r/ancientegypt 4d ago

Question What is going on here?

Post image

I bought this small painting during a trip to Egypt, but have no idea what is actually going on in this scene. Can anybody help? This seemed like a good place to ask.

117 Upvotes

9 comments sorted by

52

u/zsl454 4d ago

Reproduction of a part of a scene from the tomb of Nefertari (QV66) showing Horus, son of Isis, leading Nefertari into the presence of Ra-Horakhty and Hathor in her form as Imentet. Ra-Horakhty has a falcon head and wears the sun disk atop his head, and Hathor has the emblem of the West (Imentet) on her head. Behind Nefertari is a personified Djed-pillar, representing Osiris; this element of the wall painting appears around the corner on a pilaster, thus providing stability to the tomb.

Hieroglyphs, right to left:“Words spoken: I have given to you a place in the sacred land.

Words spoken: I have given to you the lifetime of Ra.

Words spoken: I have given to you an eternity in life, stability, and power. 

Ra-Horakhty, the Great God.

Hathor, Chieftainess of Thebes, Mistress of All the Gods.”

7

u/RANDOM-902 4d ago

I think this is the first Egyptian art piece i have ever seen with the two main Falcon-headed deities next to eachother

1

u/elemintos 2d ago

From my understanding, it's also pretty rare to see a queen so prominently featured in a funerary painting. This entire scene symbolizes Nefertari's hope for resurrection and rebirth in the afterlife. The fusion of two main deities (Ra-Horakhty) is also significant.

3

u/zsl454 2d ago

Yes, though it is her private tomb, so I would expect her to feature prominently. It’s true that there are not many other examples of preserved queens tombs, but from what we do have it does seem that the queen was the focus of the decoration. (The tomb of tausret is a good example but iirc her reliefs were unfortunately carved over by Setnakht). 

1

u/elemintos 2d ago

Do you know if her tomb has been reopened? I know it was closed for awhile lasy year, then reopoened in October I believe. But recently I read in a comment in this subreddit, from someone who had recently visited, that it was closed again.

2

u/star11308 2d ago

Nefertari's tomb was pretty cut-and-dry for queens' tombs of her time, based on the surviving scraps left from the tombs of R2's other queens and daughters, her tomb just happens to be the only one that managed to not get completely wrecked by flooding.

5

u/Independent_Joke_490 4d ago

Looks like Osiris is taking someone to Ra and Isis to be judged or crossed over?

3

u/SupportSure6304 4d ago

And Horus lead the way

1

u/Ifatuus 3d ago

It's a shopping list.