Chairs, Stools and Footstools in the New Kingdom: Production, typology and social analysis 9781407312217, 9781407341903

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BAR S2593 2014

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom

EL GABRY

Production, typology, and social analysis



Dina El Gabry

CHAIRS, STOOLS, AND FOOTSTOOLS IN THE NEW KINGDOM

B A R El Gabry 2593 cover.indd 1

BAR International Series 2593 2014 17/12/2013 13:39:56

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom Production, typology, and social analysis

Dina El Gabry

BAR International Series 2593 2014

ISBN 9781407312217 paperback ISBN 9781407341903 e-format DOI https://doi.org/10.30861/9781407312217 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

BAR

PUBLISHING

Table of Contents Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………………………...................... List of Figures……………………………………………………………………………………………….….. Foreword………………………………………………………………………………………………………..... Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………………..….. Chapter I …………………………………………………………………………………………….................... Woodworking Processes and Techniques in Manufacturing Chairs and Stools………………………..…... I-Tools ……………………………………………………………………………………………….................... I.1 Cutting and Shaping Tools ……………………………………………………………………….................... Axes ………………………………………………………………………………………………........... Adzes ………………………………………………………………………………………………..…... I.2 Sawing Tools ……………………………………………………………………………………….............. Saws………………………………………………………………………………………………........... I.3 Piercing and Carving Tools…………………………………………………………………………………… Chisels……………………………………………………………………………………………........... Awls. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………. Mallets……………………………………………………………………………………………........... Bow Drills……………………………………………………………………………………………….. I.4 Measuring and Marking Tools ……………………………………………………………………….............. Marking Knife …………………………………………………………………………………............... I.5 Smoothing and Polishing Tools ……………………………………………………………………................. Rubbers………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Sharpening Hone ……………………………………………………………………………….............. Oil Flask …………………………………………………………………………………………........... I.6 Other Workshop Items ……………………………………………………………………………….............. Rests for Adzes………………………………………………………………………………………….. Baskets ………………………………………………………………………………………….............. I.7 Discussion Surrounding Use of the Lathe ……………………………………………………………………. II- Materials ……………………………………………………………………………………………............... II.1 Native Wood…………………………………………………………………………………………............. Acacia ……………………………………………………………………………………………........... Sycamore ………………………………………………………………………………………………. Tamarisk………………………………………………………………………………………………… Carob …………………………………………………………………………………………………… Dom Palm……………………………………………………………………………………….............. Date Palm……………………………………………………………………………………….............. II.2 Imported Wood …………………………………………………………………………………….............. Boxwood………………………………………………………………………………………………… Ebony……………………………………………………………………………………………………. Cedar……………………………………………………………………………………………………. Cypress ………………………………………………………………………………………………….. II.3 Auxiliary Materials………………………………………………………………………………................... Leather ………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Ivory……………………………………………………………………………………………............... Bone …………………………………………………………………………………………….............. II.4 Weaving Materials ……………………………………………………………………………………........... Linen…………………………………………………………………………………………….............. Rush, Reed, Palm and Other Plant Fibers……………………………………………………………… Papyrus………………………………………………………………………………………………….. II.5 Assembly Materials…………………………………………………………………………………............... Glue………………………………………………………………………………………………........... Bronze …………………………………………………………………………………………...............

i

I IV XIX 1 3 3 4 4 4 6 7 7 8 8 9 9 9 10 11 11 11 11 11 12 12 12 12 13 13 14 14 14 15 15 15 15 15 16 17 18 18 18 19 19 19 19 20 20 20 20 21

III Woodworking Processes…………………………………………………………………………….............. III.1 Felling the Timber…………………………………………………………………………………………... III.2 Removal of the Branches and Trimming the Wood…………………………………………….................... III 3 Transport of Wood……………………………………………………………………………………........... III.4 Sawing the Wood……………………………………………………………………………………………. III.5 Seasoning/Drying the Wood …………………………………………………………………………........... III.6 Measuring…………………………………………………………………………………………………… III.7 Wood Formation and Shaping ……………………………………………………………………………… III.8 Bending, Straightening and Shaping the Wood …………………………………………………….............. III.9 Drilling the Wood ……………………………………………………………………………………........... III.10 Joints……………………………………………………………………………………………….............. III.10.a Mortise and Tenon………………………………………………………………………………............. Stub Mortise and Tenon………………………………………………………………………………… Through Mortise and Tenon…………………………………………………………………….............. Through Mortise and Loose Tongue……………………………………………………………………. Double Open Mortise and Tenon……………………………………………………………….............. Pinned Barefaced Mortise and tenon…………………………………………………………................ Through Mortise and Tenon with Shoulders………………………………………………..................... III.10.b Mortise and Dowels………………………………………………………………………………........... III.10.c Butt Joints…………………………………………………………………………………………........... III.11 Smoothing the Wood………………………………………………………………………………............. III.12 Finishing Techniques……………………………………………………………………………………… Gesso……………………………………………………………………………………………………. Gilding……………………………………………………………………………………………........... Painting…………………………………………………………………………………………………. Veneering…………………………………………………………………………………………........... Chapter II………………………………………………………………………………………………………... Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces and Fragments Preserved in the Cairo Museum……………………………………………………………………………………………....................... I-Collection Excavated by Bruyère at Deir El Medina……………………………………………….............. II-Collection from the Tomb of Amenhotep II……………………………………………………….............. III-Pedestals from the Tomb of Thutmose IV…………………………………………………………............ IV-Collection from the Tomb of Yuya and Tuya……………………………………………………………… V-Collection from Tell El-Amarna……………………………………………………………………………. VI-Collection from the Tomb of Horemheb……………………………………………………………........... VII-Collection from the Tomb of Sennedjem…………………………………………………………………. VIII-Inscribed Collection……………………………………………………………………………................. IX-Collection with Known Provenance………………………………………………………………………... X-Collection with Unknown Provenance……………………………………………………………………… XI-Elbow Braces………………………………………………………………………………………………… XII- Legs…………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Chapter III……………………………………………………………………………………………….............. Two-dimensional Scenes: Symbolism, Usage, and Comparison with Sculpture……………………………. I Elongated Chair and Symbolism…………………………………………………………………………….. II Circumstances and Social Context of Using Chairs and Stools…………………………………………… Chapter IV ……………………………………………………………………………………………................. Lexicography and Typology …………………………………………………………………………………… I A Lexicographical Discussion of Chairs, Stools and Footstools in the New Kingdom………………....... Isbt……………………………………………………………………………………………………... Qniw……………………………………………………………………………………………………. 0dmw……………………………………………………………………………………………………. PHDw……………………………………………………………………………………………………. KHs……………………………………………………………………………………………………...

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21 21 21 21 22 23 24 24 24 27 27 27 27 28 28 28 28 28 28 29 29 29 29 30 30 30 31 31 31 32 34 34 36 37 37 41 45 52 60 61 69 69 69 74 80 80 80 81 84 86 87 87

II Typology of Chairs and Stools in the New Kingdom……………………………………………….............. 87 Conclusions………………………………………………………………………………………………............... 92 List of Abbreviations……………………………………………………………………………………………. 94 Bibliography………………………………………………………………………………………………........... 96 Figures…………………………………………………………………………………………………................. 117

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List of Figures Fig. 1: Scenes from the tomb of Ti, Dynasty V (after Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, fig. 459)  IFAO

117

Fig. 2: Scenes from the tomb of Rekhmire, TT 100 (after Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, fig. 460) “Courtesy of the Connoisseur Magazine”

117

Fig. 3: Carpenters‟ tools as depicted on the sarcophagi (after Lacau, Sarcophages ie N e i e I, pl. XL) The Cairo Egyptian Museum

118

Fig. 4: Model of Meketre‟s carpenters‟ workshop (after Laurent- Tackholm, Faraos Blomster, 76 as cited in Makkonen, Ancient Forestry: an Historical Study, part II, fig. 6)

119

Fig. 5: Model tool chest and tools of Ankhef, Dynasty XII, Metropolitan Museum of Art (17. 9. 31), Gift of Edward S. Harkness, 1917. Image © The Metropolitan Museum of Art

119

Fig. 6: Carpenters‟ tools after J quier Le F i e D’Obje de S c  IFAO

120

h ges du Moyen Empire, fig. 715)

Fig. 7: Model carpenters‟ tools from the Middle Kingdom Metropolitan Museum of Art 20. 3. 90-20. 3. 98), Rogers Fund and Edward S. Harkness Gift, 1920. Image The Metropolitan Museum of Art

120

Fig. 8: Carpentry set from the New Kingdom, British Museum (EA 6037, 6040, 6042, 6043, 6044, 6046, 6055, 6061, 22834, 30083, 30245, 36728) Trustees of the British Museum

121

Fig. 9: Blades of axes (after Śliwa, Woodworking, fig. 1) “Courtesy of Joachim Śliwa”

121

Fig. 10: Adze from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6061. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

122

Fig. 11: Adze from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 26279. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

122

Fig. 12: Adze from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 22834. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

122

Fig. 13: Plain adze blades (after Petrie, Tools and Weapons, pl. XVI)

123

Fig. 14: Necked adze blades (after Petrie, Tools and Weapons, pl. XVII)

124

Fig. 15: Saw knife from the Badarian period (British Museum, London EA 62274. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

125

Fig. 16: Saw from the First Dynasty (British Museum, London EA 66064. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

125

Fig. 17: Hand saw from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6046. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

125

iv v

Fig. 18: Pull saw from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 30245. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

125

Fig. 19: Mortise chisel from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6053. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

125

Fig. 20: Firmer chisel from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6045. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

126

Fig. 21: Wooden mallet from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 41679. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

126

Fig. 22: Wooden carpenters‟ mallets Ägyptisches Museum Berlin (ÄM 11115, ÄM 13659, ÄM 16626; Ägyptisches Museum und Papyrussammlung, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin – SPK)

127

Fig. 23: Awl from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6055. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

127

Fig. 24 : Bow drill from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6040, 6042. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

128

Fig. 25: Marking knife from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 15742. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

128

Fig. 26: Rubbers after J quier Le F i e D’Obje de S c  IFAO

128

h ge d M ye

i e, fig. 753)

Fig. 27: Measuring tools (after Śliwa, Woodworking, fig. 10) “Courtesy of Joachim Śliwa”

129

Fig. 28: A square, a plumb, and a square level of Sennedjem (after Arnold, Building in Egypt, 1991, fig. 6.4) “By permission of Oxford University Press”

129

Fig. 29: Sharpening hone from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 36728. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

130

Fig. 30: Oil flask from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6037. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

130

Fig. 31: Rests for adzes (after Śliwa, Woodworking, fig. 11) “Courtesy of Joachim Śliwa”

131

Fig. 32: Scene of a lathe from the tomb of Petosiris at Tuna El-Gebel (after Lefebvre, Le Tombeau de Petosiris Troisième Partie: Vocabulaire et Planches, pl. X)  IFAO

131

Fig. 33: Scenes from the tomb of Ipuy, TT 217 (after Davies, Two Ramesside Tombs at Thebes, pl. XXXVII) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

132

Fig. 34: Scenes from the tomb of Puyemre, TT 39 (after Davies, The Tomb of Puyemre at Thebes I, pl. XXIII) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

132

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Fig. 35: Economy in using wood: A lid of a coffin after Aldred “Fine Wood-Work ” 1957 fig. 485 a) “By permission of Oxford University Press”

133

Fig. 36: Economy in using wood: A footstool of Tutankhamun after Aldred “Fine Wood-Work ” 1957 fig. 485 b) “By permission of Oxford University Press”

133

Fig. 37: Scarf joint (after Aldred, “Fine Wood-Work ” 1957 fig. 492) “By permission of Oxford University Press”

133

Fig. 38: The chair of Renyseneb, Metropolitan Museum of Art (68. 58) The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Purchase, Patricia R. Lassalle Gift, 1968 Image  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

134

Fig. 39: A folding stool, Metropolitan Museum of Art (12. 182 .49) Rogers Fund, 1912 Image  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

135

Fig. 40: The chair of Hatnofer, Metropolitan Museum of Art (36. 3. 152)Rogers Fund, 1936 Image The Metropolitan Museum of Art

135

Fig. 41: Ivory legs (after Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, fig. 1) “Courtesy of the Connoisseur Magazine”

136

Fig. 42: Scenes from the temple of Beit El Wali (after Ricke, Hughes and Wente, The Beit el-Wali Temple of Ramesses II, pl. 7) “Courtesy of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago”

136

Fig. 43: Scene of weaving a bed from the tomb of Menkheperrasonb, TT 112 (after Davies, The Tombs of Menkheperrasonb, Amenmose, and Another, pl. XXX) “Image Courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

137

Fig. 44: A group of stools and a chair from Deir El-Medina after Bruyère and Gaston, e f i e de Dei M di eh N c e de L’Est, 48, fig. 21)  IFAO

137

-1935), Deuxième Partie, la

Fig. 45: Structure of New Kingdom chairs ; a-back, b-right side (after Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, fig. 1)  Marianne Eaton-Krauss and the Griffith Institute, University of Oxford

138

Fig. 46: Scenes of woodcutters from the tomb of Sekhemkara, Dynasty IV (after Hassan, Excavations at Giza IV, fig. 60)

138

Fig. 47: Scene of woodcutters from the tomb of Khnumhotep III, Dynasty XII (after Klebs, Die Reliefs und Malereien des Mittleren Reiches, fig. 100, Heidelberg: 1922, Reprint: Georg Olms, Hildesheim 1990)

139

Fig. 48: Scenes from the tomb of Khunes, Dynasty VI (after Varille, La Tombe de Ni- Ankh-Pepi à Zaouyet El-Mayetin, 15, fig. 5)  IFAO

139

Fig. 49: Scenes from the tomb of Nefer and Kahay, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, The Tomb of Nefer and Ka-hay, pl. 19) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

140

Fig. 50: Scenes of woodcutters from the tomb of Nefer and Kahay, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, The Tomb of Nefer and Ka-hay, pl. 21) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

140

vi vii

Fig. 51: Scenes of woodcutters from the tomb of Nefer and Kahay, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, The Tomb of Nefer and Ka-hay, pl. 20) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

141

Fig. 52: Scenes from the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, Das Grab des Nianchchnum und Chnumhotep, fig. 8) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

141

Fig. 53: Scenes of woodcutters from the tomb of Niankhpepi, Dynasty VI (after Varille, La Tombe de Ni- Ankh-Pepi à Zaouyet El-Mayetin, pl. XVI)  IFAO

142

Fig. 54: Scenes from the tomb of Kyky, TT 409 (after Negm, The Tomb of Simut Called Kyky : Theban Tomb 409 at Qurnah, pl. VIII) “Courtesy of Maged Negm”

142

Fig. 55: Scenes from the tomb of Nakht, TT 52 (after Shedid and Seidel, The Tomb of Nakht, 34) “Courtesy of Abdel Ghaffar Shedid”

143

Fig. 56: Scenes from the tomb of Ipuy, TT 217 (after Davies, Two Ramesside Tombs at Thebes, pl. XXX) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

143

Fig. 57: Scenes from the tomb of Ipuy, TT 217 (after Davies, Two Ramesside Tombs at Thebes, pl. XXXVI) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

143

Fig. 58: Scene from the tomb of Hepusonb, TT 67 (after Davies “A fragment of a Punt Scene ” pl. IV) “Image courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

144

Fig. 59: Scene of wood transport (after Naville, The Temple of Deir El Bahari III, pl. LXXIV) “Image courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

144

Fig. 60: Scenes from the tomb of Ibi at Deir El-Gebrawi, Dynasty VI (after Kanawati, Deir El-Gebrawi II, pl. 72) “Courtesy of Naguib Kanawati”

145

Fig. 61: Scenes from the tomb of Hemre I at Deir El-Gebrawi, Dynasty VI (after Kanawati, Deir El-Gebrawi I, pl. 48) “Courtesy of Naguib Kanawati”

145

Fig. 62: Scenes from the tomb of Zau at Deir El-Gebrawi, Dynasty VI (after Davies, The Rock Tombs of Deir el Gebrawi II, pl. X) “Images courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

146

Fig. 63: Scenes from the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, Das Grab des Nianchchnum und Chnumhotep, fig. 62) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

146

Fig. 64: Scenes from the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, Das Grab des Nianchchnum und Chnumhotep, fig. 63) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

147

Fig. 65: Scenes from the tomb of Ti, Dynasty V (after Wild, Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule III, pl. CLXXIV)  IFAO

147

vii viii

Fig. 66: Scenes from the tomb of Ti, Dynasty V (after Wild, Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule III, pl. CLXXIV)  IFAO

148

Fig. 67: Scenes from the mastaba of Mereruka, Dynasty VI (after Duell, The Mastaba of Mereruka I, pl. 30) “Courtesy of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago”

148

Fig. 68: Scenes from the tomb of Pepiankh at Meir, Dynasty VI (after Blackman, The Rock tombs of Meir V, pl. XVIII) “Images courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

149

Fig. 69: Scenes from the mastaba of Iymery at Giza (G. 6020) (after Lepsius, Denkmäler aus Ägypten und Äthiopien, Bl. 49)

149

Fig. 70: Scenes from the tomb of Khety at Beni Hasan (No 17), Dynasty XI (after Newberry, Beni Hassan II, pl. XIII, as cited in Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, fig. 11)

150

Fig.71: Scenes from the tomb of Amenemhat at Beni Hassan, Dynasty XII (after Pritchard, The Ancient Near East in Pictures, fig. 122)  Princeton University Press

150

Fig. 72: Workshop scenes from the tomb of Apuki and Nebamun at Thebes, TT 181 (after Davies, The Tomb of Two Sculptors, pl. XI) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

150

Fig. 73: Scenes from the tomb of Rekhmire, TT 100 (after Virey, Le Tombeau de Rekhmara, pl. XIV)  IFAO

151

Fig. 74: Scenes from the tomb of Rekhmire, TT 100 (after Virey, Le Tombeau de Rekhmara, pl. XV).  IFAO

151

Fig. 75: Scenes from the tomb of Neferhotep, TT 49 (after Davies, The Tomb of Nefer-hotep at Thebes, Vol. I, pl. XXVII) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

152

Fig. 76: Scenes from the tomb of Neferhotep, TT 49 (after Davies, The Tomb of Nefer-hotep at Thebes, Vol. I, pl. XLIX) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

152

Fig. 77: Scene from the tomb of Ti: two workers cutting mortises (after Wild, Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule II, pl. CXXIX)  IFAO

153

Fig. 78: Scene from the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep (after Rogers, An Analysis of Tomb Reliefs Depicting Boat Construction, fig. 31) “Courtesy of Edward Rogers”

153

Fig. 79: Scenes from the tomb of Shedu at Deshasha, Dynasty VI (after Kanawati and McFarlane, Deshasha, pl. 49) “Courtesy of Naguib Kanawati”

154

Fig. 80: Scenes from the tomb of Shedu at Deshasha, Dynasty VI (after Petrie, Deshasheh, pl. XXI, as cited in Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, fig. 8)

154

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Fig. 81: Scene from the tomb of Ti, Dynasty V (after Wild, Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule III, pl. CLXXIV)  IFAO

155

Fig. 82: Scene from the mastaba of Mereruka, Dynasty VI (after Duell, The Mastaba of Mereruka I, pl. 31) “Courtesy of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago”

155

Fig. 83: Scenes from the tomb of Shepsi-Pu-Min/Kheni at Akhmim, Dynasty VI (after Kanawati, The Rock Tombs of EL Hawawish II, fig. 19) “Courtesy of Naguib Kanawati”

156

Fig. 84: Scenes from the tomb of Ptahshepses at Abusir, Dynasty V (after Verner, The Mastaba of Ptahshepses, pl. 28) “Courtesy of Miroslav Verner”

156

Fig. 85: Scenes from the tomb of Serfka at Sheikh Said, Dynasty V (after Davies, The Rock Tombs of Sheikh Saïd, pl. IV, as cited in Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, fig. 7) “Images Courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

156

Fig. 86: Scenes from the tomb of Baqet III at Beni Hasan (No 15), Dynasty XI (after Newberry, Beni Hasan II, pl. VII, as cited in Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, fig. 10)

157

Fig. 87: Scenes from the tomb of Khety at Beni Hasan (No 17), Dynasty XI (after Newberry, Beni Hasan II, pl. XIII, as cited in Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, fig. 12)

157

Fig. 88: Mortise and Tenon (after Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, fig. 14) “Courtesy of Geoffrey Killen”

157

Fig. 89: Stub mortise and tenon Made by Medhat Abdallah

158

Fig. 90: Through mortise and tenon Made by Medhat Abdallah

158

Fig. 91: Through mortise and loose tongue Made by Medhat Abdallah

159

Fig. 92: Double open mortise and tenon Made by Medhat Abdallah

159

Fig. 93: Pinned barefaced mortise and tenon Made by Medhat Abdallah

160

Fig. 94: Through mortise and tenon with shoulders Made by Medhat Abdallah

160

Fig. 95: Through mortise and tenon with shoulders Made by Medhat Abdallah

161

Fig. 96: Mortise and dowels Made by Medhat Abdallah

161

Fig. 97: Butt Joint Made by Medhat Abdallah

162

ix x

Fig. 98: Scenes from the tomb of Kaemankh at Giza after Brovarski “An Inventory List from „Covington‟s Tomb ‟” fig. 8) “Courtesy of Edward Brovarski”

162

Fig. 99: Scenes from the mastaba of Werirenptah at Saqqara, British Museum (EA 718)  Trustees of the British Museum

163

Fig. 100: Scene from the tomb of Ptahshepses at Abu-Sir (after Verner, The Mastaba of Ptahshepses, photo 19, pl. 9) “Courtesy of Miroslav Verner”

163

Fig. 101: Scene from the tomb of Sebeknakhte at El Kab (after Derchain “La Perruque et le Cristal ” fig. 3)  Helmut Buske Verlag GmbH

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Fig. 102: Scene from the tomb of Sebeknakhte at El Kab (after Derchain “La Perruque et le Cristal ” fig. 4)  Helmut Buske Verlag GmbH

164

Fig. 103: A statue from El-Amarna (JE 53249)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

165

Fig. 104: Statue of a seated nurse (JE 98831)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

165

Fig. 105: Side view of the nurse statue (JE 98831)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 106: Statue of Imenemipet and his wife Hathor (ÄM 6910, Ägyptisches Museum und Papyrussammlung, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin – SPK )

166

Fig. 107: Statue of a seated couple, Metropolitan Museum of Art (07. 228. 94), Rogers Fund, 1907 Image  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

167

Fig. 108: A couple seated in front of an offering table (CG. 622)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

167

Fig. 109: Scenes from the tomb of Huya (after Davies, The Rock Tombs of El-Amarna Part III, pl. 13) “Images Courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

168

Fig. 110: Scenes from the tomb of Ay (after Davies, The Rock Tombs of El-Amarna Part VI, pl. XXX) “Images Courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

168

Fig. 111: After Vandier, M

169

e d’

chéologie Égyptienne IV, fig. 25

Fig. 112: Stool model from the tomb of Madja (JE 63752)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 113: Three legged-stool from the tomb of Satnem (JE 63788)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

170

Fig. 114: High stool from the tomb of Satnem (JE 63786)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

170

Fig. 115: Three-legged stool from the tomb of Setau (JE 63856)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

171

Fig. 116: Chair model from the tomb of Amenhotep II (JE 32444)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

171

x xi

Fig. 117: Fragment of a leg from a folding stool (tomb of Amenhotep II, JE 32621 H)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

172

Fig. 118: Fragment of a leg from a folding stool (tomb of Amenhotep II, JE 32359 )  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

172

Fig. 119: Reconstruction of the two fragments from legs of a folding stool (tomb of Amenhotep II, JE 32621 H and JE 32359) Made by Eberhard Froehlich

173

Fig. 120: Pedestal for the foot of a chair (tomb of Amenhotep II, JE 32415)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 121: Pedestal for the foot of a chair (tomb of Thutmose IV, JE 97763)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 122: Pedestals for the feet of a chair (tomb of Thutmose IV, JE 97767)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

174

Fig. 123: The armchair of Sitamun (JE 95343 a)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

175

Fig. 124: The side of the armchair of Sitamun (JE 95343 a)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 125: The side of the armchair of Sitamun (JE 95344)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 126: The armchair of Sitamun (JE 95344)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

177

Fig. 127: Flared leg of a stool from Tell El-Amarna (JE 62790)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

178

Fig. 128: Fragment of a stool leg from Tell El-Amarna (JE 66010)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

178

Fig. 129: Fragment of a stool leg from Tell El-Amarna (JE 62781)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

179

Fig. 130: Two pedestals for the feet of a chair (tomb of Horemheb, JE 46827)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

179

Fig. 131: Leg from a folding stool (tomb of Horemheb, JE 55326)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

180

Fig. 132: Latticework stool from the tomb of Sennedjem (JE 27290)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

180

Fig. 133: Latticework stool from the tomb of Sennedjem (JE 27291)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

181

Fig. 134: Low stool from the tomb of Sennedjem (JE 27289)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

181

Fig. 135: Imitation of a folding stool from the tomb of Sennedjem (JE 27288)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

182

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Fig. 136: Flared-legged stool from the tomb of Sennedjem (JE 27255 A)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

182

Fig. 137: Flared-legged stool from the tomb of Sennedjem (JE 27255 B)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

183

Fig. 138: Three-legged stool from the tomb of Sennedjem (JE 30008)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

183

Fig. 139: Chair of Sennedjem (JE 27256)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

184

Fig. 140: Back of the chair of Sennedjem (JE 27256)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

185

Fig. 141: Model of a leg (TR 5/11/26/6)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

186

Fig. 142: Model of a leg (TR 5/11/26/7)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

187

Fig. 143: Three fragments, probably of a chair (JE 94397)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

188

Fig. 144: The three fragments JE 94397 (after Budka, Bestattungsbrauchtum und Friedhofsstruktur im Asasif, fig. 216)  Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften

188

Fig. 145: Reconstruction of the fragments JE 94397 Made by Eberhard Froehlich

189

Fig. 146: Fragment of a stool seat rail (JE 15033)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

190

Fig. 147: Ten Fragments probably from the back of a chair (TR 7/11/26/16)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

190

Fig. 148: Chair with straight back (JE 33533)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

191

Fig. 149: Side view of the chair (JE 29266)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

191

Fig. 150: Chair with slanted backrest (JE 29266)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

192

Fig. 151: Chair with straight legs (JE 43164)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

193

Fig. 152: Fragment of a chair with marquetry inlay (JE 43827)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

194

Fig. 153: Model chair with high back (JE 28353)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

194

Fig. 154: Stool with shaped legs (JE 43165)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

195

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Fig. 155: Low stool with plain legs (JE 29270)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

195

Fig. 156: Square stool (JE 3332)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

196

Fig. 157: Low stool (JE 66284) The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

196

Fig. 158: Low stool (JE 26592)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

197

Fig. 159: Stool painted white (JE 37628)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

197

Fig. 160: Folding stool with eight ducks‟ heads (JE 29275)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

198

Fig. 161: Flared- legged stool (JE 53723)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

198

Fig. 162: Stool with shaped legs (TR 28/11/26/1)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

199

Fig. 163: Three-legged stool (JE 14034)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

199

Fig. 164: Three-legged stool (JE 26608)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

200

Fig. 165: Three-legged stool (JE 41307)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

200

Fig. 166: Three-legged stool (JE 26609)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

201

Fig. 167: Four- legged stool (JE 26677) The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

201

Fig. 168: Four-legged stool (JE 26610)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

202

Fig. 169: Rectangular footstool (JE 52348)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

202

Fig. 170: Chair with slanted backrest (TR 24/11/26/3)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

203

Fig. 171: Chair with straight back (TR 26/11/26/12)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

204

Fig. 172: Chair with straight back (TR 26/11/26/5)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

205

Fig. 173: Low chair (TR 24/11/26/4)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

206

Fig. 174: Low chair (TR 24/11/26/5)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

206

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Fig. 175: Frame of a chair (TR 30/11/26/2)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

207

Fig. 176: Fragment of a chair (TR 2/12/26/11)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

207

Fig. 177: Fragment of a chair (TR 2/12/26/10)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

208

Fig. 178: Square stool (JE 30003)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

208

Fig. 179: Low stool (TR 7/11/26/13)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

209

Fig. 180: Fragment of a low stool (TR 10/4/23/5 a)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

209

Fig. 181: Fragment of a low stool (TR 10/4/23/5 b)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

210

Fig. 182: Fragment of a stool (JE 25985)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

210

Fig. 183: Three-legged stool (TR 26/11/26/9)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

211

Fig. 184: Low three-legged stool (TR 24/11/26/2)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

211

Fig. 185: Folding stool (TR 26/11/26/11)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

212

Fig. 186: Fragment of a folding stool (JE 30005)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

212

Fig. 187: Fragment of a folding stool leg (TR 26/11/26/2)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

213

Fig. 188: Fragment of a folding stool leg (TR 26/11/26/3)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

213

Fig. 189: Fragment of a model of folding stool (TR 15/6/26/10)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

214

Fig. 190: Fragment of a model of folding stool (TR 15/6/26/11)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

214

Fig. 191: Square stool with flared legs (TR 7/11/26/1)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

215

Fig. 192: Frame of a stool (TR 7/11/26/3)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

215

Fig. 193: Side of a flared-legged stool (TR 5/11/26/5)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

216

Fig. 194: Fragment of a stool (TR 29/5/32/2)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

216

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Fig. 195: Cylindrical fragment of the rail (of a stool or bed, TR 7/11/26/17)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

217

Fig. 196: Pedestal of a canopy (TR 1/12/26/3)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

217

Fig. 197: Two elbow braces (TR 29/5/32/5 a-b)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

218

Fig. 198: Elbow brace (TR 2/12/26/7)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

218

Fig. 199: Elbow brace (TR 2/12/26/8)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

