Funerary Cone of the Royal Cup-Bearer Senemnetjer (?)
Unknown Artist
ca. 1550–1295 B.C.
Medium
Pottery
Dimensions
Preserved L. 3.5 × Diam. 9.5 cm (1 3/8 × 3 3/4 in.)
Classification
Cone, Senemnetjer ?, circular impression, royal cup-bearer
Period
New Kingdom
Department
Egyptian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Norman de Garis Davies, 1930
Accession Number
30.6.170
Tags
Art Historical Context
This small pottery funerary cone, dating to Egypt's New Kingdom (ca 1550–1295 B.C.) during Dynasty 18, offers a glimpse into ancient Egyptian about the afterlife. Funerary cones like this one were mass-produced from Nile silt clay and placed in rows above tomb entrances or in exterior niches. Inscribed with the deceased's and titles in hieroglyph—here, possibly that of the Royal Cup-Bearer Senemjer—they symbolically invited passersby to offer food and drink to the ka, the spirit of the tomb owner, ensuring eternal nourishment. Measuring just 3.5 cm long and 9.5 cm in diameter, the cone's simp...