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Journey to the Field of Reeds: Death and the Afterlife in Ancient Egypt

back to Egypt section homeStatuette of a Standing Womancanopic jarfigurine (Ushabti)Ushabti figurineOsiris statuetteheart scarabstatuette of Tutupainted grave steleengraved grave stelefunerary conecoffinmummy mask to Greece & Italy section
Painted Grave Stele
 

Painted Grave Stele


Placed inside a tomb, the stele depicts the deceased and two worshippers approaching the god Horus-Re. Between the god and his subjects is an inverted lotus blossom, which was a symbol of death and rebirth. At the bottom is a vertical band of hieroglyphics, which invoke the god on the deceased’s behalf.

Painted Grave Stele
Egyptian, Ptolemaic Period, Dynasty 33,
305–30 B.C.E.
Limestone and pigment
(X-1)
Gift of Sir Flinders Petrie