219

Fig. 200: Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot (TR 5/11/26/1)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

219

Fig. 201: Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot (TR 5/11/26/2)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

220

Fig. 202: Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot (TR 5/11/26/4)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

220

Fig. 203: Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot (TR 5/11/26/3)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

221

Fig. 204: Flared leg of a stool (JE 43389)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

221

Fig. 205: Flared leg of a stool (TR 5/11/26/10)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

222

Fig. 206: Flared leg of a stool (TR 5/11/26/9)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

222

Fig. 207: Flared leg of a stool (TR 5/11/26/12)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

223

Fig. 208: Flared leg of a stool (TR 5/11/26/11)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

223

Fig. 209: Fragment of a cylindrical leg (TR 31/3/ 32/2)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

224

Fig. 210: Model of three flared legs (TR 2/12/26/6)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

224

Fig. 211: Lion leg (TR 15/6/26/12)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

225

Fig. 212: Lion leg (TR 15/6/26/13)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

225

Fig. 213: Lion leg (TR 15/6/26/14)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

226

Fig. 214: Lion leg (TR 15/6/26/22)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

226

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Fig. 215: Lion leg (TR 15/6/26/23)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

227

Fig. 216: Lion leg (TR 23/11/26/17)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

227

Fig. 217: Lion leg (TR 23/11/26/19)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

228

Fig. 218: Lion leg (TR 23/11/26/22)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

228

Fig. 219: Lion leg (TR 23/11/26/23)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

229

Fig. 220: Lion leg (TR 23/11/26/16)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

229

Fig. 221: Lion leg (TR 23/11/26/20)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

230

Fig. 222: Lion leg (TR 23/11/ 26/21)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

230

Fig. 223: Lion leg (TR 23/11/26/29)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

231

Fig. 224: Lion leg (TR 23/11/ 26/44)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

231

Fig. 225: Lion leg (TR 23/11/26/39)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

232

Fig. 226: Lion leg (JE 33860)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

232

Fig. 227: Lion leg (JE 37688)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

233

Fig. 228: Lion leg (TR 2/12/26/5)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

233

Fig. 229: Lion leg (TR 23/11/26/33)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

234

Fig. 230: Fragment of a lion leg (JE 46877)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

234

Fig. 231: Stylized leg (TR 15/6/26/15)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

235

Fig. 232: Stylized leg (TR 16/6/25/16)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

235

Fig. 233: Canine leg (TR 23/11/26/15)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

236

Fig. 234 : Bull leg (TR 23/11/26/18)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

236

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Fig. 235: Shaped leg (TR 15/6/26/19)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

237

Fig. 236: Shaped leg (TR 15/6/26/20)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

237

Fig. 237: Shaped leg (TR 15/6/26/21)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

238

Fig. 238: Shaped leg (TR 23/11/26/28)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

238

Fig. 239: Shaped leg (TR 23/11/26/14)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

239

Fig. 240: Shaped leg (TR 23/11/26/24)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

239

Fig. 241: Shaped leg (TR 23/11/26/25)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

240

Fig. 242: Leg in the shape of Sa sign (TR 23/11/26/34)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

240

Fig. 243: Leg in the shape of Sa sign (TR 23/11/26/4)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

241

Fig. 244: Leg in the shape of Sa sign (TR 23/11/26/2)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

241

Fig. 245: Leg in the shape of Sa sign (TR 23/11/26/3)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

242

Fig. 246: Leg in the shape of Sa sign (TR 15/6/26/3)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

242

Fig. 247: Leg in the shape of Sa sign (TR 15/6/26/2)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

243

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Foreword This monograph is a revised version of my PhD dissertation submitted to the Johns Hopkins University in 2010. The manuscript was finalized during my work in Egypt as an assistant Professor at the Faculty of Tourism and Hotels Management, Helwan University. First, I would like to express my special thanks and deep gratitude to my advisors Dr. Betsy Bryan and Dr. Richard Jasnow of the Department of Near Eastern Studies at Johns Hopkins University. Their invaluable advice on the scholarly level and their emotional support and guidance throughout every step of the way has been immeasurable, and without them this work would not have been finished. I would also like to thank Dr. Theodore Lewis, Dr. Glenn Schwartz, Dr. P. Kyle McCarter, Dr. Jerrold Copper and all my professors from the Department of Near Eastern Studies. I am evidently grateful to Dr. Regine Schulz for her help and support, as well as all Egyptologists, who helped me throughout my study of the objects in museums, especially Dr. Marianne Eaton-Krauss. I am also thankful to all my professors in Egypt, especially Dr. Essam EL Banna, Dr. Aly Omar Abdallah, Dr. Maged Negm, as well as Dr. Abdel-Halim Nur El Din and Dr. Hassan Selim, for facilitating my work at the Cairo Museum. I would like to thank Dr. Wafaa el-Saddik, the former director of the Cairo Museum, as well as Dr. Janice Kamrin, Dr.Yasmine El Sahzly, and the entire group working in the documentation and registration department, as well as all the curators of the New Kingdom at the Cairo Museum. A special and sincere thank you is directed to my friend Dr. Hanane Gaber who accelerated many processes for me, and without whom it would have been difficult to obtain the necessary information from the museum. I also acknowledge the support of the entire group of the American Research Center in Egypt particularly Dr. Gerry Scott, Mme Amira Khattab and Djodi Deutsch; as well as the permanent committee of the Supreme Council of Antiquities of Egypt for granting me permission to study and photograph all the necessary pieces at the Cairo Egyptian Museum. I am also indebted to all professors, Egyptologists, museums, institutions, as well as publishers, who gave me permission to reproduce images from their books, database or collections. A special thank you for Mr. Sameh Abdel Mohsen, the photographer at the Cairo Museum, who took the majority of the photos related to my study. In addition, I appreciate the help of Mr. Medhat Abdallah for doing the auto cad for the joints, as well as Mr. Eberhard Froehlich, for doing the two drawings. Furthermore, Mr. Atta Turck for discussing and providing invaluable information about carpentry processes. I would like to thank all my friends and colleagues at the department of Near Eastern Studies, especially Dr. Elizabeth Waraska and Dr. Kathlyn Cooney who helped me during my research and writing. I would like also to offer my deep gratitude to Dr. David Davison from the British Archeological Reports for publishing this monograph and for his support and help during the preparation of this volume. Last but not least, a sincere thanks that I cannot repay is directed to all my family members, without whose support, love and encouragement in all aspects, this book would not have been accomplished. Lastly, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to all those who have helped me during this time and whose names I have inadvertently omitted.

xix

Introduction

studies the folding stool, referring briefly to a few of our pieces without going into detail. Manuelian contributes through entries in ’ G ,7 as well as an 8 article about flared-legged stool types. Bruwier further discusses the flared-legged stool and the double seat.9 Finally, Eaton-Krauss studies stools of Sennedjem and Tutankhamun in a series of articles.10 Her recent book The Thrones, Chairs, Stools and Footstools from the Tomb of Tutankhamun (2008)11 focuses on the collection of Tutankhamun in the Cairo Museum. Because of EatonKrauss’ extensive work on Tutankhamun, I have included these pieces in this book only as points of comparison with regard to decoration, symbolism and finishing of royal versus private objects.

Introduction The consideration of discrete groups of material can provide a basis for broader research on social history. The study of furniture and its production is a window into both the social position of its owner, and the techniques and social organization of the craftsmen. This book comprises an examination and analysis of the chairs, stools, and footstools of the New Kingdom (1550-1069 B.C.), which are preserved in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. My methodology has been to focus on real artifacts as a typology, as well as to understand the technique of manufacturing the pieces, considering twodimensional scenes as a secondary source. My analysis shows that the differences between furniture produced in royal workshops and that made for common use reside in the quality of materials, finishing, workmanship, ornamentation and symbolism, and not in distinct techniques of production. Furthermore, the study reveals that there is gender preference associated with the mode of usage of chairs and stools in certain instances.

It is the dearth of information about furniture in general, and chairs and stools specifically that led me to choose this topic. The period of the New Kingdom provides us with the largest number of pieces to study. Moreover, this is the period in which artistic design, as well as workmanship, reached a level far above that of any previous period.12 And it is also the period in which furniture from different social strata can be found. The dry climate of Egypt, combined with the practice of placing furniture used by the deceased in his life together with him in the tomb, have contributed to the good state of preservation of the majority of objects, a feature that makes Egypt different from other Near Eastern cultures. The close study of chairs and stools, together with the examination of tomb painting, stelae and sculpture, provides a wealth of information not only for the field of furniture, but also a fascinating window into the daily life of the ancient Egyptians.

In his book Furniture in the Ancient world,1 Baker provides us with a survey of furniture development not only in ancient Egypt, but also in the Near East and the Aegean. His work is useful in comparing our pieces with similar specimens in other museums. With the exception of the collection of Tuya and Yuya, as well as that of Sennedjem, Baker does not discuss any of the pieces with which we will deal. Killen’s two volumes Ancient Egyptian Furniture,2 are considered the main work on furniture (beds, chairs, stools, footstools, tables, and boxes) in ancient Egypt. Killen does not focus on lexicographical aspects. His main interest is in the design, tools, materials, as well as technique of manufacturing. He has published several articles on the joints used in furniture. However, no piece or fragment of our collection is described in Killen’s book. Of the chairs and stools he discusses, those preserved in the Cairo Museum belong to the royal sphere, mainly Hetepheres (Dynasty 4) and Tutankhamun (Dynasty 18), and are not included in this book. Fischer contributes to the study of furniture with several articles3 as well as various entries in the Lexikon der Ägyptologie.4 In one of his articles, entitled “A chair of the New Kingdom,” he provides us with a detailed analysis of a masterpiece chair in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.5 In Sella Curulis: The folding Stool: An Ancient Symbol of Dignity,6 Wanscher

Let us turn now to a brief overview of the chapters that follow: 7

Peter D. Manuelian. Egypt's Golden Age, the Art of Living in the New Kingdom, 1558-1085 B.C. Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, 1982. 63-66. 8 Peter D. Manuelian. “Notes on the So-called Turned Stools of the New Kingdom.” Studies in Ancient Egypt, the Aegean, and the Sudan: Essays in Honor of Dows Dunham on the Occasion of his 90th birthday, June 1, 1980. Eds. William Kelly Simpson and Whitney M. Davis. Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, Department of Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern Art, 1981. 125-128. 9 Marie-Cécile Bruwier. “Du Caractère Individuel du Siège Mobile en Égypte Pharaonique.” CdE 66 (1991): 89-107; “Origine et Usage du Tabouret isbet.” s l'Egypte Pharaonique et Copte: Mélanges Égyptologiques O . Eds. Christian Cannuyer, Jean-Marie Kruchten and Aristide héodoridès. Ath: Illustra, 1993. 29-57. 10 Marianne Eaton-Krauss. “Die hrone utanchamuns: Vorlaufige Bemerkungen.” GM 76 (1984): 7-10; “Walter Segal’s Documentation of C.G 51113, the Throne of Princess Sat-Amun.” JEA 75 (1989): 77-88; “Notes on some New Kingdom Stools with Bulls’ legs and utankhamun’s Feeding chair.” Divitiae Aegypti: Koptologische und Verwandte Studien zu Ehren von Martin Krause. Eds. Cäcilia Fluck et al. Wiesbaden: Ludwig Reichert, 1995. 84-92; “ hree Stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem, TT 1.” Ancient Egypt, the Aegean and the Near East: Studies in Honour of Martha Rhoads Bell. Eds. Jacke Phillips et al. Vol. I. San Antonio: Van Siclen Books, 1997.179-191. 11 Marianne Eaton-Krauss. The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, and Footstools from the Tomb of Tutankhamun. Oxford: Griffith Institute, 2008. 12 Renée Dreyfus. Hatshepsut from Queen to Pharaoh. Eds.Catharine H. Roehrig, enée Dreyfus, and Cathleen A. Keller. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2005. 254.

1

Hollis S. Baker. Furniture in the Ancient World: Origins and Evolution 3100-475 B.C. London: the Connoisseur, 1966. 2 Geoffrey Killen. Ancient Egyptian Furniture. Vol. I & II. Modern Egyptology Series. Warminster: Aris & Phillips, 1980, 1994. 3 Henry G. Fischer, “Les Meubles Égyptiens.” L’Écriture et L’ L L’Épigraphie Pharaoniques. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1986. 169-202, pls. 70-101. 4 Henry G. Fischer. “Stuhl.” LÄ VI: 92-100; “Möbel.” LÄ II: 180-189. 5 Henry G. Fischer. “A Chair of the Early New Kingdom.” Egyptian Studies III: Varia Nova. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1996. 141-176. 6 Ole Wanscher. Sella Curulis: The Folding Stool: An Ancient Symbol of Dignity. Copenhagen: Rosenkilde and Bagger, 1980.

1

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom

The first chapter is dedicated to woodworking processes and techniques of manufacturing chairs and stools. It is through the analysis of two-dimensional scenes that we gain information about the workshops and tools used by craftsmen, as well as their methods of production. The second chapter analyses the chairs, stools, and fragments that constitute the main corpus of this study (131 pieces in total). The Cairo Museum is the main repository for the objects of my study, as it includes both the remains of the New Kingdom chairs and stools, along with the original documentation of those pieces as they were entered into the museum’s records. My methodology is to provide all the documentation concerning each piece including its number, date, material, measurements, and provenance (if known). This will be followed by a detailed analysis of each piece, and its state of preservation. In addition, photos (and sometimes drawings) will be provided for each piece or fragment. Of importance also are the iconography and the hieroglyphic inscriptions associated with each piece; the symbolism related to them will be dealt with in chapter three. Because a large number of our pieces are unpublished, as well as being of unknown provenance and date, they are divided into collections. Collections I through VII are organized in chronological order. Collections VIII to XII are arranged in general categories (inscribed, known provenance, unknown provenance, legs). Under some of these categories, sub-divisions are used for different types of stools, chairs, or legs. The third chapter focuses primarily on two-dimensional scenes, and how these can increase our comprehension of the study objects. More specifically, our goal is to discuss a type of seating, “elongated chair,” that is commonly depicted on tomb walls and stelae, but not preserved as a real object. It is essential to explore the symbolism related to certain animals and elements that are present in images with this seat. The aim of the second part of this chapter is to provide significant insights about the specific circumstances or social context related to each type of chair and stool. A brief glance at the sculpture will follow, in order to shed light on their possible correlation with scenes or with real objects. The fourth chapter is devoted to a lexicographical analysis of the terms used to designate different types of chairs, stools and footstools. My aim in this part is to investigate if the lexicon matches with the representations. In other words, I try to see the connection between a specific term and a precise type of chair or stool. This will be followed by a typological study of chairs and stools in the New Kingdom, based on actual pieces of furniture that my corpus includes or those preserved in other collections. The conclusion provides provisional answers to questions related to the close examination of the objects, as well as highlights areas where further study is necessary. All the figures associated with this study follow the conclusion and the bibliography. 2

finally the finished product.15 In addition, the same basic scenes are repeated in most of the tombs. 16 My goal is to arrive at a complete picture comparable to that of a present-day carpenter. I will refer to some recent works on modern-day woodworking techniques such as Hoad ‘ b b v pf n reconstructing some of the missing steps. 17 Furthermore, the more we read about carpentry in general, the more we appreciate even the simplest piece of Egyptian furniture because of the time-consuming work required to produce such pieces. As indicated by Scott, most ancient Egyptian woodworking techniques are nowadays performed by n : ―T nd d f x n n n d by Egyptian carpenters was due to patience, care, skill, and training-but not to elaborate equipment, for the tools n d p ‖18 Another important aspect to consider when dealing with woodworking scenes is that they are not always specialized for a specific type of furniture. In other words, if we have a carpenter working with his adze on a plank of wood, we cannot always say that this piece will be used for a chair or a bed; we usually attribute it as being part of the next finished object depicted. Chairs and stools occupy a small percentage in the workshop scenes compared to other furniture items. But because the processes of cutting, adzing, sawing, shaping, bending, drilling, smoothing, measuring, and finishing are similar, I have incorporated the scenes together in an attempt to arrive at a sequential order. In addition, the caption at the top of the scene only mentions the name of the tool, or the action it performs. Inscriptions are not always helpful; however, the technique of bending and straightening is still a subject of controversy among scholars even though we have captions. We also have to take into consideration that two steps could be done at the same time by two different carpenters as a collaborative process. For example, it is difficult to say which is done first by the Egyptian joiners in making the mortise and tenon: are they cutting the tenon first or rather drilling the mortise? Joinery evidence is very scarce.19 Another example, in the step of shaping: it is possible that a carpenter is occupied with the shaping of a leg and another one is making the joint for the stool. In other words, it is not always clear what steps come first especially in simultaneous group work. In these cases I make logical inferences based on present-day practices. In few cases, we find scenes depicting a carpenter drilling a hole in a chair and legs are shown on the top (Fig. 73). The tomb of Rekhmire has a detailed illustration of the artisans working at their crafts with leather-workers, metal-

Chapter I Woodworking Processes and Manufacturing Chairs and Stools

Techniques

in

This chapter is a detailed study of the woodworking processes as well as the known and possible techniques employed by the craftsmen in the manufacture of chairs and stools. Part of this study is dedicated to the tools and materials used. Studying tools and techniques lead to a better evaluation of the artisans. Many questions arise when evaluating how a chair or a stool was made, including: What sequential steps were used in the wood processing? What are the many stages involved in manufacturing even the simplest piece? How were these different pieces assembled? What are the tools used? What tools common today are missing, and what is the function of each one? What are the types of joints in chairs and stools? Is it possible to correctly identify the joint used in a piece in a very good state of preservation, gessoed or gilded, based on the categories that we have? What are the main materials used for making the piece? What other materials were used for the inlay, veneer, and painting? And finally, how can scenes from different periods be juxtaposed in order to complete our understanding of the carpentry process? In trying to answer these questions, I rely chiefly on the two-dimensional scenes in tombs and mastabas, especially from the Old and New Kingdoms. A few examples are from the Middle Kingdom. I have incorporated many scenes from the Old Kingdom as this period is very useful and rich in its detailed representations of workshop and woodworking technique.13 In addition, some techniques that were used during the Old and Middle Kingdoms are not depicted in the New Kingdom (such as bending and straightening techniques). The original examples of tools preserved in the museums as well as the models of workshop are another important source of information in determining the tools available to the ancient Egyptian craftsmen. Although analysis of scenery can provide information about the workshop, as well as the tools and methods used by craftsmen for the production of the craft, it is very important to realize that these scenes are generic, stylized and even idealized. They are not intended to be instructions or blueprints on how to manufacture a chair, stool or any piece of furniture. It is also clear that we have more scenes for beds and boxes than for chairs and stools. But in no case do workshop scenes show all the various stages of manufacture.14 What we normally find are some steps from the beginning, the middle and then

15

The same applies for boat-building, as Landström states ― nf n , v n p n n b ‖ Bjö n L nd ö Ships of the Pharaohs:4000 Years of Egyptian Shipbuilding. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1970. 38. 16 This could be because artists copied from one tomb to another and also because they wished to emphasize the important steps from their point of view. 17 Bruce Hoadley. Understanding Wood: A Craftsman's Guide to Wood Technology. Newtown, CT: Taunton Press, 2000. 18 N S ―O E p n F n ‖ BMMA 24 (1965): 129-150 especially 132. 19 The best illustration is the one preserved in the Ti mastaba, but mainly connected with shipbuilding (see fig. 77).

13

J Studies in Ancient Egyptian Handicraft: Woodworking. Zeszyty Naukowe Uniw J . Nakladem: Uniwersytetu Jagiellonskiego, 1975. 21-22. 14 Here, I mean depictions of manufacturing chairs and stools in workshop environment, because in general scenes in tombs, we find several examples depicting people (from different social strata) seated on chairs and stools.

3

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom workers, carpenters and builders.20 This type of scene, although generic as previously stated, is still the best testimony about methods of production. The detailed carpentry scenes from the tomb of Rekhmire (New Kingdom) are reminiscent of the carpentry scenes from the mastaba of Ti (Old Kingdom) (Figs. 1-2) . I-Tools

A number of Ancient tools, and their uses, are familiar today. The shapes of the present chisel, adze and axe remain unchanged, but the metals employed to make them have altered. Modern cutting tools are made from carbon steel, but in ancient times copper, followed by bronze and iron, were the metals in use.26 By the Early Dynastic Period, tools made of flint were replaced by copper ones which led to the improvement of the furniture quality. A large collection was discovered by Emery in the First Dynasty tomb No 3471 at Saqqara.27 Copper tools continued to be used until the Middle Kingdom. The Eighteenth Dynasty brought the widespread use of bronze woodworking tools which, due to the harder material, made it easier to manufacture fine furniture.28 A good example of a bronze set is housed in the British museum. This kit was originally found in a basket in a Theban tomb. It gives a clear idea of a New Kingdom set29 consisting of: an axe, large and small adzes, pull saw and handsaw, bow drill, mortise and firmer chisels, awl, oil flask and a honing stone (Fig. 8).30

The first part of this chapter focuses on the tools used by ancient Egyptians. They are divided into categories according to their function. The second part is dedicated to the materials, and the last is devoted to the woodworking process in which the joints constitute a part. The first and last parts complete each other, which is why a lot of scenes figure in both. The first part about tools mainly concentrates on presenting the names of each tool, its function, and some of the scenes where the tool is depicted except for the axe and saw, as their scenes will be mainly examined in the third part because of discussions related to their use. These scenes are mentioned briefly in the third part but the complete discussions and debates among scholars concerning any process are dealt with in the last part of this chapter.

I.1 Cutting and Shaping Tools 

Wxryt E p n d d n ― p n ‘ tools set.‖21 Our information about tools relies on several sources that could be placed together in order to reconstruct the set of tools, their names, and their functions.22 Tomb illustrations as well as the captions and texts accompanying them, in addition to real objects (whether full size or miniature) constitute our main sources (Fig. 5). Many of these models were found in the foundation deposits.23 Another source is the depiction of tools on some sarcophagi from the Middle and New Kingdoms (Figs. 3 and 6).24 F n , p n ‘ workshop models such as that of Meketre are very interesting; they shed light on the main tools as well as the techniques: one carpenter is sawing, another is using a mallet and a chisel to cut mortise holes, while the other is p nn ‘ b d , .25 (Fig. 4)

Axes

During the Old Kingdom, the words used to designate the axe are mibt or minbt (minbyt)31 which during the Middle Kingdom and later became minb.32 Davies in his book describes in details the collection of axes preserved in the British Museum (172 pieces).33 Part of his work is dedicated to the lexicography of the axe during the different periods, emphasizing the difference between the axe as a tool or a weapon in shapes and forms. The number of axes preserved in the British Museum, in addition to those located in other museums, especially in the Cairo Museum, show the importance of the axe even 26

Denys A. Stocks. Experiments in Egyptian Archaeology: Stoneworking Technology in Ancient Egypt. New York: Routledge, 2003. 18. 27 T n n d ―98 adzes, 51 chisels, 7 saws, several hundred copper Knives, engraving tools and awls in addition to a large n b f f n f n b d, nd ,‖ Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 24-25. For depictions of tools in the tomb scenes as well as model sets during different periods, see , Woodworking, 21. 28 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 297-298. 29 For another example from the Middle Kingdom, see fig. 7. 30 British Museum. A General Introductory Guide to the Egyptian Collections in the British Museum. London: Trustees of the British Museum, 1964. 213, fig. 79; Stephen Quirke and Jeffrey Spencer. The British Museum Book of Ancient Egypt. New York, NY: Thames and Hudson, 1992. 183, fig. 143; Geoffrey Killen. Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture. Shire Egyptology Series 21. Princes Risborough: Shire, 1994. 43. 31 Rainer Hannig. Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich und Erste Zwischenzeit-Kulturgeschichte der Antiken Welt 98. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 2003. 512-513; Adolf Erman and Hermann Grapow. Wörterbuch der Aegyptischen Sprache. Vol II. Berlin: AkademieVerlag, 1971. 42 (14) (hereafter as WB). 32 Rainer Hannig. Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich und Zweite Zwischenzeit. Vol I. Kulturgeschichte der Antiken Welt 112. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 2006. 1036; WB II, 44 (7-8) 33 W. V. Davies. Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum. Vol. VII, Tools and Weapons I: Axes. Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum VII. London: British Museum, 1987.

20

Norman de Garis Davies. The Tomb of Rekh-Mi-Re at Thebes. Vol. II. Metropolitan Museum of Art Egyptian Expedition Vol. XI. New York: The Plantin press, 1943. Pl. LIII. 21 Rainer Hannig. Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch (2800950 V.Chr.): Die Sprache der Pharaonen. Kulturgeschichte der Antiken Welt 64. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 2006. 228. 22 , Woodworking, 21 23 En L p ―W d n : F n nd C b n ‖ Egyptian Civilization: Daily Life. Ed. Anna Maria Donadoni Roveri. Milan: Electa, 1987. 120-159, especially 126. 24 Pierre Lacau. N Vol. I. C G n d n p nn du Musée du Caire (Nr. 28001-28086). C : IF O, 9 4; G v J Les Frises D’Obj d arcophages du Moyen Empire. M d L‘IF O 47. Cairo: IFAO, 1921. 269-270. C ―n n j , j n p n p , v n,d n , n n p n nd b x p ‖( f 6). 25 Olli Makkonen. Ancient Forestry: An Historical Study. Part II: The Procurement and Trade of Forest Products. Acta Forestalia Fennica 95. Helsinki: Society of Forestry in Finland, 1969. 13-14, fig. 6; Vivi, Laurent- Tackholm. Faraos blomster. En kulturhistorisk-botanisk Skildring av Livet i Gamla Egypten byggd på Verklighetens Grundval och med Bilder från de Senaste årens Grävningar. Stockholm: Natur och Kultur, 1964. 76.

4

Woodworking Processes and Techniques though it is considered a robust and rough tool compared to other more delicate ones. This demonstrates how it ― p d prominent, if not pre-eminent, position among the tools and weapons of Ancient Egypt.‖34

lugs which were attached to the axe shaft; axes with sockets which allowed the shaft to pass through the blade.‖43 Davies has divided the collection into broader typological categories based on the shapes and forms of the axes: plain forms, single hole forms, or lugged forms with splayed or incurved sides.44 One of the characteristic features of axes is the method of fastening the blade to the handle. These two parts are held together with wet leather strips that shrink and become tight when dried. A wedge could be inserted between the wood and the leather binding to make it even tighter.45

Another interesting point showing the importance of the axe is the use of the word mDH(w) meaning ― p n ,‖ which is written with the axe determinative.35 Moreover, the verb nDr n ―to carpenter, to plane‖36 can 37 be written with the axe or the adze determinatives. This seems to be related to the work performed: if cutting and felling, the axe determinative could be used, but if shaping, polishing and smoothing, the adze determinative is the one to pick. Davies mentions that minbt (later on minb) was without doubt the main term used to designate the axe, at least until the end of the New Kingdom. It can also be used as the umbrella term for any type of axe. 38 One of the words discussed by Davies is the term istnw which is derived from the verb istn ― , b nd,‖39 referring to the leather strip securing the metal blades to the wooden handles.40

During the Old Kingdom, the axe with a semi-circular blade was the prevalent type. By the late Second Dynasty, a new type became popular which featured a hole that is used to secure the blade to the handle.46 Another trapezoidal form was also used.47 According to , another variant featured small protrusions off the base of the blade to aid in securing it to the handle. The semicircular type was the most common type during the First Intermediate Period as well as the Middle Kingdom.48 It has holes (for attaching the haft and the blade) and cutout portions of the handle-end of the blade to help secure it to the handle. During the New Kingdom, the trapezoid form with protrusions was the most common form.49 This is the same type that Davies calls ― d f splayed or incurved sides.‖50 This type is never pierced (Fig. 9). Besides the representations of axes on the tombs from different periods throughout Egyptian history, we also have many actual surviving pieces as previously mentioned, of which a big part comes from the foundation deposits from the Middle to the New Kingdom.51 Axes are also found depicted among the set of tools figured on the coffins from the Middle and New Kingdoms.52

The axe is one of the most modest and essential tools adopted by the craftsmen as it is the first used in the construction of any piece. It is usually called the carpenter axe to differentiate it from the battle axe.41 The carpenter axe is mainly used for felling, trimming and splitting the trees and for roughly working the wood.42 It is characterized by its heavy weight as well as its short wooden handle compared to the battle-axe. An axe mainly consists of two parts: a wooden handle (haft) and a blade (axe head) which was first made of flint in the Predynastic Period, then copper in the Old Kingdom, replaced by bronze during the Middle Kingdom. During the New Kingdom, bronze remained the most common used metal, although iron was used occasionally. Scholars have come up with different classifications for the blades such as Killen‘ ―plain round bladed axes; axes with two 34 35

Among the scenes in which axes are depicted from the Old Kingdom are the tombs of Sekhemkara at Giza (Dynasty 4),53 Nefer and Kahay at Saqqara (Dynasty 5),54

Davies, Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 22. WB II, 190. mDH(w) is usually depicted on scenes by only the axe 43

Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 15. Davies also discusses other battle axes such as the lugged perforated round form, segmental forms, edged-baton forms, tanged forms. See Davies, Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 2755, pls. 1-29. 45 Doll, Egypt's Golden Age, cat. no. 22. 46 Davies, Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 23. 47 , Woodworking, 23. 48 , Woodworking, 23. 49 , Woodworking, 24. 50 Or splayed type with straight or incurved sides. Davies, Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 23-24. 51 One convincing remark made by Davies is that in the case of most of the axes found in the foundation deposits, shape cannot be used to determine date simply because they tended to return to the old shape, the rounded one, that was otherwise no longer in use at that time. This is true of those of the time of Hatshepsut, see Davies, Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 49. 52 J ,L F D’Obj , figs. 715-720. 53 Selim Hassan. Excavations at Giza Vol IV. 1932-1933. Cairo: Government Press, 1943. 115, fig. 60. 54 Ahmed M. Moussa and Hartwig Altenmüller. The Tomb of Nefer and Ka-Hay. Old Kingdom Tombs at the Causeway of King Unas at Saqqara. Archäologische Veröffentlichungen 5. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 1971. Pls. 19-21.

determinative . 36 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 689. 37 nDr is mostly associated with the adze, but in few cases with the axe. For an example of nDr m minbt, as well as a detailed discussion of the lexicography of the axe in particular the different ways of writings minbt from the Old Kingdom until the Ptolemaic Period, see Davies, Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 64-70, appendix II. 38 Davies, Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 66. 39 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 118. For a discussion of the word istn, see William Kelly Simpson. Papyrus Reisner II; Accounts of the Dockyard Workshop at This in the Reign of Sesotris I. Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, 1965. 37. 40 Davies, Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 69. 41 Among the names used for the battle axe, we have mtnyt ― , ,‖ perseded after the Middle Kingdom by ioHw/ AoHw. Occasionally minb could also be used. For mtnyt, ioHw/ AoHw, see WB I, 22 (1), 138; II, 171 (6); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 120, 397; Pierre Montet. Les Scènes de la Vie Privée dans les Tombeaux Égyptiens de l'Ancien Empire. Publications d F d L d ‘Un v d S b 24 Strasbourg: Librairie Istra, 1925. 299. 42 British Museum. A General Introductory Guide to the Egyptian Collections in the British Museum, 213.

