Stela of Merneptah

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This round-topped stela with a solid red border is dedicated to a man named Merneptah. He is shown seated on a block seat, which resembles a throne often used by a king or a deity, rather than a more common four-legged chair. He is dressed in a long wraparound skirt, which the artist has rendered as a sheer garment in order to reveal the short kilt underneath. Merneptah holds a water lily blossom, a symbol of regeneration, up to his face. Immediately in front of his legs is a table laden with bread loaves and a bundle of green onions. A woman named Ina stands before him and holds up a branch, an unusual object in this context. Above the two figures are a pair of wedjat eyes and a shen sign, all of which have protective meanings. The three lines of inscription at the bottom of the stela include an offering formula that invokes the god Osiris.

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