Two Fragments of an Offering Inscription
Unknown Artist
ca. 2100–2090 B.C.
Medium
Limestone
Dimensions
H. 9 × W. 14 × D. 3.2 cm (3 9/16 × 5 1/2 × 1 1/4 in.)
Classification
Relief fragment (1 of 2), tomb of Mereri perhaps
Period
Old Kingdom–First Intermediate Period
Department
Egyptian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Egypt Exploration Fund, 1898
Accession Number
98.4.78a
Art Historical Context
These delicate limestone fragments, dating to around 2100–2090 B.C., hail from Egypt's Old Kingdom–First Intermediate Period possibly Dynasties 7–10. Carved with hieroglyphic inscriptions, they formed part of a larger offering text, likely dedicated to provisioning the deceased or deities in the afterlife. At just 9 cm high and 14 cm wide, their modest size belies their ancient origins, preserved as a gift to the Metropolitan Museum of Art from the Egypt Exploration Fund in 1898. This turbulent era marked the decline of the Old Kingdom's grandeur, with political fragmentation and famine chall...