44

5

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep at Saqqara (Dynasty 5),55 as well as Niankhpepi at Zaouyet el Mayetin in Middle Egypt (Dynasty 6).56 Another illustration comes from the Middle Kingdom tomb of Khnumhotep III at Beni Hassan (Dynasty 12).57 Other depictions come from the New Kingdom such as the tomb of Nakht (TT 52),58 Ipuy (TT 217),59 Hepusonb (TT 67),60 and that of Simut, called Kyky (TT 409).61 More detailed axe scenes follow in the process section (Figs. 46-58). 

it n f ― n dz n b f d.‖65 The adze is a widely-used tool which is of tremendous importance to craftsmen in woodworking even as compared to the popular axe. It is considered a more delicate tool primarily used to shape, burnish and polish, the same role is played today by the plane, a tool unfamiliar to the Egyptians.66 Extra smoothing was done by the use of sandstone rubbers.67 It is the most frequently depicted tool in the majority of woodworking scenes. It is used to fulfill two functions: to trim and sever small wooden logs, or to give the object the necessary finishing before the final polishing step. 68 Adzes vary in size and shape according to their function. The larger examples are generally associated with boat scenes and hull shipbuilding.69 Like axes, adzes are depicted among p n ‘ sets. In addition to surviving examples—complete adzes or only blades can be seen in museums around the world—small models of adzes were found together with other tools in the foundation deposits.70 Adzes are also depicted in the workshop models such as that of Meketre.

Adzes

The main word used to designate p n ‘ dz is ant.62 Another term used for adze, but mostly associated with the opening of the mouth ceremony is msxtiw.63 In the coffin of Min-khaf at the Cairo Museum, msxtiw is mentioned in the tools‘ list together with other tools such as the chisel, axe, and saw.64 The importance of the adze to the Egyptian craftsmen is illustrated in its use as the determinative for writing the hieroglyph of the word stp nn ― , ‖:

The adze, like the axe, consists of two elements: a wooden handle and a metal blade (usually copper or bronze71 and later sometimes iron) and the binding techniques are also similar.72 Occasionally, linen or cord 73 was used to fasten the blade to the handle instead of leather74 (Figs. 10-12). The adze has the specific characteristic of creating a cut perpendicular to its handle, unlike the axe which cuts parallel to the shaft.75 Adzes, unlike axes, were usually held with one hand freeing up the other for holding the piece of work.

55

Ahmed M. Moussa and Hartwig Altenmüller. Das Grab des Nianchchnum und Chnumhotep. Archäologische Veröffentlichungen 21. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 1977. 74, fig. 8. 56 Alexandre Varille. La Tombe de Ni-A -P Zâouyet el-Mayetin. M P b p M b d L‘IF O 7 C : IF O, 938 Pl. XVI. 57 Luise Sigwart Klebs. Die Reliefs und Malereien des Mittleren Reiches (VII.- XVII. Dynastie ca 2475-1580 V. Chr.): Material zur Ägyptischen Kulturgeschichte. Abhandlungen der Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften Philosophisch-Historische Klasse 6. Heidelberg : Carl Winters Universitätsbuchhandlung, 1922 (reprinted Hildesheim: Georg Olms Verlag, 1990). 136, fig. 100. 58 Sigrid Hodel-Hoenes. Life and Death in Ancient Egypt: Scenes from Private Tombs in New Kingdom Thebes. Ithaca, N.Y: Cornell University Press, 2000. 31, fig. 9. 59 Norman de Garis Davies. Two Ramesside Tombs at Thebes. Metropolitan Museum of Art Egyptian Expedition. Robb de Peyster Tytus Memorial Series Vol. V. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1927. Pls. XXX, XXXVI. 60 Nn MD v ― F n f P n S n ‖ JEA (47) 1961: 1923. 61 Maged Negm. The Tomb of Simut Called Kyky: Theban Tomb 409 at Qurnah. Warminster, England: Aris & Philips, 1997. Pl. VIII. 62 H n G F ―R v f Sö nd S äb P n nÄ p n‖B H n bd -Kader. JEA 64 (1978): 158-162. For ant, see WB I, 187 (17); Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 271. Another word used to mean the carpenter adze is nwt (nnwt). It is stated in the Wörterbuch and by Hannig but based on the scenes that I looked at; it seems to be not very well attested. See WB II, 216 (1); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 419. 63 For more information about the msxtiw adze as well as the ceremony, nn M R ―F n , S , nd ―Op n n f M ‖: the Nature and Function of the N7RWJ –B d ‖ JEA 79 (1993): 57-79 p 65, 7 ; nn M R ―T psS-kf nd ―Op n n of the M ‖C n : R fB nd R b ‖ JEA 78 (1992): 113147. nwA is also the name of the adze of Wepwawet that is used in the opening of the mouth. See Penelope Wilson. A Ptolemaic Lexikon: A Lexicographical Study of the Texts in the Temple of Edfu. Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 78. Leuven: Uitgeverij Peeters en Department Oosterse Studies, 1997. 495. 64 S v n nS ―T C ff n f P n M n-K f ‖ JEA 19, No 3/4 (1933): 150-159 especially 153. Drenkhahn mentions another example in which msxtiw was associated with the verb dm ― p n‖ dz , see Rosemarie Drenkhahn. Die Handwerker und ihre Tätigkeiten im Alten Ägypten. Ägyptologische Abhandlungen Bd. 31.Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1976. 118. Hannig cites the two uses of msxtiw as a hook and as adze, see Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 564.

Adze ‘ shapes also vary through different periods of time. Basically, there are two types of blade : ―p n b d ;‖ nd ―n d b d ‖ as designated by Petrie76 (Figs. 1365

Alan H. Gardiner. Egyptian Grammar. 3rd ed. London: Oxford

University Press, 1957. Sign list U.21 ; moreover the word stpt which is a feminine word me n n ―d ‖ b d function of the adze as compared to the axe. Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 846. 66 Planes appeared in the Roman Period. William Louis Goodman. The History of Woodworking Tools. London: G. Bell, 1964. 18. 67 Stocks, Experiments in Egyptian Archaeology, 31. 68 J ,L F D’Obj , 273-275. 69 Ed d M nR ―An Analysis of Tomb Reliefs Depicting Boat Construction from the Old Kingdom Period in Egypt.‖ Thesis (M.A.)Texas A & M University, 1996. 27. 70 Goodman, The History of Woodworking Tools, 19. 71 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 4 ―b d d f bronze are harder, and therefore retain their cutting edge longer, than pp ‖ 72 Rita E. Freed. Egypt Golden Age: The Art of Living in the New Kingdom 1558-1085 B.C: A Picture Book. Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, 1982. 17. 73 For an example of an adze with linen binding, see Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 15 no. 7. 74 Rowena Gale, Peter Gasson, Nigel Hepper, and Geoffrey Killen. ―W d ‖ Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology. Eds. Paul Nicholson and Ian Shaw. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2000. 334-371, especially 355 (hereafter as Gale et al., ―W d‖). 75 , Woodworking, 24. 76 O ― d n ‖ d n d b . For more details about Old Kingdom shapes, see , Woodworking, 25, as well as

6

Woodworking Processes and Techniques 14). The first category has either parallel or slightly flaring sides, widening toward the cutting edge and straight on top. Sometimes blades are rectangular while others have concave sides and a larger bottom end. According to , the second type begins to appear from the Third Dynasty on.77 They are called ―n d blades‖ b f their shape which features a distinctive head at the top and a flared lower edge.78 This type was the most-used one during the New Kingdom with a more pronounced high neck, but plain adze blades are also known from this period.79 Usually, the straight blades, because they are large and strong, are associated with hard jobs (boat manufacturing, trimming logs), and the necked blades are more connected with finer work.80 A few adzes, like axes, have some numbers inscribed on them, maybe to easily differentiate tools that belong to a specific workshop, or to show the different types.81

Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep showing a carpenter holding the adze in order to plane a gsAwt bed. The caption can be read nDr gsAwt ― p n n sloping bed‖ (Fig. 63, 3rd register).88 Other examples are depicted in the tombs of Nefer and Kahay,89 Ti,90 Mereruka,91 Pepiankh at Meir92 and others. The New Kingdom provides us with good examples such as the workshop scene from the tomb of Apuki and Nebamun (TT 181) showing a carpenter adzing a plank placed on a block as well as using the adze to finish a djed pillar (Fig. 72, upper register). It is clear from the scene that carpenters during this period sat on stools of different forms while working.93 A similar scene comes from the tomb of Neferhotep (TT 49) showing a seated carpenter adzing a wooden board and his tools (drill, saw, and chisel) are included on the top left (Fig. 76). Another representation shows a carpenter occupied with the finishing of a leg for a chair or a bed (Fig. 75).94 The Rekhmire tomb contains a similar scene emphasizing the importance of the adze, which is depicted during the successive stages of woodworking (rough shaping, dressing logs and finishing). The adze here is shown next to people rubbing, chiseling, and measuring, and finally by itself (Figs. 73-74).95

As stated before, the adze is one of the most illustrated tools in scenes from all periods. I will select some scenes which shed light on the type of work achieved by the tool and that also have inscriptions, in order to examine what captions are associated with adzes. From the Old Kingdom, in the tomb of Ibi at Deir El-Gebrawi (Dynasty 6),82 we have a scene showing a kneeling carpenter working with his adze on the surface of a carrying chair.83 On the top runs the following inscription: nDr xwdd 84 in mDH85 ―working on a carrying chair (sedan chair) by a carpenter‖ (Fig. 60, 2nd register-left). An identical scene comes from the tomb of Zau also at Deir El-Gebrawi (Dynasty 6) but the inscription above is incomplete, 86 only xwdt hbn[y] ― arrying chair of ebony‖ (Fig. 62, lower register).87 Another scene comes from the tomb of

I.2 Sawing Tools 

Saws

The word used to designate the saw is tfA96 (TifA). As mentioned by Jéquier, there is another word DAsw that is seen mainly on coffins.97 The saw is an essential tool for making boards of all sizes, cutting tenons as well as veneers.98 Egyptian craftsmen used flint knives to saw

William Matthew Flinders Petrie. Tools and Weapons Illustrated by the Egyptian Collection in University College, London and 2,000 Outlines from Other Sources. Publications of the Egyptian Research Account and British School of Archaeology in Egypt 30. London: British School of Archaeology in Egypt, 1917. 77 , Woodworking, 25. 78 For New Kingdom types, see Petrie, Tools and Weapons, figs. nos 7: 10-13 and 7:15. 79 , Woodworking, 26. 80 Jéquier, L F D’Obj , 273-275. 81 Davies, Catalogue of Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 32. 82 Nigel Strudwick and Ronald J. Leprohon. Texts from the Pyramid Age. Writings from the Ancient World 16. Leiden: Brill, 2005. Nos 266, 303. 83 Naguib Kanawati and Effy Alexakis. Deir El-Gebrawi: The Southern Cliff. The Tombs of Ibi and Others. Vol. II. The Australian Centre for Egyptology Reports 25. Oxford: Aris and Phillips, 2007. 48, pl. 72; Norman de Garis Davies, Walter E. Crum, and George A. Boulenger. The Rock Tombs of Deir El Gebrawi. Vol. II. Archaeological Survey of Egypt Memoir 12. London: Egypt Exploration Fund, 1902. 19, pl. XIV. 84 For xwdt ― T ,‖ see WB III, 250 (3); Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 933. Even though we do not have a chair determinative in the writing of the word xwdd, but we do have a carrying chair depicted in the scene itself. 85 For nDr, see Haning, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich I, 1424; Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 689. 86 Davies, Crum, and Boulenger, The Rock Tombs of Deir El Gebrawi II, pl. X. 87 Ed d B v ― n Inv n L f C v n n‘ T b nd Nom n f F n n Od Kn d ‖ Studies in Honor of William Kelly Simpson. Eds. William K. Simpson, Peter Der Manuelian, and Rita E. Freed. Vol. I. Boston: Dept. of Ancient Egyptian, Nubian and Near Eastern Art, Museum of Fine Arts, 1996. 117-155, especially 152-155.

88

M nd n ü n ―Z n n L ,‖ see Moussa and Altenmüller, Das Grab des Nianchchnum und Chnumhotep, 138, fig. 62; WB V, 2 6 ( ) n ― R b (n geneigter form);‖ Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 378 ―L (nS f f );‖ f d n f gsAwt appearance in f n n d p n ‘, B v , ― n Inv n f C v n n‘ T b,‖ 48-152. 89 Moussa and Altenmüller, The Tomb of Nefer and Ka-Hay, 27, pl. 20. 90 Henri Wild. L b d F L D Partie). M P b p M b d L‘IF O 65 C : IFAO, 1966. Pl. ClXXIV. 91 Prentice Duell and Sakkarah Expédition. The Mastaba of Mereruka. Vol. I. University of Chicago Oriental Institute Publications Vol. 31. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1938. Pls. 29, 31 in which two carpenters are working on a door: one with a chisel and the other with an adze (see fig. 67). The caption srD m aA ― n dz n d ‖ S M ntet, L d P , 303; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 791. 92 Aylward M. Blackman. The Rock Tombs of Meir. Vol V. Archaeological Survey of Egypt Memoir 28. London and Boston, Mass.: Egypt Exploration Fund, 1953. 28, pl. XVIII. 93 Miriam Stead. Egyptian Life. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 1986. 36-37, fig. 47. 94 Norman de Garis Davies. The Tomb of Nefer-Hotep at Thebes. Vol. I. Metropolitan Museum of Art Egyptian Expedition Vol. IX. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1933. 37, pl. XLIX. 95 Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, 155-159. 96 WB V, 298 (13-14); Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 1429-1430. 97 WB V, 527 (6); Jéquier, L F D’Obj , 271-273. 98 Bernd Scheel. Egyptian Metalworking and Tools. Shire Egyptology 13. Princes Risborough, Aylesbury, Bucks: Shire Publications, 1989. 50-51.

7

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom woods during the Badarian Period (Fig. 15). These knives have a cutting edge characterized by roughness and irregular serration.99 Starting with the Early Dynastic Period, saws with finer serration, which were able to cut and produce thin or short planks, were used. However, this type was only effective with small planks of wood. Copper saws came into use during the First Dynasty (Fig. 16).100 Petrie and Emery discovered collections of metal saws at Abydos and Saqqara dating to the Early Dynastic Period. These saws vary from 25-40 cm in length.101 The invention of copper saws allowed greater precision in cutting timber to the height size, facilitating more sophisticated joinery. These simple saws were developed from the knife, ―in profile they were similar to the knife, having curved edges with a round blunt nose and a rib n n f b d ‖102 A tang or extension of the metal blade was encased in the wooden handle. By the Fifth Dynasty, the shape of the saw had changed to feature a straight back and curved cutting edge with teeth, and a more ergonomic handle.103 By the late Old Kingdom, carpenters mainly used the pull saw which ― n , p n d d n metal back with a pointed nose and was used with both hands‖ (Fig. 18).104 During the Middle and New Kingdoms, the pull saw was extensively depicted in tombs. In addition, the hand saws were also used with small pieces (Fig. 17).105 Saws are ubiquitous throughout Egyptian history in various sizes and types, with or without handles, whether on scenes,106 or in p n ‘ sets which always include at least one saw, emphasizing its broad application.

― ‖ ― ‖ mnx is the common term found on the scenes of several tombs throughout the different periods.108 Another word mDAt ― , en v n ‖ is also used.109 Jéquier first observed mDAt on the sarcophagi of the Middle Kingdom; later the word was found in the lists of tools during the New Kingdom.110 The chisel was an essential tool for Egyptian carpenters as they relied on it for making different types of joints. It is primarily connected with cutting mortises, dovetails and other joints,111 as well as making holes, grooves, and notches.112 Chisels are also used for marking, carving, paring and other finer finishing steps. A chisel completes the work begun with adzes. This is why they are sometimes depicted together. Chisels used by ancient Egyptians are similar in form as well as in function to those used today by modern carpenters. A chisel consists of two parts: the wooden handle and a metal blade with a cutting edge (made of copper, bronze or iron). Some chisels do not have handles at all. 113 Each type and shape is associated with a specific task. Judging from the scenes, there were two ways of using chisels: the first was to use the wooden mallet to hit the upper part of the chisel. The second was more appropriate to the delicate and finer work, which is why the mallet was not used. In this case, the craftsmen relied on their hand pressure on the tool itself to achieve the work. This type was lighter than the first type and mainly existed in the New Kingdom.

or engraver. A Stechbeitel is a chisel, which would best be described as a slender cutting tool with a sharp, straight cutting edge of a certain width, and a wooden handle. The important part is the straight cutting edge, which distinguishes it from the gouge, which is rounded. 108 S H n L nd ―L b d n la Technique Égyptienne et le Sense Original du Mot menkh ‖ BIFAO 22 (1923): 7798. 109 In the Old Kingdom, mDAt is written with a chisel determinative. In the Middle Kingdom and later on, it is written with the branch sign (or ingot of metal). For the title TAy mDAt, see Kathlyn M. Cooney. The Cost of Death: The Social and Economic Value of Ancient Egyptian Funerary Art in the Ramesside Period. Egyptologische Uitgaven 22. Leiden: Nederlands Instituut Voor Het Nabije Oosten, 2007. 68; Jac. J. Janssen. Commodity Prices from the Ramesside Period: An Economic Study of the Village of Necropolis Workmen at Thebes. Leiden: Brill, 1975. 317-318. 110 Jéquier, L F D’Obj , 278. Another interesting meaning for the word mDAt is mentioned in Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich I, 7 ―H zz pf n, H zdübel‖ d b n d ― d nd , d n n n p ‖I n n the same way as the mDAt chisel with a different determinative: The wood determinative in the case of wooden peg or pin, and the chisel or metal ingot in the case of a chisel. The existence of this meaning for mDAt established the connection between the two words especially as chisel is mainly associated with joints making. Piccione discusses the different usages of the mDAt ― f pb d n , d p n , nd n pp n n f f n n ,‖ P P n ―T mdat p ‖ Serapis 7 (1986): 75-86, especially 77, 84, 86. 111 Rogers,―An Analysis of Tomb Reliefs,‖ 35. 112 n n d ―sAt, sArt and gwA‖ d nd chisel but they are not depicted on any scenes that I have dealt with. All three words are written on the tools sets such as that of Izi and kA-manx. See Drenkhahn, Die Handwerker, 117; iwa, Woodworking, 29; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 711, 715, 967. H nn n n n d nn ―tHA (tiHA),‖ Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich II, 2705 . 113 , Woodworking, 29.

I.3 Piercing and Carving Tools 

Chisels

The main word used to designate this tool is mnx107 n ― l,‖ n f 99

Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 19, no. 21. Some sarcophagi dating to the First Dynasty possess clear saw marks. See Cheryl A. Ward. Sacred and Secular: Ancient Egyptian Ships and Boats. Archaeological Institute of America Monographs New Series 5. Philadelphia, PA: Published for the Archaeological Institute of America, Boston, MA by the University Museum, University of Pennsylvania, 2000. 27. 101 , Woodworking, 26. 102 Gale et , ―W d,‖ 355. 103 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 33-34. 104 G , ―W d,‖ 355 105 A depiction of the standard hand saw is illustrated among other tools on the coffin of Sopi in the Louvre Museum. For other examples, see Goodman, The History of Woodworking Tools, 17 (fig. 7), 110-111. 106 A discussion of scenes as well as existing objects will follow in the third section. 107 The original meaning of mnx ―b , , ff n ‖ T also the verb smnx with s v n n ―to enhance, advance, p v ‖ For mnx, see WB II, 84 (12-13); Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 535 ―L b ‖ T Wörterbuch translates mnx ―M ß ‖ nd d b n d d n Old and Middle Kingdoms. For mDAt, see WB II, 188 (6- ) ―M ß , Grabstichel;‖ Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich I, 1171 ―S b ‖ ―G b ;‖ Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 580. I prefer to translate mnx ― n ‖b ―L b ‖ make square holes in wood. Usually mnx is d v b n n ‘d p n,b p n n v cases making mortises or cavities. The Grabstichel is more like a burin 100

8

Woodworking Processes and Techniques one is chiseling with a mallet that has a rounded shape.124 The New Kingdom tombs contain several depictions: Ipuy,125 Apuki and Nebamun,126 as well as Rekhmire.

Scholars have come up with different classifications for chisels. , for example, differentiates between mnx as a chisel and mDAt for gravers and borers which are mainly used with hand pressure and not the mallet.114 Killen distinguishes between firmer chisels and mortise chisels, both of which have handles.115 The mortise chisel has a long, sturdy handle in order to be struck with the mallet (Fig. 19). The firmer chisel is smaller, shorter in length, with a cutting edge that flares out at the end and a rectangular blade shaft (Fig. 20). This type has a rounded handle indicating small joints or boring, scoring or tracing small objects.116 Both these types are reminiscent of their modern counterparts in terms of both shape and function, which are classified as following: beveled chisels, firmer chisels, and gouges.117 This difference between mortise and beveled chisels is not as easy to see in the scenes as in real objects.



Awls

Awls are short pointed instruments mainly used to bore or enlarge holes in wood or in leather (Fig. 23).127 Their knobby handles can be cylindrical or spherical in shape. An awl is used as a boring tool, or as a marking tool. The awl has a point that could be round or sharp edged along the sides. Awls, chisels, as well as the other tools previously mentioned (axes, adzes) need regular sharpening. 

Mallets 128

The word used to designate the mallet is xrpw.129 This primitive tool was one of the most important for carpenters as well as sculptors for pounding and striking, 130 or for pushing wooden pegs such as those usually inserted in the knee braces and elbow braces of chairs and stools. The mallet was usually depicted along with chisels and awls.131 There are two types of mallets: the first looks like the Hm hieroglyphic sign (baton shape, fig. 77). It has a long head and a small handle.132 The second is a heavy mallet with a bulky head and a distinct handle (Figs. 2122).133 The head has either a conical, cylindrical, oblong or bulbous shape. The conical form was the most used one during the 12th-19th Dynasties. Mallets consisting of one block were fashioned by the adze. According to P ― E p nf p f b n , thinned down at one end to give a hold ‖134 Several real examples have been found at Sedment, Lahun, Kahun, and other sites. Moreover, the mallet is also among tools depicted in carpen ‘ d M

One of the best illustrations from the Old Kingdom to show the making of mortise and tenon joints with the use of chisels and mallets comes from the mastaba of Ti at Saqqara (Dynasty 5). In general, joinery scenes are not as clearly shown:118 it is usual to see carpenters using chisels and mallets to make holes for joints, but this scene is unique in showing the rectangular hole in the side (the mortise) (Fig. 77). Both workers are holding chisels and long, slim mallets that have a Hm shape. The caption on the top reads mnx sb[n]119 ―chiseling a plank.‖ Another depiction, showing three carpenters, comes from the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep. One worker is holding an adze, the second a chisel and a Hm shaped mallet to make holes in a bed. The third one stands to the right, supervising, and holds an adze on his shoulder and a plumb bob (Figs. 64 & 78).120 More examples come from Mereruka,121 Meir,122 and others.123 The tomb of Amenemhat at Beni Hassan shows three carpenters working on a bed (Fig. 71). One is holding an adze and



Bow Drills

This device is called Htyt n n ―d ‖135 and the verb 136 Hti ― d , b .‖ Another word wnt137 is used to

114

, Woodworking, 30-31. Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 21. , Woodworking, 30. See also Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar, S n L U 22, 23 f ‘f 117 For a modern classification of chisels, see Stephen Corbett. The Illustrated Professional Woodworker: Tools, Techniques, Projects, Picture Framing, Joinery, Home Maintenance, Furniture Repair. London: Hermes House, 2006. 50-51. 118 Rogers, ―An Analysis of Tomb Reliefs,‖ 53-55, fig. 32; Landström, Ships of the Pharaohs, 38-39. 119 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 743,777; See WB IV, 161 (10) for snbwy ―D pp T d S ff ‖ Montet n ―P n (d n ) ‘ ‖ He further points out that sbn and snbwy are mentioned in other examples of Book of the Dead. See Montet, L d P , 337-338. For the scene, see Henri Wild. Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule II: La Chapelle (Première Partie). M P b p M b d L‘IF O 65 C : IF O, 953 Pl. CXXIX. 120 According to Rogers, ― f OdKn d p bb b n n pp n f d p n b n n p n ‘ p‖ n f B d n n dz nd p bb b exists in the chapel of Khuenre. Rogers, ―An Analysis of Tomb Reliefs,‖ 49. 121 Duell and Sakkarah Expédition, The Mastaba of Mereruka I, pl. 31. 122 Blackman, Meir V, pl. XVIII. 123 For more examples, see Drenkhahn, Die Handwerker, 119. 115 116

124

James B. Pritchard. The Ancient Near East in Pictures Relating to the Old Testament. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954. Fig. 122. 125 Davies, Two Ramesside Tombs at Thebes, 60, 70-72, pl. XXXVI. 126 Charles K .Wilkinson and Marsha Hill. Egyptian Wall Paintings: The M M f ’ Collection of Facsimiles. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1983. 36-37, fig. 33. 127 ―B ‖ db , Woodworking, 31; see also Jéquier, Les F D’Obj , 277. 128 British Museum. A General Introductory Guide to the Egyptian Collections in the British Museum, 2 3: ―H f d nf , d, n d‖ 129 WB III, 326 (7); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch ÄgyptischDeutsch, 662. 130 Petrie, Tools and Weapons, 40. 131 , Woodworking, 33. 132 Doll, Egypt's Golden Age, cat. no. 25. 133 , Woodworking, 33. 134 Petrie, Tools and Weapons, 40, pl. XLV, no. 53. 135 WB II, 503 (9-10); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch ÄgyptischDeutsch, 531. 136 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 753. 137 WB I, 314 (18-19); Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich I, 678. It seems that wmt is problematic as it is associated in the mastaba

9

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom designate either the string which is woven around the bow, or the bow itself. The word pDt whose meaning is ―b ‖ the same word d d n ―b f drill.‖138 This is one of the most important tools used to pierce holes in furniture, especially in chairs, stools and beds. These holes are drilled in the seat rails in order to fasten the woven material (whether reeds, rush, or linen), or through a joint to receive dowels.139 The bow drill consists of two parts: the bow, cut into shape from a tree, and has a string wound around it (Fig. 24). Usually, there are rectangular holes cut with the grain on each edge of the bow to attach the string. The second element is the drill which consists of two components: ― d p‖ which is semin p ; nd ― he wooden shaft b ‖140 On scenes showing drills, Egyptian carpenters usually hold the drill shaft in their left hand and the bow with their right. According to Killen, the copper bit rotates as the bow is moved back and forth.141 The tool can be used by one or two persons.142 The first depiction comes from the mastaba of Ti and shows one carpenter using the bow drill while making a hole for a handle in the lid of a rectangular box.143 The inscription on the top can be translated as Hti afDt in fnx144 ―d n box by a carpenter‖ (Fig. 65).

