Meskhetyu Instrument From Foundation Deposit C, Hatshepsut's Temple

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This "meskhetyu" instrument would have been used at the "opening of the mouth" ritual, which was intended to allow the deceased to come to life. The ceremony would have been performed at the consecration of a temple to enable the sculptures and the images on the walls to function as their living counterparts.

Egyptian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met collection of ancient Egyptian art consists of approximately 30,000 objects of artistic, historical, and cultural importance, dating from about 300,000 BCE to the 4th century CE. A signifcant percentage of the collection is derived from the Museum's three decades of archaeological work in Egypt, initiated in 1906 in response to increasing interest in the culture of ancient Egypt.

Metropolitan Museum of Art