Thutmosis I π³π»π£π (or π ππ΄) was the third πΌ pharaoh ππ» of the 18th Dynasty. His name π ππ΄ means βBorn of Thoth.β Thutmosis I π³π»π£π was responsible for many successful military campaigns and building projects, including additions to the Temple of Amun at Karnak. Though, in my opinion, Thutmosis Iβs π³π»π£π most notable achievement is being Hatshepsutβs ππ ππΉππππΌπͺ father πππ!
This statue is in the British Museum! I dream of going back to the British Museum one day – I was lucky enough to be able to go there twice on my trip to London, and even luckier that I got to explore the museum with my Nonnoπ.
This column was definitely usurped by another pharaoh ππ» at some point because some of the cartouches on this column donβt belong to Rameses II π³ππ§π³ππ!
I have always loved seeing the columns in museums because you can get a sense of the grand scale of the Egyptian monuments. Since I have never been to Egypt ππ ππ, itβs nice to see just how grand their building was! I love the design of this column; the top looks like a flower πΈ!
While neither list is a 100% complete list, there are some glaring holes in the list – Hatshepsut ππ ππΉππππΌπͺ, Akhenaten ππππ³π ππ, Smenkhare π³ππ»ππ¦π£, Tutankhamun ππ πππ ±ππΉπΎπΊπ, and Ayβs π³π£π£πͺπΉππ cartouches are missing. Obviously, these names were left off because these pharaohs ππ»π₯ are considered non-legitimate. Hatshepsut ππ ππΉππππΌπͺ was the female pharaoh ππ», and Akhenaten-Ay is considered the Amarna Period, which was not well liked due to the drama of Akhenaten changing the religion and moving the capital of Egypt ππ ππ.
In this picture, Iβm pointing to where Hatshepsutβs ππ ππΉππππΌπͺ name should be, but is missing due to the fact that she was purposefully left off the list!
You can see Thutmosis IIIβs the one name π³π π£, and then Iβm pointing to the space next to his name. Why next to Thutmosis III π³π π£? Even though Thutmosis III π³π π£ was technically named as pharaoh ππ» first, and since he was too young to rule (he came to the throne at as young as two years old according to some historians), Hatshepsut ππ ππΉππππΌπͺ was his co-regent until she named herself the sole pharaoh ππ».
Here is a closer look at the Kingβs List – how stunning are these hieroglyphs?! Iβm always so amazed that even after thousands of years, the colors on the monuments are still there!
On the left hand side, you can see the inscription π₯(π³ππ§π³ππ). This is his prenomen, or Throne Name:
π₯ – King of Upper and Lower Egypt π³ππ§π³ππ – Usermaatre Setepenre, which means Keeper of Harmony and Balance, Chosen by Ra.
Next to that inscription, you can see the following: π π³ (ππ ππππΊππ΄π).
π π³ – Son of Ra ππ ππππΊππ΄π – Rameses, Beloved of Amun.
Hereβs an even further breakdown of Rameses IIβs Nomen: ππ ππ – Beloved of Amun ππΊππ΄π – can be translated multiple ways βBorn of Ra,β βRa bore him,β etc.
Here are some gilded sarcophagi π ±ππΎπͺ at the British Museum!
TheΒ British MuseumΒ has so many different sarcophagi π ±ππΎπͺ in their collection that it was almost overwhelming trying to see everything!!! Sarcophagi π ±ππΎπͺ such as these are usually made of wood π±ππΊ with a gold leaf overlay – it makes it look like the sarcophagus π ±ππΎ is made of pure gold when it is not! These are decorated beautifully π€ with many of the gods πΉπΉπΉ and goddesses πΉπΉπΉπ of the Egyptian pantheon! The sarcophagus π ±ππΎ on the left contains a dedication to Osiris πΉπ¨π, which runs down the center of the lid!
This is the stelaΒ ππ ±ππΈΒ of a man named Sobekhotep ππ΅ππͺΒ who was a scribe that worked at a wine cellar! This stelaΒ ππ ±ππΈΒ is dated to the 18th Dynasty (New Kingdom) and the reign of Amenhotep IIIΒ ππ ππ΅πΎπΒ (c. 1390-1352 B.C.E.).Β This stela is at the British museum.
The stela ππ ±ππΈ is divided into three πΌ different sections. On the top, Sobekhotep ππ΅ππͺ and his wife πππ are worshipping Osiris πΉπ¨π (right) and Anubis πππͺπ ±π£ (left). Sobekhotep ππ΅ππͺ and his wife πππ have their arms raised, which is how it is interpreted that they are worshipping πΌπΏπ’ those gods πΉπΉπΉ. Osiris πΉπ¨π and Anubis πππͺπ ±π£ are the two π» gods πΉπΉπΉ that are generally worshipped πΌπΏπ’ on funerary stelae ππ ±ππΈπͺ because they are the gods πΉπΉπΉ most associated with death π ππ± and the afterlife πΌπΏππ.
In the middle section, Sobekhotep ππ΅ππͺ, his wife πππ and one daughter π π are receiving offerings π΅ππͺπππ¦ presented by four π½ of their sons π π¦. More sons π π¦ and daughters π ππ¦ appear in the scene on the bottom of the stela ππ ±ππΈ. The family π ππ ±ππππ¦ was an extremely important part of ancient Egyptian πππππͺ life πΉ and culture, as was religion, which is why funerary stelae ππ ±ππΈπͺ usually represented both.
As a side note, I really love Sobekhotepβs ππ΅ππͺ name ππ!