I.4 Measuring and Marking Tools Ancient Egyptians craftsmen knew and made use of measuring tools in their work. This can be seen in the precision evident in constructed objects and in the actual devices or their depictions, or in models which have survived.148 Measuring tools are essential in any woodworking task (Fig. 27). These tools include the try square which is still to this day an essential element in the p n ‘ I n d dj n be exactly ninety degrees. The ancient version is a simple wooden tool consisting of two parts that are connected at a right angle149 by a corner bridle joint.150 It is an indispensable tool in making corners for a chair, stool, footstool or any square or rectangular piece.151 Although we do not know when the square was first used, it was one of the tools represented in the Meketre model from the Middle Kingdom and so has been in use for at least that long.152 The fact that it was the only measuring tool depicted emphasizes its importance and familiarity. A real try square, plumb, and a square level came from the tomb of Sennedjem at Deir El-Medina. All three are inscribed, and are preserved in the Cairo Museum (Fig. 28).153 Another square variant is depicted in woodworking scenes of making furniture. Killen called it ―mitre-cutting aid‖ n ‘ main use is to make slants resulting in two angles of 45 degrees.154 Another tool used, primarily for architecture rather than carpentry, is the plumb bob or plumb line (tx),155 the main function of which was to provide a true vertical line and establish perpendicularity.156 In the Old Kingdom, plumbs were usually depicted in boat construction. The only example that I am aware of is from the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep in which two carpenters are chiseling a bed mnx ATt, and to the right stands a third supervisor holding a plumb bob and an adze on his shoulder (Fig. 78).157 Another important tool that is still used today is the straightedge,

The tomb of Rekhmire contains two depictions: the first portrays only one person using the bow drill to bore holes in the seat (Fig. 73). The second scene shows two people working together, presumably because the weight and strength of the second man is necessary (Fig. 74).145 Bow drills were also depicted on sarcophagi from the Middle Kingdom,146 in addition to the real pieces from museums.147

of Ti with the chisel and the mallet (see fig. 65, left side). This scene has been discussed by several scholars and each one gives a different translation. Jéquier ―f j ‖ ―f à la bonne p ‖ (Jéquier, L F D’Obj , 276); D n n p p ―O Meißel, laß dick (wmt) n d n Lö ‖ (Drenkhahn, Die Handwerker, 2 ); M n n ―F nd ‖(M n , L d P , 3 5); nd E n― d n R d S n‖ ( d f E n Reden, Rufe und Lieder auf Gräberbildern des Alten Reiches. Berlin: Verlag der Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1919. 43). I read it as: i mnx di wmt sTAwt.k ―O , d b ‖ ( b ) F wmt and sTAwt ―B ,‖ see Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 339, 1267. 138 WB I, 569 (14); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch ÄgyptischDeutsch, 3 9 F v b nn ― d ‖ as whb, Hmi, wbA, see Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 222, 569, 200 139 Stocks, Experiments in Egyptian Archaeology, 33. 140 Usually the drill cap consists of two pieces attached to one another by a wooden pin. , Woodworking, 33. 141 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 33. 142 This depends on the piece that they are working on: in the case of a small box (such as Ti, fig. 1) or a chair (such as Rekhmire, fig. 73), only one person is needed. If working on a bed, then two are performing the work (Rekhmire, fig. 74). 143 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 33; Henri Wild. Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule III: L D P M P b p M b d L‘IF O 65 C : IF O, 966 Pl. CLXXIV. 144 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 324. 145 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 299. 146 Jéquier, L F D’Obj , 275-277. 147 G , ―W d,‖ 356.

148

, Woodworking, 38-40. T n f nd v d d― n ‖ nd n nd nn p d ―b d ‖ 150 These two parts could be strengthened sometimes with metal pins such as the example mentioned by Killen from the Ptolemaic Period. Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 12-13, pl. 3. 151 Laszlo Katz. The Art of Woodworking and Furniture Appreciation. New York: P.F.C. Publishing Company, 1970. 174. 152 William Christopher Hayes. The Scepter of Egypt: A Background for the Study of the Egyptian Antiquities in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol I. New York: Harper in Co-operation with the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1953. 289, fig. 190. 153 Dieter Arnold. Building in Egypt: Pharaonic Stone Masonry. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991. 251-256. 154 There are others forms derived from the square. The first is a square that possesses a third piece linking together the two legs, so the tool has the form of the letter A (reminding us of the hieroglyph sbA meaning ―G ‖) T nd v n p v n b p b b b dd d S G , ―W d,‖ 356; n d, Building in Egypt, 253, , Woodworking, 39- 40. 155 WB V, 323 (7-12). 156 Petrie provides us with several examples of plumb bobs examples from the Third Dynasty until the Roman Period. Petrie, Tools and Weapons, 42-43; Ward, Sacred and Secular, 30. 157 Rogers, ―An Analysis of Tomb Reliefs,‖ 49, fig. 31. 149

10

Woodworking Processes and Techniques the word snt167 means ―p n -stones.‖168 An expressive scene is portrayed in the Rekhmire tomb showing three craftsmen polishing a papyrus column with hemispherical stones,169 but we do not have any caption as is usual in the New Kingdom scenes (Fig. 74).

which is a reliably straight length of wood used to verify surfaces and lines.158 

Marking Knife

The marking knife is commonly used to make small lines on wood to allow workmen to measure and cut exactly.159 The tool is primarily comprised of a soft wood handle, with a small bronze blade inserted into the end (Fig. 25).160



The verb dm means ― p n, to grind,‖ and the expression inr n dm170 n ― n ‖ The sharpening hone was mainly used to sharpen the cutting edge of tools171 such as axes, adzes, knives, drills, and chisels. It was an essential step from time to time in order to ensure that tools worked and cut effectively. Egyptian craftsmen were well aware of this, judging by the surviving examples of sharpening hones. The sharpening process involved sliding the blade across a slate hone at an angle, after being lubricated with oil from a flask. The sharpening hone was usually rectangular with a hole in one of the edges in order to be suspended. Its depiction among the tool kit of carpenters indicates its importance (Fig. 8).

I. 5 Smoothing and Polishing Tools 

Sharpening Hone

Rubbers

―Smoothing is the fundamental technique by which the piece of wood to be worked is given a surface suitable for being measured and marked with sufficient accuracy. If the wood to be used is not properly planed, it will be almost impossible to work with because of its unevenness and the lack of continuity of the faces, edges and ends which will undoubtedly exist. Accurate work is only possible if the surfaces are smooth, flat, and at right angles to each other.‖161

An example from the Old Kingdom is in the tomb of Pepiankh at Meir (Dynasty 6). The caption accompanying the scene reads dm ant ― p n n n dz ‖ (Fig. 68, 3rd 172 register). It seems that the whetstone has an egg-shaped form. The kneeling carpenter holds the tool in one hand and is directing the cutting edge of the tool towards the whetstone. The sharpening action is achieved by moving it back and forth.173 Killen describes an example of a sharpening hone of green-grey color, which is currently preserved in the British Museum.174 The center is hollowed out as a result of the contact with blades (Fig. 29). Sharpening instruments are also very important today and the sharpening stone constitutes an essential element of the tool set. Stones today require water or oil for lubrication.175

To accurately achieve the final step of their work, Egyptian craftsmen frequently polished their wooden pieces with sandstone rubbers in order to create plane surfaces. As stated before, planes were unknown in Egypt, first appearing during the Roman Period.162 The work that planes perform today was done using adzes and by subsequently scraping the object with a piece of finegrit sandstone. These sandstone rubbers appear in reliefs in different colors (green, blue, black, brown) and in different sizes and shapes (square, semi-cylindrical, oval, and rectangular) (Fig. 26).163 Killen emphasizes the importance of smoothing with (as opposed to across) the grain, so as not to roughen or mar the wood surface. 164 In some cases, rubbers were moistened with oil.165 According to ― f n p n d some b v ( z nd) ‖166 This operation was usually called snaa ―to polish, smooth‖ nd



Oil Flask

The oil flask is usually associated with the whetstone and is made from a horn with a wooden stopper on one side 167

WB IV,152. Jéquier mentions another word So d n ―p n n ,‖ b n nf d n ‘ f the New Kingdom. See WB IV, 549 (12); Jéquier, L F D’Obj , 279. 169 Davies, The Tomb of Rekh-Mi-Re at Thebes, 2 vols, 51, pl. LIII. 170 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 1050. 171 British Museum. A General Introductory Guide to the Egyptian Collections in the British Museum, 2 3 ― pp np , n which a cutting edge was achieved only by hammering without the metal being otherwise tempered or hardened must have required f n n ‖ 172 Montet, L d P , 302. For other examples of dm ant and dm msxtiw, see Drenkhahn, Die Handwerker, 118-119. 173 Blackman, The Rock Tombs of Meir V, 28, pl. XVIII. 174 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 18 no. 18, pl. 14; see also K n ― n n E p n C p n , T nd T n ‖ The Furniture of Western Asia, Ancient and Traditional: Papers of the Conference Held at the Institute of Archaeology, University College London, June 28 to 30, 1993. Eds. Georgina Herrmann and Neville Parker. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 1996. 15-20 especially 15. 175 Corbett, The Illustrated Professional Woodworker, 51.

158

British Museum. A General Introductory Guide to the Egyptian Collections in the British Museum, 213; Quirke and Spencer, The British Museum Book of Ancient Egypt, 83 ― nd d n nd legs of furniture… were fashioned by hand and eye: square, level, and plumbdb d ‖ 159 dn K n, ― n nb n n n f n b d n n B M ( n 6 4 ) ‖ S K n, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 12, pl. 2. 160 The marking knife is still used both for marking and cutting. See Arthur Robert Whittick. Questions and Answers on Carpentry and Joinery. London: Newnes-Butterworths, 1974. 9. 161 The Ultimate Guide: Woodworking: Furniture Projects, Carpentry, Tools. London: Dumont Monte, 2001. 111. 162 J n R ff ― n n E p .‖ The Oxford Companion to the Decorative Arts. Ed. Harold Osborne. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1975. 304-315, especially 305. 163 Jéquier, L F D’Obj , 279. 164 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 33. 165 Jéquier, L F D’Obj , 279; Goodman, The History of Woodworking Tools, 39. 166 , Woodworking, 37.

168

11

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom and a curved spout on the other.176 The cord wrapped around the pouring end suggests it may have been hung up this way in the workshop.177 Figure 30 shows an example from the New Kingdom that is housed at the British Museum.178

Cairo Museum (JE 43389) was turned.‖185 The leg is very well made and nicely carved.186 In addition to this leg, other evidence is mentioned by Davies, such as the head of a walking-stick from the Eighteenth Dynasty; as well as the lid of a box.187 Manuelian argues against the existence of the lathe and in his article ―Notes on the Socalled Turned Stools of the New Kingdom,‖188 he first focuses on the stylistic features of flared-leg stools and then proposes a convincing alternative:189

I.6 Other Workshop Items 

Rests for Adzes

―The important point… is that the rings on both legs display a hand-carved irregularity which cannot be the result of lathe work. Flared legs were probably held in some sort of vise, which would account for the holes on some examples, but the purpose of this was to free both hands for carving. Both the incised lines and the bands in between would not appear so asymmetrical had they been lathe-turned.‖190

Egyptian craftsmen used wooden blocks which served as a base to place their adzes on in order to maintain the sharp cutting edge for as long as possible.179 These blocks could also be used to place a small board to be adzed and worked by a craftsman seated in front (Fig. 72, upper register). liwa classified the shapes of these rests based on scenes in some Theban tombs (Fig. 31).180 

Baskets

I find his interpretation plausible because of the absence of any scene depicting a lathe and the lack of symmetry on some legs in the Cairo Museum, as well as the shoulders of some legs that are higher on one side than the other. It is therefore difficult to justify the existence of the lathe in this period. I consider the one depiction in the tomb of Petosiris at Tuna El-Gebel dating from the end of the fourth century to be the earliest pictorial evidence (Fig. 32).191

During the Old and Middle Kingdoms, craftsmen usually kept their tools in boxes. Then, during the New Kingdom, they preferred baskets. A depiction of such a basket can be seen in the tomb of Ipuy at Thebes (Fig. 33, top left).181 I.7 Discussion Surrounding Use of the Lathe The existence and use of the lathe, as well as the method of manufacturing flared-legged stools in the New Kingdom, is a subject of controversy among scholars,182 although the classical view argues against its existence before the Ptolemaic Period. Even though I agree with the majority view regarding the absence of the lathe, I think it is important to briefly examine this controversy. Scholars such as Davies,183 who assert its use during the New Kingdom, base their argument on the existence of a pivot hole on the bottom of the leg caused by the lathe, a hole which does not exist on clearly hand-formed examples.184 Davies ―claims that a leg from the Theban tomb of Mentuherkhepeshef (No. 20) and now preserved in the

The possibility proposed by Manuelian of using a primitive vise only to hold the leg in place is likely. Moreover, the principle of turning does exist in the concept of the bow drill used from the Old Kingdom. Killen also discusses the turning process in several of his articles. He discusses some legs and their spikes which are the long, pointed pieces of wood at the top of each leg.192 Besides the spike‘ main role of fitting in the seat rails of stools to form the joint, it was also used as a pivot point allowing the manual rotation of the leg while 185

Davies, Five Theban Tombs, 5-6, pl. 17. For a description of this leg, see chapter II, 62-63 ( XII. 5). 187 The lid of a circular box could easily have been drilled with a bow drill. 188 M n n, ―N n S -called Turned Stools of the New K n d ,‖ 125-128. 189 Eaton-K , ―T S f T b f S nn dj ,‖ 92 in M n n‘ nd K n‘ n p n 190 M n n, ―N n S -called Turned Stools of the New K n d ,‖ 28 191 N d n C p n, J n P C n , nd J n-F n G Le Tomb d P - b . Bibliothèque Générale 27. C : IF O, 2 7 S n 44; Gustave Lefebvre. Le Tombeau de Petosiris Troisième Partie Vocabulaire et Planches. Cairo: IFAO, 1923. Pl. X. For examples of legs from the Roman Period, see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 140-141, pls. 209-2 ; G W n ―T n f K W ‖ASAE 25 (1925): 112-119. 192 K n p n ― b n d n n found on round legs were made by the cord of a bowdrill which had been impregnated with an abrasive powder. This would seem to be a feasible solution; the spike on the leg could have been placed in a hole to stop the leg from rotating as the bow cord of the drill was sawn nd ‖ Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 48-49, pls. 7984; K n, ―W d T n n n n n E p ,‖

176

186

Gale et al., ―W d,‖ 356 177 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 43-44. 178 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 299, pl. 458 F d p n f n n n n n , C n H R , R n D f , nd C n K Hatshepsut from Queen to Pharaoh. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2005. Cat. no. 2. 179 Even though stools on which craftsmen are sitting constitute a part of the auxiliary tools in a workshop scene, I prefer to discuss them later on the typology part after finishing the description of the pieces in the Cairo Museum that constitute the base of this book. 180 , Woodworking, 40-41, fig. 11. 181 Gale et al.,“W d,‖ 356; D v , Two Ramesside Tombs at Thebes, pl. XXXVII. 182 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 48-49 . 183 Norman de Garis Davies. Five Theban Tombs (Being Those of Mentuherkhepeshef, User, Daga, Nehemawäy and Tati). Archaeological Survey of Egypt 21st Memoir. London: Egypt Exploration Fund, 1913. 5-6, pl. 17. See also Alfred Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries. 4th ed., rev. J. R. Harris. London: Histories & Mysteries of Man, 1989. 449- 450. 184 For a detailed discussion of evidence of rounded legs, as well as n f p , G ff K n ―W d T n n n n n E p ‖ Journal of the Tools and Trades Historical Society 10 (1997): 10-25, especially 11.

12

Woodworking Processes and Techniques cutting along it to create the shape. He points out another reason for not accepting the use of the lathe:

wood, which in most cases was knotty and did not provide long boards,198 which forced Egyptian craftsmen to rely on imported wood to fashion larger pieces.

―Some show short score across the grain indicating how the approximately circular crosssection was obtained by abrading, rather than by a continuous chisel cut against a rotating surface as would be the case if even the simplest form of lathe had been employed.‖193

As outlined by several scholars,199 Egyptian carpenters knew how to make the most of their wood (despite its bad quality), and they understood the features of each variety.200 Craftsmen covered their pieces with gesso in order to conceal the timber‘ imperfections. For more precious and highly priced royal pieces, the veneering technique was often used, incorporating precious materials to mask the poor quality of local timber. Because the materials at hand were not optimal, Egyptian craftsmen became remarkably resourceful in their techniques: patching knot holes, fitting together small pieces using scarf joints (Fig. 37) to form larger planks,201 and liberally covering blemishes with plaster to create a clean appearance (Figs. 35-36).202 The tomb of Puyemere (TT 39) offers a good example of this economical technique of fitting together small wooden pieces of various sizes in order to create a large plank for a door, securing the construction by dowels (Fig. 34).203 An example of the economical use of the veneering technique is the chair of Renyseneb (Fig. 38). As stated by Fischer, ―Knots in the veneer have been excised and replaced with boat- p d n n ‖204 This technique seems to have been a common method of avoiding waste in knotty wood, even in veneer.

But how were these legs made? As described by Manuelian, the desired concave shape as well as the cylindrical form were easy to achieve using tree branches which already had this tendency.194 Further shaping was achieved with knives, scrapers and chisels for additional definition of the profile. II Materials Before beginning our discussion about the use of wood in manufacturing chairs and stools, it must be said that it was unfortunately very difficult to identify the type of wood for every piece in question. Even scholars who have broader experience and who have dealt with wood more often have not always been successful in achieving this goal, which is why we often find p ― d‖ (unspecified) in the descriptions. Several scholars from the Faculty of Science in Cairo University, as well as the specialists from the Conservation Department, in addition to other botanical specialists, all agree that the only way of identifying wood accurately is to obtain sections for light microscope examination.195 Moreover, in some cases, more than one type of wood is incorporated into the same piece: light and dark wood is used to decorate the same piece and the joint is sometimes manufactured from a different type of wood. The depictions of trees on the walls of tombs and temples are stylized, making it difficult to accurately identify their genus. 196 Based on these difficulties, in addition to the Cairo Museum regulations, I am left with no choice but to depend on literature when discussing the wood used (native versus imported), which types are more associated with furniture making, as well as examples in other museums‘ databases, taking into account that very few of them have been scientifically identified with a microscope.197

II.1 Native Wood Among the most popular types of native timber used in manufacturing chairs and stools are the following:

198

Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, ; R ff , ― n n E p ,‖ 305. 199 S C d d ―F n W d-W ‖ A History of Technology. Vol. 1. From Early Times to Fall of Ancient Empires. Ed. Charles Joseph Singer. Oxford : Clarendon Press, 1957. 684-703, especially 685-686, fig. 485. 200 Bark was also used for a variety of purposes: several objects of Tutankhamun were decorated with birch bark such as bow cases, boomerangs, and walking sticks. 201 This type is mainly used in shipbuilding, which requires long planks. It is a way of attaching two members end to end. This type of joint is not used in chairs and stools as we do not need long battens. There are different categories of scarf joints. For scarf joints: see Gale et al., ―W d,‖ 365-366. For a discussion of the economical use of wood in a coffin, as well as some planks hulls, see Ward, Sacred and Secular, 3238; Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 10-11, fig. 1. 202 Aldred discusses the economical use of wood in a footstool of Tu n n― n d n nd b v b n nd p db nd b ‖ nd p z ―Ev n p d p d p n n ‖( f 36) d d, ―F n W d-W ,‖ 685-686, fig. 485. 203 Norman de Garis Davies. The Tomb of Puyemrê at Thebes. Vol. I. Metropolitan Museum of Art Egyptian Expedition. Robb de Peyster Tytus Memorial Series Vol. II. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1922. 74-75, pl. XXIII. The caption on the top of the scene reads iw. f nfr wrt m dns [Drt]. K ―I v d D n nd b v ‖ Drt n p b D v n n ― nd‖ f well in the space and accords with the action performed by the carpenter (see fig. 34). 204 F ,― C f E N K n d ,‖ 144. Fischer points ―T … the only case where veneer has been used on the animal legs of furniture, and indeed, the only case where it has been used on three-dimensional sculpture of any kind n n n E p ‖

Wood was the main material used to manufacture furniture in ancient Egypt. Although the dry climate of Egypt is the main reason for the good preservation of artifacts, the native timber used in these wooden pieces has clear qualitative disadvantages as compared to its imported counterparts. It was not only the rarity of good types of wood, but it was also the inferior quality of local 193

K n, ―W d T n n n n n E p ,‖ M n n, ― N n S -called Turned Stools of the New K n d ,‖ 28 195 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I,1. For a modern overview of wood identification, see Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 47-73 especially 47-48. 196 Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 439. 197 Russell Meiggs. Trees and Timber in the Ancient Mediterranean World. Oxford: Clarendon, 1982. 59. 194

13

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom 

the same period.225 The tree has small, sweet fruits (figs), and these along with the ―leaves and milky fluid,‖ were used as medicine.226 The Cairo Museum database lists a stool (JE 31170) made of sycamore, with lion paws and gilding. Unfortunately, I was not able to find it in the museum227 as it does not have an SR228 number, the only way to locate it.

Acacia205 Sndt / Snd206 (Acacia nilotica)207

Acacia has been utilized in Egypt from the Predynastic Period208 and evidence of its implementation can be traced throughout Egyptian history.209 Several varieties of this genus are native to Egypt and it is the most used of the indigenous types.210 I d b d b n ― d, d and durable,‖211 though the small dimension of the timbers makes its incorporation into large objects challenging.212 It is a good option for building–even for ships–because it is tough and durable.213 Its use in shipbuilding is mentioned in the Sixth-Dynasty biography of Weni from Abydos.214 According to Svarth, it found widespread use in furniture making, dowels, general joinery, and bows and arrows.215 Hepper details even further uses: ―Acacia bark provided an important source of tannin for the preparation of leather from hides, and a blue dye for linen cloth was extracted from acacia p d ‖216 However, the most important use for our purpose is in the construction of stools.217 Based on the Cairo Museum records, a fragment of a chair (JE 43827) is made of acacia and inlaid with bone.218 



Tamarisk isr229 (Tamarix nilotica)

This type of wood has been d b d ― nd dense.‖230 Tamarisk (also called salt cedar)231 is a desert shrub, with thin branches and leaves. It is less highly regarded because of its ability to provide only pieces of limited size. It also can be warped during the seasoning process, further limiting the scope of its uses to small objects of daily life.232 According to Killen, tamarisk has many defects such as knots, as well as being difficult to work with.233 Objects made of tamarisk have been found from as early as the Neolithic Period and until the GrecoRoman Period. It is mainly used in the production of coffins, bows, tamarisk rafts, dowels, pegs, and furniture such as chairs, beds, boxes, and lids.234 Fischer discusses in detail a chair from the New Kingdom.235 The chair, currently preserved in the MMA, is made of Tamarisk with ivory decoration and veneer (Fig. 38). Its seat is woven of linen cords. The chair is characterized by the extensive use of ivory in the elbow braces, panels on the back, and the n‘ . It is a unique piece in its representation, inscription and decoration; in addition, it is one of the few pieces whose wood has been identified. Killen also mentions a chair made of tamarisk (Inv. No 418) preserved at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, but it dates to the Twenty-Six Dynasty.236 Other fragments of stool legs are mentioned in the Catalogue Général des Antiquités Égyptiennes du Musée du Caire by Daressy.237 One of these pieces is a fragment of a folding stool with d ‘ d . It is made of tamarisk and leather but all that remains today is the

Sycamore (Fig) nht219 (Ficus sycomorus)

Sycamore is characterized by its hardness,220 ―p , , fibrous, coarse texture (wood) and poor quality,‖221 as well as its many knots.222 Its prevalence throughout Egypt has led to many pieces being ―positively id n f d ‖223 Sycamore was utilized for many artifacts dating from the Fifth Dynasty to the Roman Period. Sycamore was used for making furniture, statues, boats, coffins, stelae and minor tools. According to Leospo: ―sycamore was widely used for furniture, p f n n j n nd f ‖ 224 It is mentioned in Egyptian texts from the Eighteenth Dynasty and it was often depicted on the tomb walls of 205

For more information about acacia tree (structure), as well as examples of objects made of acacia and dating from the Predynastic n L P d, G , ―W d,‖ 335-336. 206 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 898-899, WB IV, 520 (9), 521. 207 For more information about acacia species, see Nigel Hepper. Pharaoh's Flowers: The Botanical Treasures of Tutankhamun. London: HMSO, 1990. 22-23. 208 Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 442. 209 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 7. 210 Dan Svarth. Egyptisk møbelkunst fra Faraotiden: Egyptian Furniture -Making in the Age of the Pharaohs. Skårup: Skippershoved, 1998. 127. 211 Gale et al., ―W d,‖ 335-336. 212 Cooney, The Cost of Death, 206. 213 L p , ―W d n :F n nd C b n ,‖ 120. 214 Strudwick and Leprohon, Texts from the Pyramid Age, 356. The text mentions that ships and barges will be made of acacia wood obtained from Wawat in Nubia (Snd n wAwAt). See Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 899). 215 Svarth, Egyptisk møbelkunst fra Faraotiden,172. 216 Hepper, Pharaoh's Flowers, 23. 217 Such as the one from the MMA 12.182.58. 218 See chapter II, 46-47 (IX. 4). 219 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 442; WB II, 282 (7-13). For more information, see Gale et al.,―W d,‖ 34 -341. 220 , Woodworking, 11. 221 G , ―W d,‖ 34 222 Svarth, Egyptisk møbelkunst fra Faraotiden, 127. 223 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 6. 224 Leospo, Woodworking: Furniture and Cabinetry, 120.

225

G ,―W d,‖ 34 R n G ―F ‖ The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. Ed. Donald B. Redford. Vol. I. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. 535-541, especially 537. 227 T C M d b d b p ― b d n d‖ 228 Special Register number. The provenance of the stool is Sheikh Abd El Qurna at Thebes. Height 30 cm; Length 35 cm. 229 WB I, 130; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 116-117. 230 For more information about tamarisk, see Gale et al.,―W d,‖ 345 dn C n , ―T rtainly considered more expensive than sycamore or acacia, although it does not compare in p d d d ‖ C n , The Cost of Death, 206207. 231 Hepper, Pharaoh's Flowers, 48. 232 L p , ―W d n :F n nd C b n ,‖ 2 233 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 6. 234 Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 447; Gale et al., ―W d,‖ 345, , Woodworking, 11. 235 F ,― C f E N K n d ,‖ 4 -176. 236 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 6; K n, ― n n E p n C p n ,I T nd T n ,‖ 3, fn 2 237 Georges Daressy. Fouilles de la Vallée des Rois (1898-1899). C G n d n Égyptiennes d M d C N 24001-24990. Cairo: IFAO, 1902. 171-172, nos. 24669, 24670, 24671; 300 no. 24978. 226

14

Woodworking Processes and Techniques head. This piece along with the others, whether legs of stools, chairs or even beds, all have come from the tomb of the King Amenhotep II at Thebes. These surviving pieces demonstrate that tamarisk, as well as acacia and sycamore, were among the main woods used in furniture. With few exceptions, the majority of woods that I could visually identify seemed to belong to this group of local woods. Future analysis will help us clarify this issue. 

purposes it is used as the webbing for some chairs and stools as identified by Greiss.247 

The date palm has been characterized ― f , fibrous and of poor quality ‖249 Its fruits are usually called dates. It is well represented in Egypt (Delta and the Nile valley) and usually depicted on tomb scenes. The wood was often used for buildings (roof timber), but less often for other objects. Its stringy texture makes it inconvenient for executing joint work, but appropriate for mats and baskets.250

Carob238 nDm (Ceratonia Siliqua)

Carob is a small evergreen, ― d, n nd d quality …wood,‖239esteemed by carpenters because of its red color and heaviness. Egyptian texts contain several references to the use of carob for manufacturing fine furniture and other woodwork (such as chairs, footstools, and tables), as well as bows and toiletry articles.240 It is broadly found in Mediterranean regions, but in Egypt, it grows only in gardens.241 During the New Kingdom, Egyptian kings acquired ― b df n nd from Syria,‖ j d n from the Annals of Thutmose III, which record that he received tributes from the cities of Lebanon and Megiddo in his first campaign. 242 Then, booty was also taken from Syria during his second campaign 243 and later from Arrapachitis on his thirteenth campaign.244 

Date Palm bnrt248 ( Phoenix dactylifera)

Besides these woods, Eaton- Krauss in her article ―Notes n S N Kn d S B ‘ L nd Tutankhamun, Feeding Chair‖ describes a stool preserved in the Oriental Institute Museum as made of Egyptian plum (Cordia myxa)251 based on museum records. She emphasizes that the use of this wood to make furniture is otherwise not known.252 Furthermore, Gale et al. point to a stool from the 17-18th Dynasty as being made of Christ‘ thorn (nbs), known as Sidder (Ziziphus spine Christi).253 II.2 Imported Wood 

Dom Palm mAm245 (Hyphaene thebaica)

Boxwood 254 (Buxus Sempervirens)

Boxwood is native to Europe, West Asia, as well as North Africa.255 It is used for several purposes such as ―n , nd , d , n p , combs, p ‖256 As Meiggs points out, cabinetmakers and craftsmen preferred boxwood because of its

The Dom palm is mainly a fruit tree like the date palm but it is also dense and hard, which is why Egyptian craftsmen used it in manufacturing boats and beams, as well as in carpentry.246 It grows in Upper-Egypt. The leaves are used in cordage and mats, its fibres for making brushes. It may have been utilized in furniture, but for our

247

For a morphological description of the Dom palm, as well the examples currently housed in the Agricultural Museum in Cairo such as baskets, mats, especially a seat of a chair from the Eighteenth Dynasty, see Elhamy A. M. Greiss. Anatomical Identification of Some Ancient Egyptian Plant Materials. M d In d Egypte 55. Cairo: Impr. Costa Tsoumas, 1957. 41-48, 147-148, 112, 114, no. 13, fig. 127 for an example from Deir El-M d n f ― (b ) f made of twisted leaf-lobes of Hyphaene thebaica ‖ G p n another seat (bottom) of a chair made of Hyphaene thebaica and preserved in the Egyptian Museum, Stockholm, Sweden. 248 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 271; see also Greiss, Anatomical Identification, 32-40,146-147; Baum, Arbres et Arbustes, 90-106. 249 Gale et al.,―W d,” 347-348. 250 Ward, Sacred and Secular, 16-17; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 443-444. 251 W nd M ,― ,‖ 37-44. 252 Eaton-K , ―N n S N Kn d S B ‘ Legs and Tutan n‘ F d n C ,‖ 85-89, pls. 5-6. For more information about Cordia myxa, see Baum, Arbres et Arbustres, 266; Loret, La Flore Pharaonique, no. ;G , ―W d,‖ 343 F evidence of specimens (leaves) found by Petrie in Fayum during the Greco-R n P d, S R n G ― n n E p n P n R n n M n M ‖ JEA 73 (1987): 245-246. 253 Gale et al., ―W d,‖ 347; C n , The Cost of Death, 207; Baum, Arbres et Arbustres,169-176; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 446. 254 G , ―W d,‖ 337; K n, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 2; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 431-432; , Woodworking, 14. 255 Meiggs, Trees and Timber, 281; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 431. 256 Gale et al.,―W d,‖ 337.

