place of discovery: Thebes East, Karnak Temple (Ipet-Isut) Precinct of Amun, Court of the Cachette, Karnak Cachette
Material: Quartzite
This statue of a seated scribe is an attempt to emulate the Old Kingdom sculptural ideals, a characteristic element of this period. Pa-di-amen-opet, son of (N)a-menkh-ast is the Chief Lector Priest and a Scribe, clearly a man of high rank. He is depicted in the regular pose of the scribes with cross-legs and a papyrus scroll placed upon his tightly stretched kilt, his left hand is holding the scroll and his right poised to write upon it. He is looking ahead, ready to receive dictation or information. The receding hairline references the Old Kingdom iconography of portraying a mature and successful official. His face serene and confident, his mouth and eyes are rendered slightly different to what was usual at the time for portraiture. His shoulders are broad and square, and the torso is indicative of the precision of modelling and polish of 26th Dynasty hard stone statues. He has well-defined muscular forearms and the lower legs and at some point, the right knee of the statue was broken off and restored. Inscriptions on the scroll provide his name and titles, while the two lines of hieroglyphic inscriptions framed between two horizontal lines around the semi-circular base bear various prayers.
Scribes held a high position in ancient Egypt, as they were closely related to the pharaoh. There are many statues of seated scribes with a papyrus roll placed on their laps, on which they recorded many important State and private documents. A scribe would record the tax collection process and harvest calculations; they accompanied soldiers in military campaigns; and providing their services, especially in editing letters and wills and reading correspondence.
High quality papyrus was not available to everyone, therefore other more readily available materials could be used. Written documents have been found on recycled papyrus, pieces of wood, pottery and limestone. They could write on both sides of an object and at other times they used an impermeable adhesive on wood panels, in order to reuse a surface. Scribes used black ink to write texts, while red ink was for dates, titles and headings to distinguish them from the rest of the text or even in corrections. They used reeds as writing implements, allowing them to vary the line thickness. Reeds were held in a palette, usually made of wood, which had depressions to hold the red and black inks.
Gallery number: 24- Ground Floor
Period: Late Period
Dynasty: 26th dynasty, reign of Psamtek I Wahibre
Size: H 80.00 cm W 47.00 cm D/L 47.50 cm
Place of discovery: Thebes East, Karnak Temple (Ipet-Isut) Precinct of Amun, Court of the Cachette, Karnak Cachette
Material: Greywacke
This statue depicts Nes-pa-ka–shuti, the Theban Vizier of King Psamtek I, in the typical pose of the scribes with cross legs. Seated scribes such as this indicate an attempt to emulate the Old Kingdom sculptural ideals, a characteristic element of the 26th Dynasty. He is depicted wearing a striped wig with no centre hair-parting and pinned behind his ears. He is wearing a short un-pleated skirt secured by an unadorned belt and his hands grip the edge of his kilt and an inscribed papyrus. There is no attempt to suggest he is holding a writing implement. His left foot disappears under his right leg, while the big toe of his right foot is visible from the front and the four others lie flat on the base of the statue. His nose and his both fists are chipped. A line of hieroglyphic inscriptions goes around the base of the statue in addition to sixteen vertical lines incised on his kilt, four on each side and eight in the middle, bearing his name and titles.
Scribes held a high position in ancient Egypt, as they were closely related to the pharaoh. There are many statues of seated scribes with a papyrus roll placed on their laps, on which they recorded many important State and private documents. A scribe would record the tax collection process and harvest calculations; they accompanied soldiers in military campaigns; and providing their services, especially in editing letters and wills and reading correspondence.
High quality papyrus was not available to everyone, therefore other more readily available materials could be used. Written documents have been found on recycled papyrus, pieces of wood, pottery and limestone. They could write on both sides of an object and at other times they used an impermeable adhesive on wood panels, in order to reuse a surface. Scribes used black ink to write texts, while red ink was for dates, titles and headings to distinguish them from the rest of the text or even in corrections. They used reeds as writing implements, allowing them to vary the line thickness. Reeds were held in a palette, usually made of wood, which had depressions to hold the red and black inks.
Gallery number: 24 – Ground Floor
Period: Late Period
Dynasty: 26th Dynasty, reign of Ahmose II (Amasis) Khnumibre, (c. 570-526 BC)
Size: H 89.00 cm W 21.00 cm D/L 46.00 cm
Place of discovery: Memphite Region, Saqqara: North, Horemheb Area, Psamtek
Material: Greywacke
This statue of the goddess Isis was found together with two companion statues of the god Osiris JE 38928 and the goddess Hathor (JE 38927) in the tomb of Psamtek, a high official of the late 26th Dynasty, who bears many titles as the Overseer of the Seals and the Governor of the Palace. These three statues are superb examples of their era, specifically the reintroduction of Old Kingdom stylistic features such as the smooth and rounded surfaces that contrast with the very hard stone.
Isis was the goddess of motherhood, magic, fertility, healing and rebirth. According to the Heliopolis Ennead, Isis was the daughter of Geb, the god of the earth and goddess of the sky respectively, and was one of at least four siblings. She was also the sister/wife of Osiris, the god of the underworld and lord of eternity. Her brother Seth was the god of war, chaos and storms; and her sister Nephthys, wife of Seth, assisted in funerary rites, working with Isis in a protective role. In some versions of the mythology there is another brother, Horus the Elder (Horus the Great). Osiris was also the father of Horus (the younger).
According to Egyptian mythology, Osiris ruled Egypt, providing civilisation to his people through the knowledge of agriculture and the law. Seth was extremely jealous of his brother and killed him, dismembering and distributing the corpse throughout the many Nomes of Egypt. On the death of Osiris, Seth became king of Egypt with his sister/wife Nephthys. Isis mourned her husband, and with her great magical powers decided to find and bring him back to life. With the help of her sister Nephthys, Isis searched every Egyptian Nome, collecting the pieces of her husband’s corpse, reassembling and holding them together with linen wrappings. Isis breathed life back into his body to resurrected him and, soon conceived their child Horus (the younger). Osiris then descended into the underworld, where he became its ruler.
This statue depicts Isis seated on a throne, wearing a crown with the sun-disk enveloped by cow’s horns, indicating her association with the goddess Hathor. She is wearing a three-part wig that is held behind her ears, on which sits the uraeus cobra and she holds an ankh-sign symbol of life in her right hand. There is a clean simplicity in how her close-fitting tunic where even the straps of her dress are excluded, the only concession to clothing being the hem at the ankles. The base of the statue is inscribed with an offering prayer, while the back pillar of the statue is not inscribed.
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