π – Sobek
π΅ππͺ – Hotep (peace, satisfied, etc)
So the name ππ Sobekhotep ππ΅ππͺ can be translated to βSobek is satisfied.β Can you find Sobekhotepβs ππ΅ππͺ name ππ on the stela ππ ±ππΈ? (Hint: the name usually appears next to the person)!!
Thereβs a lot going on in this picture ππ ±π, but I really like this display at the British Museum! This display contains statuesΒ πππππΎπͺΒ that all have to do with funerary practices.Β
On the bottom left, there are multiple figures of Ptah-Sokar-Osiris. Ptah-Sokar-Osiris figures connect three gods πΉπΉπΉ that are connected to rebirth/resurrection into a single statue πππππΎ. These statues πππππΎπͺ became popular during the Late Period and they seemed to have evolved from the figures of Osiris πΉπ¨π that became popular in tombs ππ«πππ¦ during the 19th Dynasty (New Kingdom). These figures are always a mummiform figure on a wooden π±ππΊ base.
On the bottom right is a corn mummy in a falcon πππ‘π sarcophagus ππΉπππ. While millions of animal mummies have been found at sites all over Egypt ππ ππ, mummies made of grains like wheat and barley have also been found. Corn Mummies are meant to be a representation of the god πΉ Osiris πΉπ¨π and Egyptologists came to this conclusion because the βcoffinsβ that contain the corn mummies almost always contain Osirisβ πΉπ¨π name ππ and his titles/epithets.
The middle-right shows wooden π±ππΊ funerary figures of Isis π¨ππ₯ and Nephthys π ππ which were also popular figures to find in tombs ππ«πππ¦ from the Late Period and onward. Isis π¨ππ₯ and Nephthys π ππ were sisters π’ππππͺ and both funerary goddesses πΉπΉπΉπ. Similar statues πππππΎπͺ can be seen in museums around the world!
The top left shows various figures and representations of the god πΉ Osiris πΉπ¨π, who was the main funerary god πΉ in the Egyptian pantheon.
Β The Book of the Dead of Hunefer is one of my absolute favorite artifacts, and seeing it in the British Museum was a dream come true for me!
On the top panel, Hunefer (the deceased) stands before the 42 divine judges and pleads their lifetime of truth and moral doings. The Book of the Dead provided the deceased with the words to say so they would pass this trial!
On the bottom panel: This is the Weighing of the Heart ceremony! Letβs start from the left! Anubis πππͺπ ±π£ is leading Hunefer (the deceased) to the scales (not gonna lie, Iβm a little jealous they are holding hands π). Here, Anubis πππͺπ ±π’ weighs the heart πππ£ of the deceased π ππ± against Maatβs π΄ππ£ππ¦ feather (Maat is sitting on top of the scales). If Anubis πππͺπ ±π£ determines thereβs balance between the two π», that means that the deceased lived a truthful ππ΄π£ππ and just ππ΄π£πππ life πΉ.
Ammit ππ π π (the Devourer of the Dead/Eater of Hearts) is there waiting to see if the deceased π ππ± didnβt live a truthful ππ΄π£ππ life! If the deceasedβs π ππ± heart πππ£ weighs more than the feather, Ammit ππ π π would eat the heart πππ£ and the deceased would βdie a second timeβ and not live in eternal paradise. Thoth π €π records the findings of the ceremony.
If the deceased π ππ± passed the Weigning of the Heart, they would be presented to Osiris πΉπ¨ π by Horus π π and would then enter the Field of Reeds πππ ππΏππ ±π°π and live in eternal paradise!
Iβm going to post another British Museum picture ππ ±π because Iβm nostalgic and I like remembering how amazing that day πππΊπ³ was!
Fun fact! Much like modern geologists, the ancient Egyptians πππππͺ differentiated between granite and red granite rocks πππππ¦! How do we know?! The hieroglyphs πΉππͺ are different:
Granite – πππππ³πΏ Red Granite – π π³ππΆ
I love rocks πππππ¦ and geology so much! I actually got interested in geology as a kid because I wanted to know what all of the statues were made out of!
This lion π³πΉπΏπ statue πππππΎ was originally meant to represent the 18th Dynasty pharaoh ππ» Amenhotep III π³π§π . The Egyptians believed that lions π³πΉπΏππ¦ represented strength and might, which is why pharaohs ππ»π¦ wanted to be represented as lions π³πΉπΏππ¦ (and why the Sphinx ππ ±ππ€ was so popular). While being represented as a sphinx ππ ±ππ€ was considered the βnormalβ in Egyptian art, being represented as a full lion π³πΉπΏπ was very rare. Also, sphinxes ππ ±ππ¦ are usually represented in a βhead-onβ type style, while this statue πππππΎ represents the lion π³πΉπΏππ¦ in a more realistic fashion.
To me, this piece showcases the incredible skills that Egyptian artists possessed – not only could they make idealized/traditional statues like sphinxes ππ ±ππ¦, but they were also masters at making realistic statues too.
This statue πππππΎ has gone through many changes and was recycled by many pharaohs ππ»π¦! It was originally made for Amenhotep III π³π§π , however, an inscription was added to the chest by Amenhotep IV ππ ππ΅πΉπΎπ (better known as Akhenaten ππππ³π ππ after his name ππ change).
The inscription reads βLion of rulers, wild when he sees his enemies tread his path.β The picture ππ ±π below shows a close up of this inscription, however it is hard to read – I got some help from the British Museum website for the translation because when hieroglyphs πΉππͺ are faded, especially when looking at them from my photographs, they can be extremely difficult for me to read!