238

For more information about Carob wood: see Nathalie Baum. Arbres et Arbustes de l'Egypte Ancien L d b b d’ (no 81). Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 31. Leuven: Peeters, 1988. 162-168; Gale et al., ―Wood,‖ 338; Victor Loret L F P d D D dans les Tombes. Hildesheim: Georg Olms Verlag, 1975. No. 146; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 443. 239 G , ―W d,‖ 338. 240 Ward, Sacred and Secular, 16. 241 The origin of this wood was discussed by several scholars. Some of them place it under native wood and other as imported. For evidence of its existence in Egypt, see Baum, Arbres et Arbustes, 162-168. 242 James Henry Breasted. Ancient Records of Egypt: Historical Documents from the Earliest Times to the Persian Conquest. Vol. II. Ancient records. 2nd series. London: Histories & Mysteries of Man, Ltd., 988 P 436 ―6 f v , b n nd b d, with gold; 6 footstools belonging to them; 6 large tables of ivory and carob wood, a staff of carob wood ‖ See Meiggs, Trees and Timber, 60, 65; Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 2. 243 Breasted, Ancient records of Egypt II, Para. 447: Tribute of Retenu ― b d, mrw d‖ 244 Breasted, Ancient records of Egypt II, P 5 2: ―T b f country of Arrapachitis this year: slaves; crude copper, 2 blocks; carob , 65 ; nd d f n ‖ 245 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 338. 246 For more information see Gale et al.,―W d,‖ 347; W d, Sacred and Secular,17; Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 3; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 444; and especially Baum, Arbres et Arbustes, 106-120.

15

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom strength and close, ―straight grain,‖ as well as its uniformity and pleasant light color.257 It seldom grows very big, so its use is limited to small objects or parts of objects which require precision workmanship or exceptional strength.

pieces, craftsmen used black and white paint to imitate the dramatic appearance of ivory and ebony. This technique is present in some elbow braces of chairs. The same applies to folding stools: instead of ebony pupils of the duck and ivory inlay, black and white paint is used. The collection of Tutankhamun contains the best examples of ebony and inlaid objects.269 The evidence in non-royal pieces does not exhibit the same lavish implementation T n n‘ p . There is an example of a chair leg (JE 43389) made of ebony with two squares of ivory in the Cairo Museum records.270 An elegant non-royal (Dynasty 18) folding stool, currently preserved in the Royal Ontario Museum, is made of ebony, ivory inlays and bronze pivot.271

A very well-carved chair made of ebony, boxwood, cypress and linen cord is currently preserved in the MMA.258 It is the chair of Hatnofer, the mother of Sennemut, the architect of Hatshepsut. Its back is divided into two sections: the top is openwork design depicting the god Bes in the middle and djed and tyet amulets alternating on either side, carved in ebony and boxwood. This handsome chair illustrates the ability of craftsmen to integrate different types of wood in one piece to create a decorative design (Fig. 40).259 Box is associated with ebony in the Egyptian records and in surviving pieces. In the Amarna correspondence, boxwood and items manufactured from it were sent to Egypt by the rulers of Mitanni and Alashia.260 

In his booty, T III n d ― x f ivory, ebony and carobd ‖272 The economical and political importance of ebony is expressed in two Amarna letters.273 Among the presents that Amenhotep III sent to the king of Babylon there were ―one bed of ebony overlaid with ivory and gold, three beds of ebony overlaid with gold, one headrest of ebony overlaid with gold, one large chair of ebony overlaid with gold, five chairs of ebony overlaid with gold ‖274 He also sent to the king of Arzwa ― f b n …ten chairs of ebony, inlaid with ivory and [Lapis lazuli]…, one hundred (pieces) of ebony.‖275

Ebony: hbny 261 and African Blackwood 262 (Diospyrus spp, Dalbergia melanoxylon)

Ebony is described as extremely heavy and hard, ―d ff b n d p nd d v ‖263 It is a highly prized material and easily distinguishable from other woods through its color and appearance, which varies from black to dark brown. ―It is resistant to attack by insects, durable, dense, heavy, and d ff b nd ‖264 It also holds up well during seasoning, with no splitting or cracking. It reached Egypt from the tropical regions of Africa including Punt and Ethiopia. It is used for making a variety of items from the First Dynasty (seals, tablets); then, in the Middle Kingdom its use increased, becoming even more widespread in the Eighteenth Dynasty and beyond.265 It is mainly used in furniture, veneering, inlay, as well as in sculpture.266 Occasionally, ebony is the dominant material, as seen in the Hatnofer chair. For veneering and inlay, it is commonly alternated with ivory or boxwood.267 Veneering was adopted in items dating from the Early Dynastic Period and the Old Kingdom, such as n fH p n ― p f b n d n b ‖268 Sometimes in less valuable

There seems to be confusion among scholars about the genus and species, as well as the term used to designate ebony and African Blackwood. Usually, scholars use the common term ebony as Dalbergia melanoxylon. Others mention ebony‘s genus as Diospyrus spp.276 The confusion arises because historically Dalbergia melanoxylon b nd n d ― b n ‖W d call it African Blackwood today, and call Diospyrus spp ebony.277 The veneer of the chair of Renyseneb is

269

Such as the imitation of a folding stool (JE 62035) made of ebony and gold; as well as the ceremonial chair (JE 62030) also made of ebony and gold. See Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 116-119, 7591. 270 T b nd d n ― ‖ n nd which was discussed by Davies and other scholars. See also chapter II, 62-63 (XII. 5). 271 Krzysztof Grzymski. The Pharaohs. Ed. Christiane Ziegler. New York: Rizzoli, 2002. 447, cat. no. 149. It is one of the few examples that are supposed to receive a woven seat. 272 Meiggs, Trees and Timber, 282. 273 Geoffrey K n ―W d n n n n E p - the Skills of Ancient Artisans - P T : M nd D v T n ‖ Ancient Egypt Magazine (2002): 24–28, especially 26. 274 Mercer, The Tell El-Amarna Tablets I, 17; Meiggs, Trees and Timber, 282. 275 Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 435, Mercer, The Tell El-Amarna Tablets I, 185; Moran, The Amarna Letters, 11 (EA 5), 101 (EA 31). 276 Ian Shaw and Paul T. Nicholson. The Princeton Dictionary of Ancient Egypt. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2008. 347. Nowadays the distinction has been made to associate the ebony with Diospyrus spp. See figure 62 for an example of a scene from Deir ElGebrawi depicting a carrying chair made of ebony. Montet, L d P e, 308. 277 G , ―W d,‖ 349-350. See also Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I , 3-4 Ebony (Diospyrus); F , ―Möb ,‖ 182, fn. 35.

257

Meiggs, Trees and Timber, 280-281. Hayes, The Scepter of Egypt II, 201, fig. 115. 259 Dreyfus, Hatshepsut from Queen to Pharaoh, cat. no. 47. 260 William L. Moran. The Amarna Letters. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992. 80 (EA 25), 113 (EA 40.); Samuel A. B. Mercer. The Tell El-Amarna Tablets. Vol. I. Toronto: Macmillan Co. of Canada, 1939. 145, 147, 205. 261 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich I, 1562; Hepper, Pharaoh's Flowers, 46-47 even the Coptic word EBENOC still survive d n b nd n ―abanus ‖ 262 http://www.blackwoodconservation.org/tree.html 263 F nf n, G , ―W d,‖ 339-340. 264 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 3. 265 J H S b ―F nd F n n: F n n n n E p ‖ Egypt revealed, Archaeology, Travel, and Adventure 46 (2001): 46-53, especially 48. 266 G , ―W d,‖ 34 267 Meiggs, Trees and Timber, 282-283. 268 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 3-4. 258

16

Woodworking Processes and Techniques Lebanon).‖291 These are just a few from the multitude of examples of cedar use.

analyzed as being made of East African Blackwood (Dalbergia melanoxylon).278 

Cedar 279 mrw or aS 280 (cedrus libani)

It is traditionally believed among scholars that Egyptians d df ― nf b f L v n‖ n is the Lebanese cedar, juniper, cypress, fir, pine and others.292 Meiggs, as well as several other scholars, agree L n ― b n any cedar wood found in Egypt as cedrus libani.‖293 This represents the point of contention for Alessandra, who argues in several articles against this opinion and considers it an assumption that should be changed. According to Alessandra, ―cedar of Lebanon can not be distinguished anatomically through the microscope from other cedars. It is scientifically impossible to label any ancient cedar wood as cedrus libani, because this can only be an assumption and not a conclusion based on any evidence.‖294 She lists several reasons for not accepting the conclusion that all types of cedar used in Egypt were from Lebanon (such as the existence of cedrus brevifolia in Lebanon among other trees).295 She also discusses the similarity between cedar and juniper woods in color and other features (both fragrant and resinous). She disagrees with many of Meiggs‘opinions, for instance his considering aS the Egyptian word for cedar. Loret, on the other hand, rejects the use of aS to designate cedar, suggesting that fir or pine, or even the generic term for both, would be a more accurate translation. Loret‘ main point is that when aS ― b d n n n Egyptian iconography it was shown to be pale gold and never a reddish-brown, as was the case with cedar ‖296 Nibbi adds that mrw is mentioned in the Merikare text as an example of wood which is said to come from the west. She goes through the examples that Loret used as his arguments and one of them is the sarcophagi of Sopi in which three headrests are depicted. The caption of the first of them reads aS and the object is pale yellow in color; the third one is reddish and mrw is written. None of the varieties of cedar are pale yellow.297 Davies prefers the use of aS d n d ― n occasion have had a generic usage.‖298 Although I tend to d nd ‘ d f totally ignoring

Cedar is d b d b n ―p n -brown, straightgrained, aromatic, very durable and takes a good polish.‖ 281 It resists rot and insects and has a distinctive scent. Cedar is a large tree varying between 30-40 m. in height. Items made of cedar have been found from as early as the Predynastic Period and until the Ptolemaic Period.282 It is mainly used for making sarcophagi, coffins, shrines,283 boats and furniture.284 Based on the museum records, and the Catalogue Général, there is a chair entirely made of cedar wood (C.G. 24673).285 Another leg made of cedar was found in the tomb of Thutmose I and Hatshepsut (KV 20). The Tutankhamun collection also provides us with a beautiful cedar throne.286 The MMA houses a distinctive panel of Thutmose IV‘ throne, which was made of cedar.287 The trade of cedar stretches back to the reign of Khasekhemwy (Dynasty 2), but the Fourth Dynasty Palermo Stone (reign of Snefru) suggests much heavier trading, ―bringing forty ships full of cedar/pine wood.‖288 There are several references to cedar in Egyptian records under different rulers of the New Kingdom and later (such as Hatshpesut, Thutmose III and others).289 The tomb of Sennefri (TT 99) depicts his trip to and from Byblos in Lebanon on the mission of acquiring cedar wood for the Amun temple at Karnak.290 An inscription accompanies the workshop scene in the Rekhmire tomb ―M n f n f v , ebony, sesnedjem-wood, meru wood, and real cedar from the top of the terrace (i.e.

278

http://www.blackwoodconservation.org/tree.html For a detailed discussion about cedars of Lebanon, see Meiggs, Trees and Timber, 49-87. 280 WB I, 228 (1-5); Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 289; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 432. According to Penelope mrw ― n b v d b p ff f L b non, perhaps even cedar of Lebanon;‖ and aS ―f ‖ d W n, A Ptolemaic Lexikon, 179-180,442 281 G , ―W d,‖ 349-350. 282 G , ―W d,‖ 349-350. 283 Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 432. 284 G , ―W d,‖ 349 285 We will return to this example in the next chapter, see 32-33 (II. 1). 286 Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 57-67, no. 2. 287 Peter F. Dorman. The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Egypt and the Ancient Near East. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987. 5354, fig. 35. 288 Strudwick and Leprohon, Texts from the Pyramid Age, 65-66, especially 66; Breasted, Ancient records of Egypt I, para. 146; Ward, Sacred and Secular, 20-22; L p , ―W d n : F n nd C bn ,‖ 121 . 289 D v d O‘C nn ―T mose III: An Enigmatic Pharaoh.‖ Thutmose III: A New Biography. Ed E H C n nd D v d B O‘C nn nn Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2006. 1-38, especially 18. 290 B n, ― d n n n R n f T III,‖ 8 ―T importance given t xp d n n S nn f ‘ b n underscores his pride in bringing back the cedar and other products of L v n ‖ S L , ―M n n nd Royal Bui d n P f T III,‖ 9 ― d f d ‖ 279

291

Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death, 155. W Vv nD v ― n n E p nT b I p : n n f W d n C ff n n B M ‖ Egypt, the Aegean and the Levant: Interconnections in the Second Millennium BC. Eds. W. Vivian Davies and Louise Schofield. London: British Museum Press for the Trustees of the British Museum, 1995. 146-156, especially 146. 293 Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 432-434; Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 2 dn K n, ―T d a very fine producing timber, although the species cedrus libani is of poorer quality than some of the genuses, being very soft with a rough n nd bj n d n n nn ‖B v n these characteristics, it is preferable for craftsmen and better than other local woods. 294 N bb nd ―S R n C d f L b n n ‖ DE 28 (1994): 35-52, especially 35; ―C d n‖ DE 34 (1996): 37-59; ―S R n L x n En Z d , C d ‖ DE 7 (1987): 1327; ―T B b Q n n ‖ DE 30 (1994): 115- 4 ; ―T L b n n nd Dj n E p n T x ‖ DE 1 (1985): 17-26. 295 nd , ―S R n C d f L b n n,‖ 37 296 V L ―Q N S ‘ b aS.‖ ASAE 16 (1916): 3351. 297 nd , ―C d n,‖ 43, f 298 D v , ― n n E p n T b I p ,‖ 152. 292

17

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom d p n ‖309 Leather figures in the manufacture of different items such as sandals, chariots, clothing, mirror cases, and sword cases, in addition to other small items such as leather bags, collars, and bracelets. Leather is also used in the production of cushions (Sd),310 whether for seats or headrests. Lansing and Hayes mention a red leather pill n ― ff d b d n‖ discovered in the tomb of Ramose and Hatnofer at Thebes (Dynasty 18).311 Moreover, strips of leather or rawhide are used to fasten together the handles and blades of tools such as axes, adzes, and chisels. Its most relevant use for our purpose is as a covering for folding and flared-legged stools. It is important to emphasize that the majority of folding stools possess a leather seat cover, though there is evidence of a few cases of linen covers judging by the holes pierced on their seat rails (Fig. 39).312 Leather was also necessary in making furniture joints for chairs, stools, and beds, especially in the period before using animal glue. In these cases, leather thongs attached the legs to the seat rails. Leather was more widely used in the Eighteenth Dynasty based on the number of folding stools found. An advantage of using leather folding stools is that they are light and easily carried when folded while sufficiently sturdy when unfolded. Moreover, they are full of symbolism whether in n ‘ n, duck ‘ heads, or lion legs.313 Animal glue was used to attach the leather seat to the curved seat rails in the case of the folding stools, which is why the interior parts of the rails also contain leather remnants. JE 29275 shows evidence that the seat was lashed to the rails.314 In the case of flared legs, it is clear that leather was stretched over the seat itself as well as the top part of the rounded legs and then glued to secure the binding together, which is why the stool preserved in the Cairo Museum (TR 7/11/26/1) still has leather traces (painted yellow) wrapping around the top of the leg.315 The color of the seat is sometimes dyed red, black, or yellow.316

the texts and subsequent conclusions, I think that the lack of specific characteristic of Egyptian wood designations leaves much room for lexicographical disagreement and that Egyptians were not always specific with their terminology in regard to wood. 

Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens)

C p

― dd -brown, even-grained, smooth, , d b nd dp ‖299 It exists in Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, and Crete among other areas. It n d n n f ff n ,b ,― , vn , n n d nd n n ‖ 300 The MMA contains several pieces of furniture that are entirely or partially made of cypress such as Hatnof ‘ chair.301 Other types of imported wood may be used occasionally, but because we have no tested evidence, we cannot prove it. Ash (Fraxinus excelsior) is popular in Syria and Asia Minor.302 It is hard, strong, and elastic wood. It shares with Elm303 (Ulmus) the feature of being easily bent. That is why both Ash and Elm are perfectly suitable for bows, chariots, tool handles, and those parts of furniture which must be flexible and supple.304 II.3 Auxiliary Materials Wood is the primary material used in furniture construction, but many pieces display the use of the following auxiliary materials to aid in their structural function as well as decoration: 

Leather dHr 305

Leather was used from the Predynastic Period onward.306 The skins of sheep, goats, calves and gazelles were mainly used.307 Driel-Murray discusses in detail the process of leather production: tanning, drying, softening, dying and other stages.308 As mentioned by Driel-Murray, ―d p n n E p n b-chapels illustrate highly selective moments of skin processing, ignoring the essential, but unclean, stages of cleaning and

Leatherworking is illustrated in several private tombs that date from the Fifth to the Twenty-Sixth Dynasty.317 The best illustration of the stages of leather manufacture and tools comes from the tomb of Rekhmire and shows different steps of manufacturing sandals318 (Fig. 74). The scenes from the tomb of Huy (viceroy of Nubia during the Eighteenth Dynasty) as well as that from the temple of Ramses II at Beit El Wali in Nubia (Dynasty 19) are extravagant examples showing tributes coming to Egypt,

299

G , ―W d,‖ 35 ; H pp , Pharaoh's Flowers, 46. G , ―W d,‖ 35 301 Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 434. 302 For more information about Ash, see G , ―W d,‖ 34 ; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 431; Hepper, Pharaoh's Flowers, 47. The only identified piece is the bow of Tutankhamun that is made from Ash. 303 F nf n b E , G , ―W d,‖ 346; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 436. 304 L p , ―W d n : F n nd C b n ,‖ 124; Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 8. 305 WB V, 481-482; see Driel-M , ―L nd S n P d ,‖ 299-319; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 33-37. 306 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 11; see also Ruffle, Ancient Egypt, 3 , 3 5 ― nd n p n p n v b n d n f d‖ 307 S , ―L ,‖ 282-284; Driel-Murr , ―L ,‖ 302 ―gazelle skin was used for the delicate open-work leather open work n f N Kn d ‖ 308 For more details, see Driel-M , ―L ,‖ 299-319. 300

309

Driel-M , ―L ,‖ 3 2 WB IV, 560 (6). 311 b L n n nd W H ―T e Egyptian Expedition 1935- 936: T M ‘ Ex v n T b ‖ BMMA 32/2 (1937). 4-39, especially 16; Vogelsang-E d, ―T x ,‖ 291. 312 The collection that I studied in the Cairo Museum did not have any folding stool with holes. We have two pieces with no traces of leather or holes, which is why they are most likely leather. 313 We will deal with this in chapter III. 314 For this piece, see chapter II, 49 (IX. 12). 315 See chapter II, 58-59 (X. 22). 316 For more information about the color, see Driel-Murray, ―L ,‖ 306. 317 S , ―L ,‖ 282-284. 318 Such as tanning, cleaning, and cutting. See Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, 155, figs. 112-113. 310

18

Woodworking Processes and Techniques such as gold, leopard-skins, gazelles, ebony logs, elephant tusks, feathers, giraffes and other exotic items (Fig. 42).319 

and other Southern areas (such as Punt, Kush), as well as the evidence that ivory was brought from Western Asia during the Eighteenth Dynasty.326 Ivory was received as both gifts and tributes. It entered in the production of a variety of small objects such as statues, combs, handles, bracelets, pendants, cosmetic items, headrests, jewellery boxes, as well as several b ‘ f chairs, stools or beds, mostly from the Predynastic Period (Fig. 41).327 According to Krzyszkowska and Morkot, the tomb of Menkheperrasonb (TT 86) contains the only illustration of ivory working.328 The techniques as well as the tools used for ivory are similar to those used for shaping wood.

Ivory

Ivory is a highly-prized material suitable for carving, in which the Egyptians demonstrated considerable skill. It is ― dense and fine grained material.‖320 Egyptians employed both the ivory derived from elephant tusks and those of the hippopotamus. Elephants died out in Egypt before the Dynastic Period, so elephant ivory had to be imported, but the hippopotamus, native to the Nile, remained in good supply. Krzyszkowska and Morkot point ―d n on [of ivory use] for the early period—while still far from adequate—is probably better nf n nE p n ‖ 321 Predynastic and Early Dynastic burial sites often include ivory objects, as well as those of bone.



Bone

Bone is sometimes used as a substitute for ivory as it is more easily obtained.329 It is usually considered to be of inferior quality compared with ivory, and economic factors interfere with its implementation. Traditionally, highly valued examples are those which show inlay of ivory, whereas those of inferior quality ― p carved on wood or sometimes in bone which also has a nice contrast and [is] v b ‖330 Because of this reason, I believe that the widespread prejudice against bone should be reevaluated, especially since in many cases bone does have nice working qualities as well as fine polish. Bone can be broadly used to manufacture both useful and decorative pieces, ― , nlays, pins, pendants, rings, amulets, and small carving in the nd ‖331

Ivory is common in inlay and veneer (frequently used with ebony), as well as in small decorations in furniture, especially chairs and stools. In the case of thin veneer, animal glue was applied to hold it firmly in place, but in thicker panels, ivory pins are used. In a few cases, ivory pins exist also in the elbow braces to attach the rails of the chair to its back. Sometimes, luxurious lattice stools are characterized by the lavish use of ivory: stretchers can be covered with ivory ferrules, and the seat back panels are sometimes decorated with ivory, but naturally not at the level of extravagance as seen in royal examples.322 As for our corpus, ivory is also used in the decoration of folding stools (JE 29275).323 Usually in this type, duck ‘ heads are inlaid with ivory, as well as a row of triangles that embellish the neck. Two fragments of a stool made of wood and inlaid with ivory strips are decorated with animal and floral motifs (TR 10/4/23/5 a–b).324 A unique example for our purpose is a flared leg from El-Amarna made entirely of ivory with green paint (JE 62790).325 The widespread use of ivory during the New Kingdom can be explained by E p ‘ p f n in Nubia

II.4 Weaving Materials Linen332 Linen is used in two ways with our objects. The first and more common use of linen is in weaving the seat cover of chairs and stools. Holes are bored in the rails of the seats in order to receive the webbing which is made of linen cords. The linen strings of cord can be woven in different patterns, the most familiar is the diagonal one. The number of linen strings running next to each other in the weave is variable (1, 2, 4 or more). The ends of each string are tied and hidden beneath the rails of the seat. The second and less common technique of applying a layer of coarse woven linen was used in some pieces such as the stools of Sennedjem in the Cairo Museum and the Kha collection at the Turin Museum.333 In this technique,

319

John H. Taylor. Egypt and Nubia. London: British Museum Press, 1991. Fig. 37; Herbert Ricke, George R. Hughes and Edward F. Wente. The Beit el-Wali Temple of Ramesses II. Oriental Institute Nubian Expedition 1. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1967. Pl. 7. 320 For more information about ivory, see Krzyszkowska and Morkot, ―Ivory and Related Materials,‖ 320-331; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 32-33; M , ―Iv ,‖ 196-197. For general information about ivory working, see Richard David Barnett. Ancient Ivories in the Middle East. Qedem 14. Jerusalem: Institute of Archaeology, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 1982. 9-22. 321 Krzyszkowska nd M , ―Iv nd R dM ,‖ 320, 324325 O n , v ― f p n b np df d n n f pp p nd ‖ 322 For the lavish use of ivory in royal pieces, see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 93-96, 100, 109, 112-116, pls. XXXI-XXXIII, XLV, XLVIII. For non-royal example see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 132, fig. 184. 323 See chapter II, 49 (IX. 12). 324 See chapter II, 56 (X.11- X. 12). 325 For this leg, see chapter II, 36-37, V. 1. J. D. S. Pendlebury. The City of Akhenaten: Part III. The Central City and the Official Quarters. 2 Vols. The Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoirs 44. London: Egypt Exploration Society, 1951. 125, pl. LXXXVIII.5.

326

Krzyszkowska and M , ―Ivory and Related Materials,‖ 324. Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 20. As mentioned by Baker, even though wooden legs exceed the ivory ones in their number, they do not show the fine carving especially in the drums and the bull details. These miniature ivory legs demonstrate the high skill of craftsmen. 328 Krzyszkowska nd M , ―Iv nd R d M ,‖ 328; Shaw and Nicholson, The Princeton Dictionary of Ancient Egypt, 161. 329 For general information about bone, see Arthur MacGregor. Bone, Antler, Ivory & Horn: The Technology of Skeletal Materials Since the Roman Period. London: Croom Helm, 1985. 330 Krzyszkowska and M , ―Iv nd R dM ,‖ 327-328. 331 Krzyszkowska and M , ―Ivory nd R dM ,‖ 327 332 For information about linen in general, see Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 142-146. 333 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 307. 327

19

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom beneath the seat.342 Both types are represented in our corpus. Shapes and weaving pattern also differ. Simple weave (or ―tabby‖) consists of one, two, three or sometimes four strands. As explained by Wendrich, ― bb p n n f n p n n b f nd ‖ 343 The second weave ― p n‖ n be easily identified by its diagonal lines. ―Twill weave technically has a front and a back side, unlike plain weave, where the two sides are the same ‖344 Another derivation of the twill is the herringbone/chevron pattern which looks like a V shape. Some pieces are left as they are, while others are painted with gesso.

wood constitutes the main material of the seat over which a thin layer of linen is applied, then gessoed. Most probably animal glue is used to strengthen the linen and the gesso together; this creates a secure ground for the painting. Usually the gesso is painted red to imitate leather. A similar technique is used in one pedestal from the tomb of Thutmose IV.334 One of the unique depictions of weaving is the scene preserved in the tomb of Menkheperrasonb (TT112) showing two craftsmen holding strings of cord to weave them to and fro across the framework of a bedstead through slits drilled along the cross and side rails of the bed (Fig. 43).335 

The tools needed to accomplish this work are simple, and fewer tools are necessary if the weave is done on the existing seat. A stick is needed to force the threads into place, and an awl or needle is used to enlarge the holes at the end of the operation, as well as a knife to cut the edges of the plant, which are firm and too rigid to work with easily. Rushes and other materials were harvested, stored, dried and soaked before use.345

Rush, Reed, Palm and Other Plant Fibers336

The Nile waters and other marshy areas create prime habitat for an abundance of reeds, which were collected in Predynastic times to make basic boxes.337 Both reed and rush served in the matting of chairs‘ nd ‘ seats,338 in addition to palm fibers such as Dom palm leaf. Greiss identifies a mat of a chair made of this material which is now preserved in the Agriculture Museum in Egypt (No. 4368).339 The examples found by Bruyère are an impressive indication of the degree to which rush woven seats were used by the artisans at Deir El-Medina (Fig. 44).340 These materials are still used today. Whatever the material used to weave seats (rush,341 linen cord, or other palm fiber materials), we can distinguish two methods of manufacture: the first is used in the socalled ― d x p ‖ n is wrapped around the seat to form the webbing of chairs and stools; in the more ―sophisticated pieces,‖ the technique is based on drilling the cross and side rails in circular cut-holes to allow the strands of cord to be interwoven or rush to pass through them and be fastened



Papyrus mHyt (cyperus papyrus)

The papyrus plant, which belongs to the family of sedges, grows on the banks of the Nile. Besides its main use for paper production, it has entered into the manufacture of baskets, boats, ropes, matting, chairs and stools.346 The best example housed in the Cairo Museum is the chair of Tutankhamun, which is made of papyrus and ebony.347 II.5 Assembly Materials 

Glue 348

Animal glue is well known during the New Kingdom. Glue manufacture involves ―boiling the skins and bones of animals in water and allowing the solution to evaporate, leaving a concentrated viscous adhesive.‖349 One of the nice depictions comes from the Rekhmire tomb in which glue seems to be boiled in a pot nearby (Fig. 74). A carpenter is using a brush to apply glue to a flat piece, perhaps a veneer.350 Animal glue is essential for our purpose: to attach different wooden pieces together, to hold ebony and ivory in place, to connect the

334

C.G. 46129, for this pedestal, see chapter II, 34 (III. 1). Nina M. Davies and Norman de Garis Davies. The Tombs of Menkheperrasonb, Amenmose, and Another (Nos. 86, 112, 42, 226). The Theban Tombs Series V. London: Egypt Exploration Society, 1933. Pl. XXX; Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 30, fig. 13. 336 For general information about palms, reeds and rushes, see Greiss, Anatomical Identification, 31-48, 57-76, 90-98. For a discussion about b nd n , nd p , W nd , ―B ,‖ 254-266. 337 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 10. As mentioned by several scholars, both terms rush and reeds are usually used loosely. dn W nd , ― ―p fb ‖ f n encountered in the literature, might refer to date-palm leaf, leaf-sheath fibre of the date palm, shredded fruit stem of the date palm, or to domp f‖ S W nd , ―B ,‖ 254-255; Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 128-133, 136-137; VogelsangE d, ―T x ,‖ 269 338 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 22-23. 339 The chair dates to the Eighteenth Dynasty and came from Deir ElMedina. See Greiss, Anatomical Identification, 114. 340 B n dB nd G n J d n. F d D M d -1935). D P , N d F d L‘IF O 15. Cairo: IFAO, 1937. 48, fig. 21. See also Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 139, 142. 341 ―R d n n n pp b n b nd d b f n f f T n n ‖S rd L. Day Perry. Seat Weaving. 3 ed. Peoria: Chas A. Bennett, Co., 1940. 47. 335

342

Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 309-310. W nd , ―B ,‖ 258 344 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twill 345 W nd , ―B ,‖ 265-266. 346 Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 137-140; Greiss, Anatomical Identification, 76-89; Vivi Täckholm, Mohammed Drar, and Gunnar Täckholm. Flora of Egypt. Koenigstein: Otto Koeltz Antiquariat, 1973. 119-123. 347 For a detailed description of the chair, see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 96-98, figs. 20-21, pls. XXXIV-XXXVII. 348 For detailed information about different types of adhesives and b nd , N n nd S p , ― d v nd B nd ,‖ 475-494. 349 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 17. 350 Hodel-Hoenes, Life and death in Ancient Egypt, 160; Newman and Serpico, ― d v nd B nd ,‖ 480-481; Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 301-302; , Woodworking, 54-55. 343

20

Woodworking Processes and Techniques axes to cut the trees (fig. 53).361 Figure 48 shows a similar scene from the tomb of Khunes.362

coarse layer of linen to wood, and finally to make gesso (glue and whiting).351 

A scene from the Middle Kingdom comes from the tomb of Khnumhotep III at Beni Hasan in which three men are depicted cutting a tree and goats are trying to feed (Fig. 47).363 On the top runs an inscription explaining the action swA364 xt ―chopping down the tree.‖ From the New Kingdom, the tomb of Nakht at Thebes shows a crouching man cutting a small tree with his axe (Fig. 55).365 The scene is among other scenes of agricultural activities. The tomb of Ipuy at Thebes contains a similar scene of a lumberman stripping the branches from the tree (Figs. 56-57).366 The tomb of Hepusonb from the reign of Hatshepsut also contains a scene depicting a woodcutter felling n ― n n n P n ‖ (F 58).367 A similar scene comes from the temple of Hatshepsut at Deir El-Bahari and is accompanied by the following inscription368 Sa hbny r-aAt wrt ―cutting ebony in great quantity.‖369 Another scene is from the tomb of Simut called Kyky (Fig. 54).

