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Egyptian Artifacts

Stela of Takhenemet

Painted wooden 𓆱𓏏𓏺 stelae π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έπ“ͺ first became appeared during the 18th Dynasty, but didn’t become popular until the 21st Dynasty. This particular stela π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έ is from the 25th Dynasty and was found at Thebes π“Œ€π“π“Š–. Usually these stelae π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έπ“ͺ were put in the burial chamber with the deceased 𓅓𓏏𓏱.

Stela of Takhenemet at the Brooklyn Museum

This stela π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έ shows a woman named Takhenemet who is paying homage to the god π“ŠΉ Ra-Horakty π“…Šπ“”π“”π“€. Ra-Horkaty π“…Šπ“”π“”π“€ is the merging of the gods π“ŠΉπ“ŠΉπ“ŠΉ Ra 𓇳𓏺𓁛 and Horus π“…ƒπ“€­. Here, Ra-Horkaty π“…Šπ“”π“”π“€ is actually dressed like Osiris π“Ήπ“Š¨π“€­ would be traditionally dressed. During this period, the merging of deities was very common.

What’s interesting about the stela π“Ž—π“…±π“†“π“‰Έ from this period is usually the deceased 𓅓𓏏𓏱 is paying homage to a god π“ŠΉ with help from another deity, however, here Takhenemet is not accompanied by another god π“ŠΉ ; she is alone. This is probably just a style change, but it is interesting to note!