Fragment of a Stela of Neferhotep

Description

The hieroglyphs at the top of this stela (commemorative stone) fragment help identify the man depicted as Neferhotep, a foreman of the workers who built and decorated the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings at Thebes. Neferhotep, who is finely dressed in pleated white garments, raises his hands before him in a gesture of adoration toward the deity, who would have been depicted in the upper portion of the stone. Stelae such as this one allowed nonroyal Egyptians to demonstrate their devotion to the gods.

Provenance

Spink and Sons, Ltd., London; sold to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1924.

Fragment of a Stela of Neferhotep

Ancient Egyptian

New Kingdom, mid-Dynasty 19, about 1240-1195 BCE

Accession Number

12985

Medium

Limestone and pigment

Dimensions

38.5 × 23.8 × 5.8 cm (15 × 9 3/8 × 2 3/8 in.)

Classification

Stelae

Museum

The Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

Credit Line

Lois H. Culver Fund