Bronze

Bronze is used in connecting parts of furniture that need to be very strong, mainly pivots of folding stools. III- Woodworking Processes III.1 Felling the Timber Scenes of felling trees are well-known, especially from the Old Kingdom. There are fewer scenes in the Middle Kingdom, and they become rare in the New Kingdom due to the diminished number of forests.352 It is very important to select and cut the useful part of the tree, which is the trunk, or bole.353 According to Killen, ―Timber boards had to be cut from straight trunks of good quality which had sufficient heartwood with few defects.‖354 So, a good lumberman should have a basic understanding of the tree‘ interior in order to optimize his work.355 This activity is sometimes accompanied by the verb explaining the action itself which is swA ―chop down, fell ‖356 The lumberman is designated as Sad xt mean n ―woodcutter.‖357 The axe is the main tool associated with this process.

III.2 Removal of the Branches and Trimming the Wood The step immediately after chopping down the tree is the removal of the branches (limbs) and preparing the log to facilitate its transportation (Fig. 49).370 According to Killen, the trunk was cut into 1,70 m sections in order to make it easy to transport.371 In figure 51 (upper register, left) three men can be seen working on a plank: two of them hold adzes and the one in the middle holds an axe, which indicates that besides being used in the rough work of felling trees, axes are also used to trim planks of wood.

Among the tree-cutting scenes in the Old Kingdom is an illustration from the tomb of Sekhemkara (Fig. 46).358 It consists of four fragments in which we see woodcutters chopping down trees. On the left scene, we see a lumberman cutting a tree which is about to fall over. The deep notch is clearly visible on the tree. To the right, four lumbermen are depicted; only one of them is clearly seen making a heavy blow with his axe. The man standing on the left seems to be the overseer, holding a staff and not engaged in any activity. A similar scene exists in the tomb of Nefer and Kahay (Figs. 50-51, upper registers), in which five lumbermen swing their long rounded axes. The first tree on the right is barely visible due to its imperfect state of preservation (Fig. 50, upper register). Beside the second tree, a lumberman is depicted bending over, chopping a deeper notch into the trunk of the tree.359 In figure 51, we have two men, each one of them holding an axe with two hands and preparing to make a blow to the notched tree. 360 From their body and the position of their hands, it is obvious that only strong lumbermen could perform this task. Furthermore, the tomb of Niankhpepi at Zaouyet El- Mayetin shows three trees and two lumbermen who are holding their trapezoid

III.3 Transport of Wood Wood transport seems to be one of the most difficult steps: the uncut trunk is moved to the nearest workshop ― b d‖372 to begin processing the wood. Judging from the men depicted in these scenes, it is clear that they need to be strong and energetic in order to carry this weight. Their number ranges upward from four to eight men in the case of small or medium trunks. From the tomb of Ibi at Deir El-Gebrawi,373 we have a scene depicting the method of moving a trunk of wood for a 361

Varille, La Tombe de Ni-Ankh-Pepi, pl. XVI. Varille, La Tombe de Ni- Ankh-Pepi,15, fig. 5. 363 Klebs, Die Reliefs und Malereien, 136, fig. 100. 364 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 1086. 365 Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, fig. 9; Abdel Ghaffar Shedid, and Matthias Seidel. The Tomb of Nakht: The Art and History of an Eighteenth Dynastie Official's Tomb at Western Thebes. Trans. Marianne Eaton-Krauss. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 1996. 34. 366 G , ―W d,‖ 353-357; Davies, Two Ramesside Tombs at Thebes, pls. XXX, XXXVI. 367 D v ,― F n f P n S n ,‖ 19-23. 368 Kenneth Anderson Kitchen. ―P n nd H G T ‖ Orientalia 40 (1971): 186-207, especially 187. 369 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 139. 370 , Woodworking, 45-46. 371 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 12. 372 , Woodworking, 46. 373 Kanawati and Alexakis, Deir El-Gebrawi II, 49, pl. 72. 362

351

Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 3-5. , Woodworking, 45-46. 353 Corbett, The Illustrated Professional Woodworker,10. 354 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture,12. 355 Corbett, The Illustrated Professional Woodworker,11. 356 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich II, 2132. 357 WB IV, 423 (1). 358 Hassan, Excavations at Giza, 115, fig. 60. 359 Moussa and Altenmüller, Nefer and Ka-Hay, 27-28, pls. 19-21. 360 This notch lets the tree lean in the other direction in preparation to f K n ―d b –n n ‖S G , ―W d,‖ 353. 352

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom ship depicted nearby (Fig. 60,4th register). Four men carry a pole that is attached to the trunk with three ropes. It seems that these ropes are placed at a fixed interval in order to preserve the equilibrium of the carried trunk.374 Another fragment comes from the tomb of Hemre I at Deir El- Gebrawi: it shows four men holding a pole on their shoulders from which a large tree trunk is suspended on a rope (Fig. 61).375 Only the word xt ― d‖ is depicted on the top. The tomb of Niankhamun and Khnumhotep provides us with another example showing two groups of men holding the trunk in the usual method by ropes on their shoulders (Fig. 52, 2nd register). From the New Kingdom, an interesting scene of timber transport comes from the temple of Hatshepsut at Deir ElBahari: it shows eight men holding entire trees rooted in pots (Fig. 59).376

is used with the smaller, easy-to-handle pieces.382 In this case, the task of sawing is performed by only one person. The second method is mostly used for the heavier and larger timbers. Here ―The wood was placed vertically against a post, which was firmly fixed into the ground and occasionally held upright by a pair of taut guide ropes attached to the top of the post and fastened to the workshop floor.‖383 At the top of the piece, a stick and a heavy stone function as a tourniquet or vise. The piece to be sawn is always depicted in an upright position. 384 Usually two ropes are fastened, one at each end of the wood. Goedicke called this vis ―dbt‖ nn ― b n .‖385 Brunner disagreed, saying that dbt f ―b x, chest ‖386 I accept B nn ‘ n n: with the absence of any inscription, we have no grounds for calling this vise dbt.387 It is clear that the tourniquet is associated more with the Old and Middle Kingdoms; it begins to disappear in the New Kingdom. Usually it is only one sawyer who splits the wood when it is held upright: two are necessary if it is fastened in an oblique position. 388 In this case, one of them uses the saw to split the wood, and the other holds the upper part to prevent the wood from moving or vibrating. The length of these wooden boards is variable; sometimes the height of the wood exceeds that of the post. In the tomb of Nefer and Kahay, a man is depicted sawing a wooden plank in its middle. He is holding the handle of the saw with his right hand, and the saw blade with his left hand (Fig. 51, 2nd register left).389 The two sawing methods can be seen clearly illustrated in the tomb of Ti,390 in which two carpenters are depicted: one is sawing a short plank and using his fingers as a wedge to open the crack left by the saw (fig. 65),391 the other is sawing a long piece fastened to a post by thick ropes and secured by a tourniquet lever (Fig. 66). The captions accompanying the scenes are wst m tfA ―sawing with a saw‖392 and wst ― n ‖393 Similarly, the tomb of Shedu at Deshasheh shows a sawyer splitting down a plank of wood (Fig. 79) ―The lashing which attaches the board to the fixed post is tightened by twisting it up with

III.4 Sawing the Wood The activity of sawing is called wsi ―to saw,‖377 and wsw is the sawyer himself. One of the best-documented scenes in tombs is the process of sawing the wood. Judging from these depictions, the wood is usually held in a vertical position, contrary to the horizontal orientation used nowadays. Lane, n ―The Pull-saw in Egypt,‖ discusses the two methods of sawing wooden boards.378 She argues that all evidence demonstrates that Egyptians used the pull saw rather than the push saw, judging by the vertical position of the saw, the tip of the saw, the position of the sawyer (more easy to pull than to push), and the distance between the sawyer himself and the wood.379 liwa and other scholars L n ‘ opinion which I also find convincing.380 Judging from the surviving scenes, Egyptian carpenters use two methods of sawing wood: The first is to place the wooden plank that needs to be sawn on the ground or above a high block in an oblique position, as in the scene in Rekhmire (Fig. 74).381 In this case, the sawyer holds the plank on its upper part, usually with his left hand. With his other hand he holds the wooden-handled saw and begins to saw from the top to the bottom. It seems that this method of holding the wood upright in the hand 374

, Woodworking, 46. As noted by Kanawati, the position of the men is strange as they are not in the same direction. Naguib Kanawati. Deir el-Gebrawi: The Northern Cliff. Vol. I. The Australian Centre for Egyptology Reports 23. Oxford: Aris & Phillips, 2005. 52, pl. 63. 376 G , ―W d,‖ 353; Ed dN v The Temple of Deir El Bahari. Part III. The Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoirs XXIX. London: The Offices of the Egypt Exploration Fund, 1898. Pl. LXXIV. 377 WB I, 358 (12-15); Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich I, 726-727. 378 M L n ―T P –S n E p ‖ Ancient Egypt and the East (June 1935): 55-58. 379 L n , ―T P -S ,‖ 57 ― xp n n he wood upright in sawing, the tip of a push-saw constantly tends to turn downwards, whereas when a pull-saw is used the tip as consistently p n p d ‖ 380 , Woodworking, 26-28. See also Stead, Egyptian Life, 36. Contrary to all the other authors, Stocks argues that the saw used by Egyptians is not only the pull but a combination of both the pull and push saw. See Stocks, Experiments in Egyptian Archaeology, 67-68. 381 Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, fig. 113. 375

382

British Museum. A General Introductory Guide to the Egyptian Collections in the British Museum, 212. 383 G ,―W d,‖ 354 384 Quirke and Spencer, The British Museum Book of Ancient Egypt, 183. 385 H n G d ―Dbt ‗W -B n ‘‖ JARCE 7 (1968): 128. 386 H B nn ―Dbt ‗K n ‘‖ ZÄS 100 (1974):150; , Woodworking, 36. 387 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 1046. dbt n ―b x, ‖ 388 Blackman, The Rock Tombs of Meir V, pl. XVIII. 389 Moussa and Altenmüller, Nefer and Ka-Hay, 28, pl. 20. 390 Pritchard, The Ancient Near East in Pictures, 266, no. 123; Montet, L d P , pl. 22. 391 , Woodworking, 27. 392 Montet, L d P , 302. 393 For another example, see William Matthew Flinders Petrie et al. Heliopolis, Kafr Ammar and Shurafa. British School of Archaeology in Egypt and Egyptian Research Account 24. London: School of Archaeology in Egypt, University College, 1915. 23, pl. XXV.

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Woodworking Processes and Techniques a stick, and the ball of surplus cord han d n ‖394 A good illustration of the second method of sawing is from the tomb of Pepiankh at Meir (Fig. 68).395 The wood is fastened obliquely to a wooden post and both wood and post are firmly attached by thick ropes in the middle.396 The work is performed here by two sawyers. Another depiction of sawing comes from the tomb of Niankhamun and Khnumhotep, here only with one sawyer (Fig. 63, 3rd register left). The wood is held upright, the lever is placed obliquely, and it is clear that even the stone shape suspended from the lever stick differs in shape. Other examples from the Middle Kingdom come from the tomb of Amenemhat, as well as Khety at Beni Hasan (Figs. 7071).

they knew other techniques. The best evidence for their skill in drying wood is the preservation of all the pieces of furniture that we see today in museums, especially the excellent condition and sturdy joints of the Hetepheres and Tutankhamun collections. Killen deduces that a moisture percentage varying between 8-12 % was adopted by Egyptians based on the analysis of the n n n K f ‘ b Giza, which was 10%.401 Drying wood is a delicate matter: over-drying can lead to its shrinkage; under-drying causes swelling. Dry wood has many advantages over ― n b ,‖402 a term referring to wood before it has been dried. ―Drying if carried out promptly after the felling of trees also protects timber against primary decay, fungal stain and attack by certain kinds of insects.‖403 Another important issue is the time that this process takes and how it is performed. The factors that affect the drying time include weather, wood type, and the thickness of the pieces.404 Air drying is likely the technique used in Egypt. Exposing wood directly to the sun is not good, as the wood would dry too quickly, especially the outside layers, which may lead to splitting of the wood.405 Air drying is simply the drying of timber by exposing it to air. Planks or boards are placed in a horizontal position, leaving spaces between the pieces.406 A possibility suggested by Baker is that mats were placed over the planks to control drying speed.407 Of course, the degree of drying differs and depends on the temperature of the place where wood is stored.

There are several New Kingdom scenes showing the sawing of wood: Rekhmire, Neferhotep, Menkheperrasonb, Apuki and Nebamun. In the New Kingdom, we no longer see the lever/counterweight device adopted during the Old and Middle Kingdoms. It seems that carpenters relash the cords from time to time to complete the process of sawing and it is possible that a small wedge was sometimes driven into the cut to avoid binding, although this cannot be clearly seen in the depictions (due to the side view of the scenes).397 This use of the wedge is demonstrated in the Meketere model (Fig. 4). The tomb of Rekhmire contains three depictions of sawing. The first register bottom left of figure 73 shows a carpenter tightly fastening the cords around the wood and a post. The saw is fixed on the top. Figure 74 shows an analogue scene where a sawyer makes a rip cut with a large saw. On the top, a man is seated on a three legged-stool sawing with one hand while his other hand touches the wood.398 Other depictions come from the tomb of Apuki and Nebamun (Fig. 72),399 as well as that of Neferhotep (Fig. 75).

Unfortunately, we have no evidence from a scene showing how precisely this technique is done. The only discussion that I am aware of is the scene from the tomb of Iteti/Shedu at Deshasha, mentioned by Gale et al., but even this depiction is not certainly one of wood drying (Figs. 79-80). According to Gale et al., the planks of wood are p d ― n outside walls of a p n ‘ workshop or stacked in a wigwam fashion.‖408 Gale et al. interpret this scene as showing the process of cleaving the wood, and the authors add the following when talking about seasoning wood: ― traditional process of stacking boards horizontally and placing spacers between them is also illustrated in the Sixth Dynasty tomb chapel of Iteti.‖409 This scene, as well as its inscription, are problematic, and are the cause of controversy and divergence in interpretation among scholars. Kan d n ― n manufacturing staffs using the necessary equipment for

III.5 Seasoning/Drying the Wood Seasoning is considered one of the most essential steps in getting usable wood. The main purpose of this process is to reduce the moisture content of the wood. It is important to reach a specific degree of dryness.400 Egyptian craftsmen were aware of this and even though they did not use the advanced kiln-drying used today, 394

William Matthew Flinders Petrie and F. LI. Griffith. Deshasheh, 1897. The Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoirs 15. London and Boston: The Offices of the Egypt Exploration Fund, 1898. 10, pl. XXI. 395 F x p f n n b‘ n , D n n, Die Handwerker,115-116. 396 Blackman, The Rock Tombs of Meir V, 28. 397 British Museum. A General Introductory Guide to the Egyptian Collections in the British Museum, 212-213. 398 Philippe Virey L b d ,P f d b L XVIIIe Dynastie. Mémoires Publiés par les Membres de la Mission Archéologique Française au Caire 5, fasc.1. Paris: Ernest Leroux, 1889. 53-56 especially 54, pl. XIII. 399 Norman de Garis Davies. The Tomb of Two Sculptors at Thebes. Metropolitan Museum of Art Egyptian Expedition. Robb de Peyster Tytus Memorial Series Vol. IV. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1925. 59-60, pl. XI. 400 Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 48 D n p n ― v p ‖

401

Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 14; Gale et al., ―W d,‖ 355; H d , Understanding Wood,147-156 especially 148; The Ultimate Guide: Woodworking, 23-24. 402 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 295. 403 http://www.loghomesva.com/kiln_drying.html 404 The Ultimate Guide: Woodworking, 23-24. 405 G , ―W d,‖ 355 406 According to Hoadley ― [n d ] n thod for lumber is to arrange boards in regular layers, or courses, separated by n p, ‖ H d , Understanding Wood, 152. 407 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 295 ―Upper–Egypt is a natural dry-kiln, and when exposed to the hot dry air for a few months green lumber would become almost bone dry.” 408 G ,―W d,‖ 355; Petrie and Griffith, Deshasheh, 10, pl. XXI. 409 Gale et al.,―W d,‖ 355.

23

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom the task with a row of completed staffs in the background ‖410 Kanawati reconstructs the missing verb in the sentence surmounting the scene as srwD which he translates as ―straightening.‖ I think that Kanawati‘ suggestion of the verb makes sense and fits well in the space, but I find it difficult to translate the verb as ― n‖ p as the main entry of the word means ―to prosper, flourish, strengthen, remain.‖ According to Petrie, the device ―may have been to compress and harden the points of the stakes, or to trim n p ‖411 Klebs states that ―the illustrations show the splitting of wood for making arrows.‖412 Hassan also discusses the same scene and translates the sentence as ―Apparat der Südlichen S n ?‖413 Taking all these translations into account, I prefer to translate the sentence as srwD imt-rA414 nt S rsy 415 ― n n the staff (s) of the southern lake.‖ The inscription to the right of the scene reads as nDr aA ― p n n d .‖416 The other, to the left side, is similar: nDr xt ― p n n d.‖ A detailed discussion of similar scenes will follow shortly, when we turn to wood bending, but for this specific scene, and based on the absence of any word meaning to dry or to season, as well as the fact that Egyptians usually depict the finished objects on the top of or near the action being performed, I am convinced that we do not have enough evidence to say that these nine planks or staffs illustrate the seasoning technique. I consider them the depiction of finished staffs.

The best illustration of these tools comes from the tomb of Rekhmire at Thebes (Figs. 73-74). A seated craftsman is using a straightedge to test a board, most probably for the chest depicted at the top right (Fig. 74). Near him, there is an adze, as well as a try square and another mitrecutting aid.418 The most important depiction for our purpose comes from the same tomb, in which two craftsmen are occupied with the finishing of chair legs and the drilling of a chair. Between the two, two adzes are shown (one of them is placed on a block) and a try square (Fig. 73). It seems that they are checking the accuracy of the chair, underscoring that measurement tools were essential to the carpentry process despite the small number of depictions.419 III.7 Wood Formation and Shaping After sawing and seasoning the wood, the next stage is to think about the formation of the piece and how it should look. This step includes reshaping, deciding which parts will be bent, preparing legs according to the desired form (rectangular, animal, cylindrical), making stretchers in different shapes (rectangular or cylindrical), making curved seats, carving some small wooden pieces of the legs (duck heads, lion or bull legs) or some other decorative elements (such as djed pillar, tyet Knot, ankh and was symbols), or carving some pieces in the form of different gods and goddesses (such as Bes and Taweret figures). Usually in this step the adzes, chisels, and mallets are the tools used. We can also see a craftsman using his adze to roughly shape a piece of wood placed either on the floor or on a block of stone. 420 We also see another person who is using the adze to plane and smooth the wood, alongside a third holding an adze to work on a ankh finished element. After assembling the piece, such as the shrine in the Rekhmire tomb, two craftsmen are depicted, one holding an adze, the other a chisel and a mallet (Fig. 73).

Even though we do not have detailed evidence or inscriptions for the process, there is no doubt that Egyptian carpenters were familiar with it. The actual preserved pieces of furniture reflect the work of a woodworker who understands exactly ― structure of the material he deals with, who is aware of defects of the wood, who knows what is the incorrect seasoning and how [to] differentiate between properly and poorly dried wood.‖417 Otherwise, these pieces would not exist today.

III.8 Bending, Straightening and Shaping the Wood421

III.6 Measuring

Wood bending is one of the oldest techniques adopted by Egyptian carpenters and it is a critical component of the manufacturing process of furniture, boats, arrows, implements and other objects. The examples that we can date back to the Old and Middle Kingdoms are the subject of much controversy among scholars. As far as I know, there is no depiction from the New Kingdom. However, the existence of this technique (xnd)422 indicates that carpenters were well aware of how to produce curved pieces of wood, how to select the wood to be bent, and how to reach the desired shape, whether by artificial or natural means. Curved pieces of wood could

410

Naguib Kanawati and A. McFarlane. Deshasha: The Tombs of Inti, Shedu and Others. The Australian Centre for Egyptology Reports 5. Sydney: The Australian Centre for Egyptology, 1993. 52-53, pl. 49. For the meaning of srwD, see WB IV, 194; Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 1172-1173. 411 Petrie and Griffith, Deshasheh, 10. 412 Cited in , Woodworking, 48. 413 Ali Hassan. Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten bis zum Ende des Neuen Reiches. Münchner Ä p S d n H f 33 München: Deutscher Kunstverlag, 1976. 28-29. 414 For imt-r3 ―S b,‖ Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich, 237; see also Karl-J S f d ―Z D n d B z n n u. ä ‖ GM 23 (1977): 65-70. Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 1279. As points out by K n ― S nL p b b f F n, d n , nd n S d ‘ f j d n,‖ Kanawati and McFarlane, Deshasha, 53. 416 Among the suggestion for this part is nDr aA. s ―B b n T ‖= ― p n n d ‖ n nv n n because we need a verb to begin the other sentence of imt-rA. See Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, 28 . 417 For more information about drying wood see Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 147-156 especially 147. 415

418

John Ruffle. Heritage of the Pharaohs: An Introduction to Egyptian Archaeology. Oxford: Phaidon, 1977. 166-168, especially 167. 419 Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire, 2 vols, 51, pls. LII, LV. 420 Norman de Garis Davies and Nina de Garis. The Tombs of Two Officials of Tuthmosis the Fourth (Nos. 75 and 90). The Theban Tombs Series III. London: Egypt Exploration Society, 1923. Pl. VIII. 421 For a modern discussion of bending wood, see Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 177-179. 422 WB III, 312 (15).

24

Woodworking Processes and Techniques be naturally grown, cut to shape or steamed and bent. The duration of the operation itself is crucial as a long time bending can cause breakage of the wood. According to Killen and other scholars, some kinds of wood, such as Ash and Elm, are easier to bend artificially but the wood should be unseasoned.423

the other end was probably bound in the forked rod. A second craftsman sitting on the ground then pushed a long lever under the bent part of the stick, in order to increase the pressure.‖430 The inscription accompanying the scene reads wAH431 mnx iw mdw pw wrH.i nt(y) im.f. Scholars give several translations of this sentence, such as Montet is ―pèse a fond sur cette branche, elle est pleine de noeuds.‖432 Fischer on the other hand translates ―p well! It is an oiled staff that is in it.‖433 Hassan proposes similarly, ―Drucke tüchtig, dieser Stock ist eingefettet, der darin (d.h, eingespannt) ist.‖434 I would translate it as ―put down properly. This staff, I am anointing that which is in it.‖435 A similar depiction exists in the mastaba of Mereruka, but it is damaged (Fig. 82). The same device is used but the seated person at the top is barely seen, while the other kneeling one is visible. The most interesting depiction is of the third kneeling carpenter who is holding a tool in one hand and a rod in the other. He seems to be stripping some parts of it. The scene is not accompanied by inscriptions. Another example comes from the tomb of Serfka at Sheikh Said (Fig. 85).436 The first person seems to be holding the staff over the fire (or maybe boiling water) to steam it. The inscription at the top reads (p)si 437 / (f)si438 mdw tp439 ―steaming the top/tip of the staff.‖ I think we hav ― ” ―f” missing before the verb and both of them make equal sense. According to Verhoeven, it is psi, which is more likely. Verhoeven formulates: ―D S b p z d pf n.‖440 The second part could be read as iat441 mdw ― pp n the bark of the staff ‖ iat is the infinitive of the verb iai which originally meant ― clean, purify, wash ‖ Montet translates the second part as ―écorcer une branche.‖442 The last part of the inscription on the left reads xnd mdw ―p n ff ‖ The original entry for the verb xnd ― p, p p , d‖ b xnd n v nn f ― b nd, v ‖ ― weave, plait.‖443 Hassan translates ―K ümmen der Stäbe,‖444 Montet on the other hand

Scholars are divided on questions of which method of bending pieces—such as elbow424 and knee braces425— are used in any given example, and indeed it is sometimes impossible to say for sure.426 I believe that they are more often naturally grown in this shape, 427 or cut to shape using chisels and adzes, and taking into consideration that without modern technology, steam only penetrates about ¼ inch into the wood depending on type, it is unlikely that this was implemented for thicker, rounder pieces. Furthermore, knee and elbow braces are not curved in shape, but rather have 90° angles, which are easier to shape than to steam and bend. Bending thin pieces artificially is easier and also can be done successfully without failure or breakage. 428 This applies also to the curved seat rails existing in some folding stools, as well as the sides and cross rails of some lattice stools which are most likely cut to shape. It is easier to confirm that they are cut to shape using adzes, or naturally grown in this form, judging by their thickness, which varies between 0,4-2,6 cm.429 As for the method of artificially bending and straightening, it is informative to look at some depictions as well as lexicographical discussions. From the Old Kingdom, what is often called the bending technique of wood is depicted in the tombs of Ti, Mereruka, Ptahshepses at Abusir (Dynasty V), Serfka at Sheikh Said (Dynasty V) and the tomb of Shepsi-U-Min/ Kheni in the cemetery of Akhmim/EL Hawawish (Dynasty VI). The tomb of Ti contains the best illustration of the device used in the process of bending (Fig. 81). describes the technique: ―Diagonally across a low verticale pole, driven firmly into the ground, a wooden rod with a forked end was placed. Both parts of the fork were joined by a rope. Under this binding a piece of wood was inserted, the end of which the craftsmen wished to bend. The other end was forced down under the weight of a man. After the lowest possible position had been reached,

430

, Woodworking, 48. Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 303. 432 Montet mentioned a noun hint n ― n ‖ b I d d n f nd n the WB (Montet, L d P , 315). 433 H n G F ―N nS nd S v n n n E p ‖ Metropolitan Museum Journal 13 (1978): 5-32, especially 15. 434 Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, 25 . 435 I take wrH.i as circumstantial sDm.f form, followed by nt(y) as a v p n n ―y‖ itted. Then the prepositional phrase comes. 436 Norman de Garis Davies. The Rock Tombs of Sheikh Saïd. Archaeological Survey of Egypt 10th Memoir. London: Egypt Exploration Fund, 1901. 13, pl. IV. 437 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 475; see also Ursula Verhoeven. Grillen, Kochen, Backen im Alltag und im Ritual Altägyptens: ein Lexikographischer Beitrag. Rites Égyptiens 4. Bruxelles: Fondation Égyptologique Reine Elisabeth, 1984. 137. 438 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 489. 439 The problem is the way of writing tp which gives an odd meaning to n n f n d ―f ;‖ see WB V, 263 ―Sp z ‖ 440 Verhoeven, Grillen, Kochen, Backen,137. 441 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 37, 575. 442 Montet, Les Scènes de la Vie P , 313. 443 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich II, 1913. 444 Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, 27. 431

423

Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 8; Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 178. 424 Between the back of the seat and the seat rails. See Figure 45 for the structure of the New Kingdom chairs. 425 Between the frame of the seat and the legs to strengthen the joints (see fig. 45). 426 dn B ―S f b pp b n th, but, since quite a good many of such pieces were used, it is possible that the naturally curved pieces available were supplemented by pieces of d n n p ‖B , Furniture in the Ancient World, 303. 427 But this does not deny the possibility that artificial ways could be used for very thin pieces, though we do not have any evidence. 428 Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 177. 429 Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools. This variation on the thickness was taking from Eaton-Krauss measurements of Tutankhamun collection.

25

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom ―conformer des cannes ‖445 Based on the scene, I prefer to go with the original meaning of the word which is to tread or to press, especially because it is n‘ pressing while sitting on top of the device that causes the work to be done, whether it is bending or straightening.

Another reason that led me to select this meaning of xnd is the inscription accompanying the aforementioned scene of Ti in which the verb used is wAH, which also has the n n f ― d n, d n‖ A similar scene is depicted on the tomb of Shepsi-pu-Min called Kheni (Fig. 83). Three men are shown: two of them are using the device previously mentioned. The third one to the left is pushing with his feet on the machine in order to make the final adjustment. According to Kanawati, the scene illustrates the making of staffs judging by the sign which looks like mdw to the left of the third person as well as ― n b nd f bj ‖H n p n ― n d which is pressed.‖456 I think K n ‘ n is plausible. The caption above the device reads mAA m457 xt wAH ― d ch is placed down ‖ It is interesting that the verb used here is the same as at Ti which is wAH, to emphasize the action of bearing down on the wood with the pressure of the seated person.

Another scene from the tomb of Ptahshepses has been discussed by Verner (Fig. 84).446 This scene consists of several parts: the left one shows two men holding long staffs. The left one seems to be holding it, but the position of the right one gives the impression as if he were rubbing the staff, not just holding it. This scene is in such a bad state of preservation which is why it is not clear if the two persons on the left of the standing men are related to the same scenario. It is unclear whether the two carpenters who are facing each other are working on the same staffs that will be held in the next step or whether this scene is rather connected with the top bed depicted. They appear to be using adzes to strip the bark of the wooden staff; then it will be smoothed and rubbed and finally the device will be used. If they are working on the staffs, this step is similar to that of Mereruka. Moreover, to the top right of the device is a seated carpenter adzing a stick. I think that what he is doing constitutes a part of our process. Verner translates the top inscription iai mdw pw ―D p !‖447 Montet 448 translates ―Écorce cette branche ‖ Hassan translates ―W d n S b ‖449 I suggest the following translation: ― p b f ff ‖ 450 The inscription on the top of the device is also translated in d ff n b V n d ―P n f stick by the man at the vice (?)‖451 Montet reads ― nf n nn p d d b n ‖ 452 Hassan, on the other hand, translates ―K ümmen des Stabes durch den Stabbearbeiter‖ (―Stab-Bieger?‖).453 I would prefer to go with the original meaning of the verb xnd and translate xnd mdw in smiti454 as ― d n staffs by the b nd f b n ‖ The word smiti which n ― p n b nd b n (p f n ) /the b nd ‖ d n v n itself.455 According to the Wörterbuch and Hannig, smiti is associated with the person who is performing the bending job and it does not designate the device itself. Of course, this does not deny the possibility that the device could also be used to bend the wood or the staffs. I see no contradiction in using the device for both actions, depending on the method of placing the stick itself.

From the Middle Kingdom, we have three examples from Beni Hasan: the first is from the tomb of Amenemhat. In this scene, two carpenters are bending a stick of wood artificially by steaming and bending. The one on the left holds the wood to be manipulated over a vessel containing hot water, so that the steam softens the lignins.458 The other one on the right is making hoops out of straight sticks. It seems that they are making bows. The scene is not accompanied by any inscription (Fig. 71). A similar example comes from the tomb of Khety. Two steps are illustrated: the straightening machine and making hoops (Fig. 87).459 A scene from the tomb of Baket III at Beni Hassan illustrates four different phases460 (Fig. 86). The first to the left shows a person holding a wooden stick, and it seems that he is holding a tool in his hand, but it is not clear.461 The second seated person places a stick on the top of a bowl of hot water as if he is steaming. The caption reads pst xt ― n d ‖462 The third one is bending sticks into hoops. The two last persons are using the same device. Above the third person is written 456

Naguib Kanawati. The Rock Tombs of El-Hawawish: The Cemetery of Akhmim. Vol II. Sydney, N.S.W., Australia: Macquarie Ancient History Association, 1981. 23, fig. 19. 457 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 332-333. 458 Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, 8. 459 Percy E. Newberry. Beni Hasan. Vol. II. Archaeological Survey of Egypt Memoir 2. L nd n: K n P , T n , T übn C , 894 P XIII. The main meaning of the verb aqA ― ‖ As stated by F ― n n f M dd K n d f same activity: smiti, which has plausibly been explained as a causative based on mity nn ‗ ;‘ nd aqA, which is generally n n‗ ;‘‖ F , ―N nS nd S v n n n E p ,‖ 5 460 Newberry, Beni Hasan II, pl. VII. 461 The capti n n p n ―stp (?) xt‖ 462 Verhoev n n ―H z dä pf n‖ (Verhoeven, Grillen, Kochen, Backen, 138); Drenkhahn transliterates xt xt “H z z n‖ which is difficult to accept as mentioned by Verhoeven because we need a verb and xt is not (Drenkhahn, Die Handwerker,113). That is why pst is the best verb especially that it will be the same as in Serfka scene. See also WB III, 217.

445

Montet, L d P , 313. Miroslav Verner. The Excavations of the Czechoslovak Institute of Egyptology at Abusir -I: The Mastaba of Ptahshepses: Reliefs I/1. Prague: Charles University, 1977. 59-61, pl. 28. 447 Verner, The Mastaba of Ptahshepses, 59. 448 Montet, L d P , 313. 449 Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, 22. 450 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 37 iat mdw pw ―d nS bW n‖ ( n nd n) 451 Verner, The Mastaba of Ptahshepses, 60. 452 Montet, L d P , 314. 453 Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, 28. 454 For the whole sentence, see Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 962. 455 Montet, L d P , 311-315; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 762; Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 25 ― b nd (B f) ‖ 446

26

Woodworking Processes and Techniques aqA xt 463 ―To straighten (?) d ‖ Hassan translates the sentence aqA xt ―B n d H z ‖ nd aqA ―B n.‖464 Judging from the scene, the third person is bending the wood which seems to be heated to become flexible before being bent. The last two persons are not bending, but this same activity of manipulating sticks or rods is depicted. It is very strange to use xnd while straightening and aqA while making hoops. It is also odd that both actions are accompanied by aqA verb.465 The use of xt rather than mdw or imt-rA n ― ff ,‖ previously used, demonstrates that the same device was implemented for making and straightening staffs or any wooden pieces that have the same shape.

The examples that survive clearly demonstrate how thoroughly Egyptian carpenters understood what type of joint should be used in each specific part of a chair or stool. Furthermore, the use of wedges proves that these craftsmen wasted nothing. If we look at a chair that is not painted, we find that the wedges that hold the joints secure are not cut in the same dimensions, but they seem to be taken from what is left over from the wood. From my study of the objects, these are the types of joints that I was able to see in specific chairs and stools:

III.9 Drilling the Wood

III.10.a Mortise and Tenon

After shaping the piece, craftsmen need to make mortises for the joints, or bore holes for dowels, or other rectangular or square cavities, depending on the type of joints. Mortise chisels and mallets are the main tools used. Awls are also used to pierce small holes, maybe for pins. Bow drills could be used, but are mainly associated with circular perforations such as holes for the covering. After executing the joints, assembling pieces is the next step. Based on the scenes, making holes for receiving the webbing was done after assembling the pieces (Fig. 73).

Mortise and Tenon is still the most-used joint in chairs and stools today. It consists of two basic components: the tenon, which is the narrow part inserted into the other element, the mortise (Fig. 88). According to modern scholars, as a general rule, the tenon should have one third of the thickness of the wood, so that the tenon and the two sides of the mortise are equally strong. 468 It is also important not to cut too much from the tenon as this will lead to a weak, sloppy and loose-fitting joint. Tenons may or may not have shoulders. Shoulders are the end surfaces to which a wedge can be added to tighten the joint.469

interrelationship of pieces of wood and especially on how they are joined together.‖467

III. 10 Joints

One of the problems in dealing with joints is the terminology given to each type by scholars. There is no consistency: the same joint is given different designations: stub=blind=stopped; shoulders=haunched; butt=edge, to name a few. Some other common terms are used interchangeably, such as pegs/dowels, nails/tacks. In my description, I will use ―pin‖ or ―peg‖ for the small wooden cylinders that are used to fasten the joints or other parts. I ―n ‖ n n d n metal fasteners. I will use ―d ‖ n f j n round tenons. There are many sub-types of the mortise and tenon joint:

Close study of the pieces in the Cairo Museum has given me the opportunity to categorize the types of joints. It is admittedly very difficult to know the type of joint used, especially if the piece is painted, gilded over, covered with gesso or if it is in excellent state of preservation, such as Tutankhamun and Sitamun. The fragments or pieces in bad states of preservation allow me to understand the method of construction, especially the joints. Joints fulfill a functional role. If we think about a gilded piece such as the Sitamun chair, the first thing that will draw our attention is the finishing and iconography of the piece. However, we must bear in mind that the existence of this piece depends on its joints and their functional role—how strong they are, how they hold the piece together—especially considering that most of the pieces in our corpus are made of native timber known for its inferior quality.466



Stub Mortise and Tenon

This type is one of the most-used types of joints, not only in chairs and stools, but in other pieces of furniture, such as tables and beds, even today. It is a strong joint, which looks better than the through mortise and tenon, and it is also more difficult to execute (Fig. 89).470 This type is sometimes called ―stopped‖ or ―blind‖ because the tenon does not fully go through the leg and is invisible to the eye. Wooden pins are sometimes used to strengthen the joint.

―It is the rule rather than the exception that the weakest point in any wooden construction is at a joint. The successful woodworker focuses not just on each piece of wood but on the

467

Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 181. Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 183-186. 469 Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 183-186. See also Ernest Joyce and Alan Peters. The Technique of Furniture Making. London: Batsford, 1987. 160-166; Bernard E. Jones. The Practical Woodworker. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press, 2000. 129-139. 470 Jackson and Day, Good Wood Joints, 69; Joyce and Peters, The Technique of Furniture Making, 162-163.

463

468

For aqA xt ―d H z d n, d b n,‖ see Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich I, 577-578; WB I, 233 (10-11). 464 Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, 30. 465 The strange thing is why they did not use the verb xnd to mean ―b nd n ‖ nd n b n n? 466 Albert Jackson and David Day. Good Wood Joints. London: Harper Collins, 1995. 8.

27

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom Stretchers are joined to the inside surfaces of each leg by means of stub mortise and tenon. It is also used to join the side rails and the cross rails of a seat, provided there is adequate thickness of the seat rails. Furthermore, it is sometimes used in the back panels of chairs, and then secured by wooden pins through the joint face.471 

wood in the stub mortise and tenon is more difficult than sawing on the edge of a chair. 

This type is similar to the normal mortise and tenon except that the tenon has only one shoulder. It is called barefaced because material is only removed from one side (Fig. 93).477 It can be pinned or not. It is mostly used to connect the stretchers of chairs and stools to the legs. It is also used to connect the diagonal and vertical struts between the stretchers and the cross and side rails of stools and chairs. Sometimes, each joint is strengthened at its top by a wooden pin. This same joint is sometimes used in the paneling of seat backs.

Through Mortise and Tenon

This joint is similar to the stub mortise and tenon except that the mortise is cut entirely through the piece so that the tenon is clearly visible on the opposite side (Fig. 90).472 It is used to attach the legs of the stool and chair to the seat rails, and usually wedges are inserted on some sides to make the joint fit properly. It is possible to glue the wedges in place to ensure the stability of the joint. This type is also used in some of the folding stools: in JE 29275, the beak of the duck forms the tenon that is inserted through the floor runner/foot-bar.473 



Through Mortise and Tenon with Shoulders

This type d ― n d.‖478 It is the most complicated of all the joints. I was able to identify this joint on one chair (JE 43164),479 especially on its left back leg, which is in a very bad condition. Basically, it is similar to the normal through tenon; the only difference is that it has a shoulder which is cut on the upper part of the tenon (Fig. 94). According to modern scholars, this shoulder should not occupy more than one third of the whole tenon (the rest of the tenon occupies two thirds).480 This part slides in its matched space in the mortise and another tenon, also with a shoulder (reversed in position), fits over it. The leg with the completed joint reveals the tenons as two squares with a difference in height (Fig. 95).

Through Mortise and Loose Tongue

This type is similar to the through mortise and tenon joint except that the two parts of a stool are connected with a third piece made to fit into the slot, like the Sennedjem folding stool (JE 27288).474 In this case, the leg is attached to the floor runner by through mortise and loose tongue. This is the only example that I was able to see because the piece was loose and in a bad state of preservation which let me differentiate between the normal through mortise and tenon and the through mortise and loose tongue. If this piece were in an excellent state of preservation, it would have been indistinguishable from through mortise and tenon. Its existence suggests the high probability that in other folding stools the same joint was adopted, but good condition hides the joint (Fig. 91). 

Pinned Barefaced Mortise and Tenon

III.10.b Mortise and Dowels481 ―Dowelling is just one of the methods used to reinforce butt joints. However, since a wellmade dowel joint rivals the mortise and tenon in strength and versatility, it is legitimately considered to be a separate category of joint, and one which is relatively easy to make.‖482

Double Open Mortise and Tenon

This is the type of joint in which we have two tenons and mortises (Fig. 92). I have seen it in the chair of Tutankhamun (JE 62029) along with other examples in our corpus. In this case, the joint is used to fit a rail in a vertical position, such as for legs. This joint is sometimes d ― n b d j n ‖475 ― nd tenon.‖ As the first name suggests, it is exclusively used for corners.476 It is very similar in shape to the through mortise and tenon, but it is not as strong. However, it is easier to make due to the two exposed sides which facilitate waste removal. Cutting into the middle of the

This is a category of joint in which the dowel fits in the hole that corresponds to it in the edge of the seat. It has the same basic construction as the mortise and tenon, but the dowel has a cylindrical shape rather than a square one. In this case, the dowels are the tenons and the holes form the mortises (Fig. 96).483 It is mainly used to connect the top of the legs to the seat rails, like the Sennedjem stool (JE 27255a).484 In this case, the bad state of preservation allowed me to closely examine the piece.

471

477

472

478

G ,―W d,‖ 362-363. Jackson and Day, Good Wood Joints, 64-65. 473 See chapter II, 49 ( IX. 12). In royal examples such as Tutankhamun ― b n p v b n n f nd f f b v nd f n nd b f ‖, see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 107. 474 See chapter II, 38-39 (VII. 4). 475 Jackson and Day, Good Wood Joints, 36-37; Joyce and Peters, The Technique of Furniture Making, 159. 476 Corbett, The Illustrated Professional Woodworker, 113.

Corbett, The Illustrated Professional Woodworker, 112. Jackson and Day, Good Wood Joints, 70. 479 See chapter II, 46 (IX. 3). 480 Jackson and Day, Good Wood Joints, 70; Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 183-186. 481 G ,―W d,‖ 360; Joyce and Peters, The Technique of Furniture Making, 167-169. 482 Jackson and Day, Good Wood Joints, 29-34 especially 29. 483 Hoadley, Understanding Wood, 187-188. 484 See chapter II, 39 (VII. 5) .

28

Woodworking Processes and Techniques f n f n n n n b d ‖ 490 From Deir El-Gebrawi, another scene shows men working on chests (Fig. 60, upper register). The caption above them reads Hwi m snt iTnt,491 and the other Hwi m snt hn.492 K n n b f ― n polishing stones ‖493 The following register contains a scene labeled snaa m ATt494 ―p n b d ‖ It seems that Kanawati, too, considers the two verbs as synonyms. The n b v b‘ n n n Even though the proposed suggestion for Hwi ― n ‖ is nv n n , I p f n ― ‖495 The original meaning of the ve b ― b , , ‖496 Hannig gives a translation for the whole compound Hwi m snt ― d P n b b n ‖497 It seems from the above examples that it is Hwi that is usually associated with the snt and not snaa, which means that for the craftsmen, snaa by itself is enough to reflect the idea of smoothing, but the full expression Hwi m snt is needed to express the complete activity. The word sSp is used with both verbs Hwi and snaa.498

This is the type used in the majority of stools with flared legs.485 III.10.c Butt Joints486 This type is a simple and basic joint to make. I did not see it in actual examples, but I think that it was adopted in a few cases to attach the side rails to cross rails that formed the seat frames of some stools. The reason behind my guess is that some rails are very thin, making it difficult to bore a hole for the mortise or to make the tenon (Fig. 97). III. 11 Smoothing the Wood We have discussed tools used for smoothing in the first section, so we will proceed with an overview of the words used for this activity. Montet discusses the use of two verbs Hwi487 and snaa,488 both of which are associated with polishing. In his view, they are interchangeable. Montet translates Hwi ―f ,‖ adding that in three texts out of four it is associated with the tool snt, which according to him is a problematic word.489 In his discussion of a scene from the mastaba of Iymery (G.6020), Weeks translates Hwi ― nd n ‖ (Fig. 69, upper register). In this scene, two men are portrayed; the n n p n b d ― p piece of sandstone,‖ n f ―p b scraping some sandlike abrasive onto the bed from a stone or from a container. Small granules may be seen

III. 12 Finishing Techniques ―W d n b f n d n many ways, the main decision being whether to reveal and enhance the wood itself or to n p n ‖499 

G f ― n p p d f p d d n x d ‖500 The application of gesso was employed often in the Eighteenth Dynasty

485

This same joint is also used in one of the footstools of Tutankhamun (JE 62052), see G , ―W d,‖ 36 See also Eaton-krauss d n f f JE 62 54 ― n j n d nd n n j n d ‖ F d d description of Tutankhamun‘ footstool, see Eaton-krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools,141. Even though I closely studied the footstools of Tutankhamun I have to concede that it is hard to specify the type of joint used for each piece because of the gilding, veneering, decoration and the good preservation of the pieces. But based on what I have seen and taking into consideration that footstools are in some way similar to boxes in shape (rectangular), I think that these are the types used for footstools: Dowelled edge joint, butt joint and then using pins, normal stub mortise and tenon, or dovetail, which are adopted mostly for boxes. 486 For information about butt joints, see Jackson and Day, Good Wood Joints, 17-24. 487 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 780-781 (Schlagen, Prügeln); WB III, 46. 488 Montet, L d P , 307; Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich II, 2257; Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 1156. For the use of snaa with statues. See Marianne EatonKrauss. The Representations of Statuary in Private Tombs of the Old Kingdom. Ägyptologische Abhandlungen 39. Wiesbaden: O. Harrassowitz, 1984. 125, pl. IV. 489 dn M n ―Il est possible que le même mot, snt ,désigne une pierre quand il est déterminé par

Gesso

490

Kent R. Weeks and Susan H. Weeks. Mastabas of Cemetery G 6000: Including G 6010 (Neferbauptah); G 6020 (Iymery); G 6030 (Ity); G 6040 (Shepseskafankh). Giza Mastabas Vol. 5. Boston: Dept. of Ancient Egyptian, Nubian, and Near Eastern Art, Museum of Fine Arts, 1994. 33, fig. 30; Karl Richard Lepsius. Denkmäler aus Ägypten und Äthiopien. Zweite Abteilung. Vol. III & IV (Pl. I-CLIII). Genève: Éditions de Belles-Lettres, 1972. Bl. 49 491 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 129. 492 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 525-526. 493 Kanawati and Alexakis, Deir El-Gebrawi II, 46-47, pl. 72. 494 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 17. 495 I prefer to translate Hwi ―b , ‖ n― ,‖ has the same basic meaning in this context, but focuses instead slightly n n n ―S nd n ‖ p b b p db I n ― ‖ v nb b meaning of Hwi in other contexts. Another example (fig. 66) comes from Ti mastaba Hwi hn m snt i sSp nw pr n Dt ― n p n stones on a chest, O! furniture burnishers/polishers of the house of n ‖ Wild, Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule III, pl. CXLVI (B). For sSp ―Möb p ,‖ H nn , Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 1235. 496 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 547. 497 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Altes Reich, 1155. 498 For more examples, see Montet, L d P , 305307. 499 The Ultimate Guide: Woodworking, 158. 500 n, H , nd S , ―S n ,‖ 22 See also Eaton-Krauss for a dis n b ― p n n ‖ in which she doubts the idea of relating the white color with funerary aspect of the objects (or at least suggests that it does not work with all the pieces of Tutankhamun). She dd ―p n v n v b n n d d p n n ‖ E n-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 73-74.

et, quand il est suivi des

trois , p d b n v p ‖ I M n that both actions are similar, but in some cases it is not clear what craftsmen are holding in their hands: powder or semicircular polishing stones. In the Ti mastaba, it seems to me that the craftsman on the right is using a semispherical stone and not powder even though we have the snt word written in the caption with the powder determinative (Fig. 66), see Montet, L d P , 307; Wild, Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule III, pl. CLXXIV).

29

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom and later, as a protective treatment and covering, and preparation for the painting surface on objects made of wood.501 Gesso is primarily used in our collection to disguise the poor quality of wood. As stated by Killen, it was prohibitively time-consuming and expensive to create large polished wooden surfaces at this time. 502 Therefore, white gesso was used to cover the surface of some stools and chairs. Another method was to prepare a ground, that is a smooth surface for painting,503 or raised reliefs as mentioned for the pedestals for chairs. Gesso also served as a foundation layer for gilding, mainly in elaborate and p d p S n‘ chair (Figs. 125-126). 

have a few cases of veneering in non-royal pieces or in our corpus. The main purpose of this chapter has been to give an overview of the different steps as well as the tools needed to build a chair or stool. A brief introduction was also given in a few cases to the scholarly discussions surrounding various techniques, tools and their uses. As for our discussion of the types of wood used in Egyptian furniture, absolute certainty of identification is difficult but visual examination leads us to believe that the majority of the pieces preserved in the Cairo Museum were made of native timber. It is also important to emphasize that few institutions have made identifications, namely the pieces analyzed by Fischer and Greiss, and I hope further study will be undertaken in the future. In our overview of the types of joints used in furniture construction, it became clear that the mortise and tenon is the main type used, including its sub-categories. These joint categories will be useful for us in our examinations of individual objects. In the next chapter, I am planning to make a description of the collection of chairs and stools, as well as other pieces or fragments that may relate to them. This chapter will also include an analysis of the different elements that constitute a chair or stool (the minimum number of parts for a specific object). In the case of objects in very good states of preservation, an analysis of how many elements as we can know for sure is included. This will be accompanied with a discussion of the iconography, inscriptions if present, and the available information for each object. The study of the objects will be followed by the two-dimensional scenes in the third chapter.

Gilding504

Another common technique used by Egyptian craftsmen and mainly associated with royal pieces is the covering of furniture with sheets of gold (either thin or thick). It consists of applying a very thin sheet or leaf of gold upon the thin wet layer of gesso. The leaf is normally bonded to the gesso with animal glue. Sheets of gold that were thicker were fastened to the wood surface with small gold pins. If the wood to be dressed was not flat, a tool would be used to shape the gold accordingly.505 

Painting

Another technique to mask construction flaws was painting. Furniture was painted simple monochrome (mostly white, and rarely yellow or red)506 or polychrome depending on the affluence of the owner. In the more elegant pieces, several colors are applied as can be seen with the stools from Sennedjem family which are polychrome. The legs were sometimes painted black to imitate ebony. Painting with black and white is well documented on some elbow braces to simulate wood and ivory marquetry.507 

Veneering

Veneering techniques were also used to camouflage poor wood quality. Veneering with both ivory and ebony is best documented in the Tutankhamun collection, but we

501

Aston, H , nd S , ―S n ,‖ 22 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 38. 503 Svarth, Egyptisk møbelkunst Fra Faraotiden, 135. 504 For information about gold leaf, see Lucas, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, 231-232; Scheel, Egyptian Metalworking and Tools, 32-33, fig. 33 showing tools for beating gold leaf, as well as a good depiction of the production of gold leaf from the tomb of Rekhmire. For details about gold in general, its mines and other issues: see Scheel, Egyptian Metalworking and Tools,11-14;O d n, ―M ,‖ 160-166. 505 See Eaton-Krauss for a description of the cedar throne, and how the n d b b ― d np n (p b b f b nz with gilded heads, like those used decoratively on the backrest and the seat, rath n f d, S d b d ) ‖ E n-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 57-67. 506 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 307. 507 Elbow braces could be made of ebony and ivory; or imported wood and bone; or painted in black and white all these depend on the owner social and economic status. 502

30

I.1-Stool model; painted wood (fig. 112) JE 63752 (SR 2/11362) H. 6.3 cm; D. 5.8 cm; W. 6 cm Deir El-Medina: East Cemetery, tomb No. 1370 of Madja and his companion Dynasty 18, reign of Hatshepsut /Thutmose III510

Chapter II Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces and Fragments Preserved in the Cairo Museum This chapter is dedicated to the description of the chairs, stools, legs, pedestals and other fragments that may relate to them. Unfortunately, the majority of the pieces that we will deal with do not have an established date, and in most cases do not have a provenance. The Cairo Museum database is often not very helpful in providing this information. This may be because these pieces originally came to the museum with no real information and did not attract the attention of the persons making the inventory. Or they were regarded as not important because they are fragments and not seen as equal to pieces which are full of inscriptions and decoration (stelae, statues, etc). This lack of knowledge is evident in the group of legs that we will discuss briefly at the end of this chapter. All that is mentioned in the Journal d‘entrée is ―pied de meuble‖ and the height of each leg.

This model consists of seven pieces, assembled together and then painted. This makes it difficult to predict the joint type, but stub mortise and tenon were probably used to connect the stretchers and the legs, as well as dowels attaching the legs and seat. The square seat of this model is painted red to imitate leather, which is why traces of red paint cover the top of the legs, invoking the same technique used of stretching leather over the top of the legs. The legs themselves, as well as the stretchers used to attach the front and back legs, are all painted black to imitate ebony and thus create a contrast between colors which reminds us of valuable examples made of ebony and leather. The thickness of the seat varies between 11.8cm, having slight shaping. The seat is rough-hewn and reveals the grain of the wood through the red paint. The underneath of the seat is painted white. This crude piece resembles the shape of stools with flared legs, as the legs are thicker on the top, and then become narrowed toward the bottom.511 The legs are not all exactly the same, with variation especially in the front versus back legs.

I will compare pieces with no data with other known ones in order to place them in a specific context, a difficult task considering it is by chance that we find reliable information even about a piece with known provenance. Drawing on Porter and Moss, as well as the original publications (assuming that we know the provenance) has worked in a few cases. My intention here is not to describe each type of chair and stool or to discuss the social circumstances of their use, as this will be my aim in the following chapters. For now, it is important to understand that our picture is incomplete and more information will come to light in the future. Even though some crucial information is missing at present, I hope that including these pieces, some of which are unpublished or un-documented, along with their descriptions and pictures, will be helpful in arriving at a better understanding of these artifacts.

I.2- Three legged-stool; wood (fig. 113) JE 63788 (SR 2/11634) H. 38.5 cm; D. 43 cm; W. 30, 5 cm Deir El-Medina: East Cemetery, tomb No 1379 of Satnem Dynasty 18, likely reign of Hatshepsut/Thutmose III512 510

This tomb belonged to ―the aged woman Madja and her unnamed male companion,‖ see Lynn Meskell. Archaeologies of Social Life: Age, Sex, Class et Cetera in Ancient Egypt. Social Archaeology. Oxford, UK: Blackwell,1999. 193-195, especially 193. For the publication, see Bruy re and Jourdain, Rapport sur les Fouilles (1934-1935) 132, fig. 73. For the objects discovered inside the tomb as well as this dating, see PM I/2, 701; Jean-Louis Podvin. ―Composition, Positi

I will divide the pieces into collections, providing the necessary data about each one,508 and then provide a description including any known information or publication. Because of the detailed discussion in the first chapter, I will only mention the type of joint used in each piece. All the dimensions were taken by me (maximum for each) and are in centimeters.509 As mentioned in the introduction, collections I through VII are arranged in chronological order and collections VIII to XII are organized by general category.

‖ Lille: Université de Lille III, 1997. 277280; Ruth Schumann- ntelme. ―La Tombe de la ame Madja eir El- Medineh.‖ Un Siècle de Fouilles 1880 – 1980: Tokyo: Paris, 21 Mai-15 Oct. 1981. Eds. Christiane DesrochesNoblecourt and Jean Vercoutter. Cairo: École du Caire, 1981. 190-198, nos. 217-222. 511 ruy re called them: ―bouteilles renversées comme ceux de beaucoup de tabourets réels.‖ This stool model was discovered together with a bed model (JE 63750) as well as a headrest model (JE 63751) in a pit of the tomb no.1370. See Podvin, ―Composition, Position et Orientation,‖ 277-280. 512 According to Letellier, the tomb dates to the Reign of Hatshepsut and Thutmose III. For the dating of the tomb along with a description of a stool coming from it, see Bernadette Letellier.

I Collection Excavated by Bruyère at Deir El-Medina

508

These are the abbreviations used with my description of the objects: JE=Journal d‘Entrée,C.G.=Catalogue General, TR=Temporary Number, SR=Special Register (for the SR: I am usually providing a number X/Y: X stands for the department or section which will be helpful for anyone searching for this specific piece because it simply means which curator is responsible for it ; Y is the number itself of the piece. 509 Height: H.; Width: W.; Depth: D.; Length: L.; Diameter: Dia.; Maximum: Max.; Minimum: Min.

. Metz: Musées de Metz, 1978. No. 5. or the publication of this piece, see ruy re and Jourdain, Rapport sur les Fouilles de Deir El ineh (1934-1935): 48, 50-51, 170-171, fig. 25. See also PM I/2, 701; Podvin, ―Composition, Position et Orientation,‖ 310-312. For a description of a chair (Date: Hatshepsut/Thutmose III) as

31

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom

This stool consists of four pieces: a thick, solid seat and three squared-off legs attached to the seat by through mortise and tenon. The thickness of the seat varies between 7.5- 9 cm. On the underside of the seat, there are three circular pads through which each leg passes to reach the seat itself. In this case, we can be reasonably sure that the tenons have shoulders, because the square on the top of the seat is smaller than the diameter of the leg. The two front legs are splayed and the third one on the back is straight. Its flat seat as well as its shape recalls the design of tables. It is a very crude piece comparing to other three-legged stools. It has some cracks, and missing wood which maybe the result of a knot that fell out. One of the legs shows signs of insect attacks.

This stool consists of four pieces: a thick semi-cylindrical or dished seat that is flat on the front side and rounded on its back. The curve of the three splayed and rounded legs most likely originated from a branch itself and then was further cut to shape.516 The flattened feet have been described as ―spatula ends.‖517 The legs are attached to the underside of the seat by through mortise and tenon. 518 The seat has several cracks, knots, as well as missing wood, and dust covering some of its parts. It shows signs of use. II Collection from the Tomb of Amenhotep II II.1-Chair model; wood519 (fig. 116) JE 32444=C.G. 24673 (SR 4/3257) H. 22 cm; D. 7 cm; W. 11.5 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Amenhotep II Dynasty 18

I.3-High stool; wood and rush (fig. 114) JE 63786 (SR 2/11632) H. 41 cm; D. 43 cm; W. 42 cm Deir El Medina: East Cemetery, tomb No 1379 of Satnem Dynasty 18, likely reign of Hatshepsut/Thutmose III513

This small model with rounded back on top should consist of five pieces, of which only three actually exist. The seat and the back are carved together out of one rough piece. The sides protrude out by 1.5 cm, giving the impression of an armchair. The thickness of the seat is 3.5 cm. Some of the seat‘s right side is missing, as well as the two right legs. One of these missing legs is currently replaced by a metal support in order to allow the chair to stand. Legs are attached to the seat by open mortise and tenon which is very clear from the seat back. The two existing legs are not identical: the one on the back is carved in the form of a lion leg standing on a drum decorated with three lines. The other front leg has no drum lines; all that can be described as decoration are three lines on the inside of the leg. It looks to me as if the leg has been misplaced; it should be the right front one in order to allow the lines to be seen. This most likely occurred during the recent restoration which can be

This stool is almost square in shape with the legs rounded at the top, then squared off, followed by a groove, ending in a shape consisting of two triangles mirroring each other. The stool is made of twelve pieces connected together by mortise and tenon joints and wedged. One of the functional features of this type of seat is that the side and cross rails are placed at slightly different heights, creating a sturdy joint by allowing one tenon from one seat rail to pass above or below the other. More strength is achieved by employing the mortise and tenon with shoulders. The seat rails are connected to the legs by through mortise and tenon. The stretchers are attached to the legs by stub mortise and tenon. The stretchers are not identical: two of them are rectangular in shape and two are cylindrical, maybe because of restoration work done to the piece. There are also traces of modern glue around the legs and stretchers. Signs of wear indicate that the piece was used before being placed in the tomb. The twill pattern is the one adopted; giving the appearance of oblique lines (creating nine bands). The strands are first wrapped tightly around the seat, and then the inside is filled in.514

along with the objects found inside the tomb, see Bernard Bruyère and Gaston Jourdain. . ouilles de L‘I O 14. Cairo: IFAO, 1937. 95-109, especially 101 (no. 9), figs. 43-44; Stuart Tyson Smith. ―Intact Tombs of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth ynasties from Thebes and the New Kingdom urial System.‖ MDAIK 48 (1992):193-231 especially 194; PM I/2, 688-689; Meskell, Archaeologies of Social Life, 189-193; Manuelian, ’ G cat. no. 43. 516 Manuelian describes the process of making a similar stool: ―the splayed curve of the legs, which firmly anchors the stool, was achieved naturally with the use of forked branches. These were rounded with draw knives, rasps, and scrapers,‖ Manuelian, ’ G , cat. no. 43. 517 Bruyère and Jourdain, Rapport sur les Fouilles (1933-1934): 101. 518 Called ―shouldered socket joints‖ by Manuelian, ’ G Age, cat. no. 43. According to Manuelian this is the joint adopted in this type of stool, which makes sense; though it is occasionally difficult to see the shoulders of the tenon because of the pads that sometimes cover the underneath of the stool. Compare with those from the tomb of Kha, see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World,117, 119, fig. 159; Leospo, “Woodworking: urniture and Cabinetry,‖ 146, fig. 192. 519 For the publication of this chair, see Daressy, Fouilles de la Vallée des Rois(1898-1899),172, no. 24673, pl. XXXVII. The quality of the wood is good, most likely imported. It looks like cedar, as mentioned by Daressy, but no identification can be definitive without a microscopic sample.

I.4-Three-legged stool; wood (fig. 115) JE 63856 (SR 2/11635) H. 31 cm; D. 31 cm; W. 41 cm Deir El-Medina: West Cemetery, tomb No.1352 of Setau Dynasty 18515 well as other objects found inside Satnem‘s tomb, see Ziegler, -1980, 203-204. 513 or the publication of this piece along with the description of the tomb contents, see ruy re and Jourdain, Rapport sur les , 170-175, especially 171, fig. 97. 514 Manuelian, ’ G , cat. no. 43. 515 Setau was ―Servant in the place of truth.‖ ccording to ruy re and Smith, the tomb dates to the end of Dynasty 18. For the dating, title,

32

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces en argent.‖524 Although Daressy points to the presence of leather, I do not see any trace of it on this piece. It is covered by woven linen, gessoed and then painted. The top of the leg has traces of green, light and dark yellow, but based on what currently exists, it is difficult to imagine the original color because of the bad state of preservation of the piece (separation on some parts), as well as the disappearance of the color. The yellow color may have been used to imitate gilding against the green decoration. The question here is why this technique was used on the top of the leg even though part of it would have been concealed under the seat rail. This perhaps indicates royal origin. Traces of linen are seen also over the rest of the leg. To the best of my knowledge, this technique (linen/gesso/paint) is common in stools of the Sennedjem collection and on very elaborate pedestals, but it is unusual in folding stools.

clearly seen on the underneath of the right leg as well as the top of the left leg where traces of glue have darkened over time. Since the front left leg joint is not a good fit (probably due to incorrect placement), the leg is not the right length and the chair does not stand level. A few cracks exist on the chair back. This is a good example of a funerary piece, the main function of which was to be placed in the tomb. I presume that our example here comes from a boat model. These boat reproductions were found among tomb goods, left with the deceased for use in the afterlife as it was the case in daily life. Several examples exist but the prominent example comes from the Middle Kingdom tomb of Meketre. 520 We also possess those of Tutankhamun which includes elegant miniature thrones.521 Miniature boats could be equipped with chairs, beds as well as other pieces of furniture. II.2-Fragment of a leg from a folding stool (figs. 117 and 119) Wood522 and linen, gessoed and painted JE 32621 H =C.G. 24669 (SR 4/3183) H. 28.5 cm; H. of the tenon 3.8 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Amenhotep II Dynasty 18

II.3-Fragment of a leg from a folding stool (figs. 118119) Wood and linen, gessoed and painted JE 32359 =C.G. 24669525 (SR 4/3572) H. 18 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Amenhotep II Dynasty 18

This fragment constitutes the upper part of one of the four legs of a folding stool. The top of this fragment has a wooden tenon that was connected to one of the two curved seat rails. As all the legs were of the same type, the leg was rounded on the top, and then tapered slightly to the intersection with the other leg, which was secured by a bronze pivot; finally it became larger because of the ducks‘ heads. Thus, we are missing the central part with the pivot as well as the last part.523 The bottom part is broken, exposing the fibers of the wood.

This fragment forms the lower part of one leg of a folding stool with ducks‘ head. Based on the Catalogue Général number, it is most likely a second leg of the stool previously described. The part with the tenon (measuring 3.6 cm) represents the lower part that was let into one of the two foot-bars. The two eyes are carved. Around one of them are traces of a circle painted in black color. Traces of linen are seen on the head. White gesso exists around the tenon along with new wax.

This piece is unique in its technique of manufacture. In the Catalogue Général, Daressy describes this leg as ―partie supérieure d‘un autre pied, muni de cuir vert. Le cuir qui recouvrait le pliant y était fixé par de petits clous

II.4 -Pedestal for the foot of a chair; wood painted white (fig. 120) JE 32415=C.G. 24886526 (SR 4/3215) H. 9.5 cm; W. at the base 10.5 cm; W. at the top 8.7 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Amenhotep II. Dynasty 18

520

Herbert E. Winlock. Models of Daily Life in Ancient Egypt: From the Tomb of Meket-Re at Thebes. Cambridge: Published for The Metropolitan Museum of Art by Harvard University Press, 1955. Figs. 38-39; ischer, ― Chair of the Early New Kingdom,‖ 150, pls. 36-37. For a discussion of boats models as well as their function, see Steve Vinson. Egyptian Boats and Ships. Shire Egyptology 20. Princes Risborough, UK: Shire publications, 1994. 30; Angela M. J. Tooley. Egyptian Models and Scenes. Shire Egyptology 22. Princes Risborough, UK: Shire Publications, 1995. 8-12, 51-56; Dilwyn Jones. Boats. Egyptian Bookshelf. London: Published for the Trustees of the British Museum by British Museum Press, 1995. 12-13, 26, 32-33; Robert B. Partridge. ―Transport in ncient Egypt.‖ A Companion to Ancient Egypt. Ed. Alan B. Lloyd. Vol. I. Blackwell Companions to the Ancient World. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2010. 370-389, especially 371; Ana Ruiz. Daily Life in Ancient Egypt. London: Souvenir Press, 2001. 76-79, fig. of a wooden funerary bark (unnumbered page); Tooley, ―Models,‖ 424-428, especially 426-427. 521 Christiane Desroches-Noblecourt. Toutankhamon et Son Temps: Petit Palais, Paris 17 Février- juillet 1967. 2 me éd. Paris: Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1967. 184-185, no. 40. 522 Tamaris according to Daressy, Fouilles de la Vallée des Rois (18981899), 171, no. 24669, pl. XXXVII. 523 Based on Daressy reconstruction, this part forms another leg but I think it is from the same folding stool based on the same technique of manufacture. See Daressy, Fouilles de la Vallée des Rois (1898-1899), pl. XXXVII.

This simple pedestal consists of a truncated trapezoid base into which is inserted a horizontal bar that connects this one with a second pedestal. Our pedestal is covered by two layers of gesso, the exterior of which is thicker. The wooden bar has two wooden pegs that are supposed to pass through the missing part that will pass over it creating splicing. Moreover, it is evenly cut on the edges which indicates that it is not broken but made in this design. The top of the base is cylindrical (6. 2 x 6.4 cm)

524

Daressy, Fouilles de la Vallée des Rois (1898-1899), 171. Daressy, Fouilles de la Vallée des Rois (1898-1899), 171, pl. XXXVII. See also Patrizia Piacentini and Christian Orsenigo. La Valle dei Re Riscoperta : i giornali di Scavo di Victor Loret, 1898-1899 e altri inediti. Milan : Skira, Università Degli Studi di Milan, 2004. 75, no. 9. 526 Daressy, Fouilles de la Vallée des Rois (1898-1899), 217, no. 24886, pl. XLV. 525

33

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom in order to elevate and protect the chair legs that will repose on it.527

considering the function of these pedestals of supporting the leg.

III Pedestals from the Tomb of Thutmose IV

III.2- Pedestal for the foot of a chair; painted wood (fig. 122) JE 97767=C.G. 46130531 (SR 4/3332) H. 7.9 cm; W. at the base 9.5 cm; W. at the top 7.3 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Thutmose IV Dynasty 18

III.1-Pedestal for the foot of a chair (fig. 121) Wood, woven linen and gesso JE 97763 =C.G. 46129528 (SR 4/3328) H. 6 cm; W. at the base 11.3 cm; W. at the top 7 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Thutmose IV Dynasty 18

This trapezoidal pedestal is made of wood painted white on all sides and decorated with a thick black line on the edges. The square top has a circular indentation measuring 5.4 x 5.6 cm. One of the sides has a rectangular hole (2.5 in depth) in order to receive a bar (2 x 1cm) that is supposed to connect this to the following piece (JE 97766). There are a few cracks, some missing wood and black spots on the underneath as well as the top, as if it was burned. Even though this pedestal was found in the same tomb as the previous example, this one does not show the high level of craftsmanship. This pedestal rather exemplifies the common technique of applying paint directly over the local wood to conceal its bad quality.

This trapezoidal pedestal is very distinctive. The main material is wood which is covered by two layers of canvas or woven linen and gessoed together. All these are finally formed into a relief on three sides depicting the sematawy motif, symbolizing the unification of Egypt, around which is bound two enemy prisoners portraying ―the Southerners on the right and the Northerners on the left.‖529 The second layer of canvas is thin in order to allow the clear appearance of the figures in the modeled designs. The fourth side is the one possessing a rectangular hole or mortise (2.4 x 1.5 cm) that is supposed to be connected by a wooden bar to another pedestal, creating the equilibrium to support two front or two back animal legs. There is much material missing from the side containing the mortise as well as minor loss on the other sides, especially on one of the edges, which allows us to clearly identify the technique of construction. On one of the sides there is a partial separation. Another feature of this piece is the existence of small holes around all sides. Their function seems to be to receive pegs in order to insure the strength of the pieces; especially since we have two layers of woven linen (we don‘t see these pegs in other pedestals). According to Carter and Newberry, these pegs were made of metal, but since none still exist, we cannot know if they were wooden or metal pegs.530 This example implies a sophisticated craftsman, one creating a very elaborate, time-consuming piece

III.3- Pedestal for the foot of a chair; painted wood (fig. 122) JE 97766=C.G. 46131532 (SR 4/3331) H. 8 cm; W. at the base 10 cm; W. at the top 8 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Thutmose IV Dynasty 18 This pedestal seems to constitute the second in a pair with the previous example. It is similar to it in form and paint except that the measurements differ slightly, and the hole that contains part of the broken wooden bar is visible here. This piece has more cracks and missing material on one side. It is clear that the top circular part (6 x 6.4 cm) was originally painted white but because of the frequent use, as well as the pressure of the chair leg on the top, the color has been rubbed off.

527

See Jean Vercoutter. ―Supports de Meubles, léments rchitectoniques, ou ‗établis‖ (Inventaire: Balat 205-717 ET 207-720). BIFAO 78 (1978): 81-102, especially 98-99. Vercoutter discusses, in his article, the different forms of drums as well as pedestals used for chairs and beds. He provides us with several figures, emphasizing the different scholarly opinions about their uses. He proceeds on to examples from Deir El-Medina, Tell el Amarna as well as Balat. He is correct in excluding the function proposed by Bruyère of using the pedestals as ―établis‖or ―selettes‖ and as he says ―Si l‘on juge par le nombre de leurs representations dans les Mastabas, ces supports étaient utilisés surtout à l‘ ncien Empire. Leur emploi se poursuit ensuite, au cours des siècles, comme l‘indiquent non seulement les objets retrouvés Tell el-Amarna, à Deir el- Médineh et dans la tombe de Toutankhamon, mais aussi et surtout les représentations figurées aussi bien au Moyen Empire, qu‘au Nouvel Empire, bien qu‘ cette époque ils apparaissent beaucoup moins fréquemment.‖ For a discussion of the same topic, see Nadine Cherpion. Mastabas et ’ Datation. Connaissance de L‘Egypte ncienne 2. Bruxelles, Belgique: Connaissance de L‘Egypte Ancienne, 1989. 36-40. 528 For the publication, see Howard Carter and Percy E. Newberry. The Tomb of Thoutmosis IV. Catalogue Général des Antiquités Égyptiennes du Musée du Caire Nos 46001-46529. Theodore M. Davis' Excavations: Biban el Moluk. Westminster: A. Constable and Co, 1904. 41, no. 46129. 529 Carter and Newberry, The Tomb of Thoutmosis IV, 41. 530 Carter and Newberry, The Tomb of Thoutmosis IV, 41.

IV Collection from the Tomb of Yuya and Tuya533 531

Carter and Newberry, The Tomb of Thoutmosis IV, 41, no. 46130. Carter and Newberry, The Tomb of Thoutmosis IV, 41, no. 46131. 533 There exists a third chair found in the tomb (KV 46) that should belong to our corpus. It is the largest of the three, as well as the one possessing stretchers between the front and back legs. I was not being able to see this chair as it is currently not displayed in the Cairo Museum. For a detailed description, see Eaton-Krauss, ―Walter Segal's Documentation of CG 51113, the Throne of Princess Sat- mun,‖ 7788; James E. Quibell. Tomb of Yuaa and Thuiu. Catalogue Général des Antiquités Égyptiennes du Musée du Caire Nos. 51001-51191. Cairo: IFAO, 1908. 53-54, pls. XLI-XLII; Theodore M. Davis et al. The Tomb of Iouiya and Touiyou: with the Funeral Papyrus of Iouiya. Duckworth Egyptology. London: Duckworth, 2000. 37-41, pls. XXXIII-XXXIV; Desroches-Noblecourt, Toutankhamon et Son Temps, 60-67, no.11; Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 63-66; James F. Romano. ―The Bes-Image in Pharaonic Egypt.‖ Vol. II. Diss. U. of New York, 1989. cat. no. 90, 288-292. s emphasized by Romano: ―the depiction of five Bes-images on a single piece provides an insight into the number and manner of conventions Egyptian artisans used in their depictions of the figure. Most telling is the distinction in the handling of the mane when seen in profile and enface‖ (289); PM I/2, 563; Lana Troy. Patterns of 532

34

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces IV.1- Armchair; wood and gold534 (figs. 123 -124) JE 95343 a=C.G. 51111 a (SR 4/120) H. 60 cm; D. 36.7 cm; W. 40 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Yuya and Tuya (KV 46) Dynasty 18 (Reign of Amenhotep III)

beds, vases, as well as toilet articles.539 Minor cracks, as well as traces of recent restoration and glue exist on the ibex. The decoration of our piece as well as the following one with the inclusion of Bes, the god who protected women and children in childbirth and sickness, clearly demonstrates that there are specific themes reserved for the sphere of women.540 Taweret, on the other hand, was also associated with childbirth which is undisputedly a precarious time in women‘s life. 541 The chair was accompanied with a pillow (JE 95343 ) ―stuffed with pigeon feathers‖542 and measuring 35 x 34 cm.

This expertly carved chair is made of reddish wood then painted black to imitate ebony and create a nice contrast with the gold. It has gilded decoration on the back as well as on the arms‘ openwork design. The legs are carved in the shape of lion paws reposing on drums which are coated with silver and then finally painted.535 Differentiation between the front and back legs is clear. The seat is made of woven rush painted white on the upper surface, but the original color can be seen underneath it. The number of holes is consistent in each side, creating a total of forty eight. The covering and finishing of the piece prevents us from detailed description of the joints, but it is clear that mortise and tenons are used to fasten the different pieces together, and wooden pins secure the whole construction. As for the elements in the openwork, some of them possess holes for the mortises, while others are simply glued. There are two knee braces attaching the two front and back legs together. Each brace is divided in two. The straight backrest is occupied by the figure of Bes, flanked on each side by the hippopotamus goddess Taweret. All of them stand on the nebw sign (gold). Each Taweret is holding the sa sign (of protection) as well as two long knives. Bes is depicted in a frontal position with his hands placed on his hips and his feet splayed.536 The two side arms are filled with the same decoration showing a recumbent ibex:537 to its back exist three papyrus plants and in the front there is a group consisting of two ankhs (symbols of life) and one sa sign reposing on nebw sign. The ibex is usually characterized by ―its long, curved horns and a short beard.‖538 The one depicted here is shown genuflecting; this motif is well represented in chairs,

IV.2-Armchair; wood and gold543 (figs. 125-126) JE 95344=C.G. 51112 (SR 4/121) H. 60 cm; D. 41.5 cm; W. 38 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Yuya and Tuya (KV 46) Dynasty 18 (Reign of Amenhotep III) This elegant chair is thinly coated with gesso and then gilded. It reposes on lion legs; the base has been silvered and painted black.544 The seat is painted yellow. It is well decorated on the front and back of its curved backrest as well as the chair arms. Mortise and tenon are used throughout the chair and as usual, two pins give more stability to the joints of the legs and the seat rails. The two arms have openwork design consisting each of three remaining stiles545 (the second from the back is missing in both sides): the first is the dancing Bes depicted in profile (holding a knife and a club),546 the second is Bes 539

For an example of a comb with ibex handle, see Arielle P. Kozloff. ’ W Eds. Arielle P. Kozloff et al. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art in cooperation with Indiana University Press, 1992. 360, cat. no. 86. 540 Cf. the chair of Hatnofer, MMA, no. 36.3.152 (see fig. 40). 541 For more discussion about Bes and its relation with childbirth, women and fertility, see Kevin R. Kaiser. Water, Milk, Beer and Wine for the Living and the Dead: Egyptian and Syro-Palestinian Bes-Vessels from the New Kingdom through the Graeco-Roman Period. Ann Arbor, Mich: UMI Dissertation Services, 2006. 24-29; Michel Malaise. ―Bes et Les Croyances Solaires.‖ Studies in Egyptology: Presented to Miriam Lichtheim. Ed. Sarah Israelit-Groll. Jerusalem: Magnes Press, Hebrew University, 1990. 699-700. For a relevant discussion about childbirth (especially birth–brick), see Josef W. Wegner. ― ecorated irthBrick from South Abydos: New evidence on Childbirth and Birth Magic in the Middle Kingdom.‖ Archaism and Innovation: Studies in the Culture of Middle Kingdom Egypt. Eds. David P. Silverman, William Kelly Simpson, and Josef W. Wegner. New Haven: Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Yale University, 2009. 447-496, especially 452-458. 542 Quibell, Tomb of Yuaa and Thuiu, 52. 543 PM I/2, 563; Davis, The Tomb of Iouiya and Touiyou, 42-44, pl. XXXVI, fig. 4; Quibell, Tomb of Yuaa and Thuiu, 52-53, pls. XXXVXXXVII; Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 66; Romano, ―The Bes-Image in Pharaonic Egypt,‖ cat. no. 89. 544 ccording to Quibell ―the only silvered parts that were to be seen are the bases of the feet and the L pieces which help to support the front bar of the seat‖ Quibell, Tomb of Yuaa and Thuiu, 52. For a discussion about silver, see Deborah Schorsch. ―Precious- Metal Polychromy in Egypt in the Time of Tutankhamun.‖ JEA 87 (2001): 55-71. 545 Bosse-Griffiths, ― eset mulet from the marna Period,‖ 54. 546 Romano, ―The Bes-Image in Pharaonic Egypt,‖ cat. no. 89, 283 ―when seen from the side, the Bes-image shows three features not discernible when it appears frontally: 1-a spirited posture suggestive of dance that contrasts markedly with the god‘s normal static mein, 2-a

Queenship in Ancient Egyptian Myth and History. Boreas Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis 14. Uppsala: University Press, 1986. 86-87. 534 For this chair, see PM I/2, 563-564; Quibell, Tomb of Yuaa and Thuiu, 52, pls. XXXII and XXXIV; Davis et al., The Tomb of Iouiya and Touiyou, pl. XXV; Kate Bosse-Griffiths. ― eset mulet from the marna Period.‖ Amarna Studies and Other Selected Papers. Eds. John G. Griffiths and Kate Bosse-Griffiths. Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis 182. Fribourg: University Press, 2001. 51-63, especially 54; Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 67-68. 535 I do not agree with Mahmoud that the chair is made ―of pigmented dark wood (perhaps ebony or yew) with gilding‖ as the originally red color of the wood is clear underneath. It is painted and it is difficult to judge the wood type. Adel Mahmoud Abd El-Qader. The Quest for Immortality: Treasures of Ancient Egypt. Eds. Erik Hornung and Betsy M. Bryan. Washington, D.C: National Gallery of Art, 2002. Cat. no. 39. 536 For a detailed discussion of Bes and his physiognomy, see Romano, ―The Bes-Image in Pharaonic Egypt,‖ cat. no.88. 537 For a discussion of the ibex symbolism, along with the role of Bes and Taweret, see chapter III, 72-73. 538 See Iorwerth E. S. Edwards. Treasures of Tutankhamun: National Gallery of Art, Field Museum of Natural History and the University of Chicago, New Orleans Museum of Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Seattle Art Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1976. 171-173, no. 54, especially 172 for an ibex vase from the tomb of Tutankhamun.

35

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom in a frontal position (similar to the previous armchair), and the last is Taweret holding a knife and sa symbol. The scene on the front of the backrest depicts the queen Tiye seated on an armchair, elaborately decorated especially on the sides, on a papyrus boat. She is holding a flail in one hand and an ankh sign on the other. To the right of her headdress stands her name Hmt nswt wrt 6y ―the great royal wife, Tiye.‖ 547 Underneath the chair is a cat with raised tail.548 Two princesses are shown: one in front of the queen offering her lotuses. Behind her is written Hsy n nb tAwy sAt Imn ―praised by the lord of the two lands: Sitamun.‖ The second princess behind the queen is holding a fan ornate with lotuses and flowers. At the top of her head is inscribed sAt nswt mrt.f549 ―the royal daughter, his beloved.‖ The scene is surmounted by a frieze of kheker. The two sides are framed with a spiral motif.550

many. Normally, the three chairs are ascribed to Sitamun, the daughter of Amenhotep III and the queen Tiye, and the granddaughter of Yuya and Tuya, the owner of the tomb.553 V- Collection from Tell El-Amarna V.1-Flared leg of a stool; ivory painted yellow and green 554 (fig. 127) JE 62790 (SR 4/12582) H. 21 cm; H. of the tenon 2 cm Middle Egypt: Tell El-Amarna Dynasty 18 This flared stool leg is a peculiar and unique piece in our corpus. It is entirely made of ivory (with no wood at all), painted light brown and decorated on the upper part with green paint. This leg is the only flared and incised leg that I know of that is entirely made of ivory, which indicates that its owner had connections with the court in order to have such a precious skillfully made piece. Some parts of the leg are missing, which is why we were able to see the original color of the ivory. The top of the leg has a tenon but not in its center. A hole exists underneath the leg indicating that it was placed in a primitive vise to achieve the rings (bands of raised lines). The top is embellished with three friezes of varying widths. The first consists of a row of fourteen lotus petals, the second has seventeen rosettes, and the third is composed of twenty nine lotus petals.

The back of the chair is occupied by a scene of a winged Bes551 holding in each hand, a neb basket, surmounted each by two ankh signs and one sa sign. In addition, he holds two other sa signs; one in each hand. Bes is shown dancing with knives attached to his feet. The center brace on the back conceals the middle of the Bes figure. This brace as well as the two stiles flanking it are decorated with lines. The back of the seat behind the three struts is grooved in a grid pattern. s mentioned by Quibell, ―at first [the chair] had a seat of plaited string; the holes are now plugged with plaster and silvered over but can easily be seen.‖552 Indeed, the underneath of the chair, even while being painted black, still bears circular vestiges that were originally intended for the webbing. Quibell also adds that some parts of the chair have been regilt. In addition, our piece has undergone restoration and wax is clear on some parts. What is essential for our purpose is that we have a clear illustration of a chair that has been used in daily life (based on its original rush seat), then converted, repainted and even physically altered (seat replacement) to be employed in the afterlife. This is clear proof that a piece could have double use, and although others may not be so clear, I believe this is the case for

The strange feature about this leg is the existence of three holes for the joints:555 two of them supposedly intended for the stretchers (one is almost complete and the other is broken), and the third one contains half a dowel. The question that arises is why we have a third hole if we only need two of them for the stretchers. In such an elaborate leg made of ivory, I would assume that the craftsman was supposed to use the dowel hole, as traditionally seen in luxurious flared-legged stools.556 The two rectangular holes in our example should have been imitation throughjoints (and not filled with ivory as is the case here), taking into consideration that cutting into the ivory is difficult comparing to the wood. Maybe the craftsman

beard taking on the appearance of a circular fan covering the entire jaw line, and 3-hair falling over the shoulders and ending in a curl.‖ 547 It is not currently preserved. 548 For a discussion of the cat symbolism as well as the whole armchair, see chapter III, especially 71-73. 549 Compare with C.G. 51113 for the clear titles, see Eaton-Krauss, ―Walter Segal's ocumentation of CG 51113, the Throne of Princess Sat- mun,‖ 77-88. 550 Stephen Quirke and Lesley itton. ― n egean Origin for Egyptian Spirals ‖ Ancient Egypt: The Aegean and the Near East: Studies in Honour of Martha Rhoads Bell. Eds. Jacqueline S. Phillips et al. San Antonio, Tex.: Van Siclen Books, 1997. 421-444. 551 For a discussion of the winged Bes, see Romano, ―The Bes-Image in Pharaonic Egypt,‖ cat. no. 82. ccording to Romano, ―In the New Kingdom such representations [winged Bes images] are limited to the time between the reigns of Thutmosis IV … and Tutankhamun‖ (258); ―the wings of the es image of the central panel of the outer side are a feature of the Bes-image that seems to begin under menhotep III‖ (275). For an example of a bed with a stile similar to our example but in which the winged Bes is completely seen (277). Compare the Tutankhamun ebony throne as well as Eaton-Krauss‘ discussion of how the center brace conceals the vulture depicted on the back of the seat. Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 85-87. 552 Quibell, Tomb of Yuaa and Thuiu, 53.

553

Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 95, 47 fn.143. EatonKrauss has argued that this one was used by Tiye and not Sitamun. 554 For the publication of the leg, see Pendlebury, The City of Akhenaten: Part III, 2 Vols, 125, pl. LXXXVIII. 5. For a discussion of two wooden legs with green paint currently preserved in the Boston Museum (no.72.4264), see Manuelian, ’ G , cat. no. 40, especially fns.12 and 13; Manuelian, ―Notes on the So-called Turned Stools of the New Kingdom,‖ 126 fn.7, fig. 2. 555 If we compare this leg with the one in the MFA Museum at Boston, we find that the cylindrical hole is the one used there and the rectangular holes are fake. 556 Compare it with the stool with flared legs of Tutankhamun (JE 62042), as well as TR 7/11/26/1 (we will discuss it below, 58-59, X. 22) and the elaborate one in the British Museum no. 2472. Even the crude stool JE 53723 (see below 49-50, IX. 13) in our corpus has two through holes for the through mortise and tenon, making a total of four actual holes. See also an example from Sedment: William Mathew Flinders Petrie and Guy Brunton. Sedment. Vol. II. British School of Archaeology in Egypt and Egyptian Research Account 35. London: British School of Archaeology in Egypt, 1924. 25, pl. LXI 58, 68.

36

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces VI.2- Leg from a folding stool;559 wood and white gesso painted yellow (fig. 131) JE 55326 (SR 4/4040) H. 52 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Horemheb Dynasty 18

planned to use the dowel hole first and then switched to the (rectangular) mortise and tenon later on (or vice versa) One might ask whether it is a mistake of the leg‘s maker, but I doubt that the high-level of the craftsman who achieved such a sophisticated piece would make this extra hole intentionally, or does it perhaps indicate a reuse of the piece? Whichever is the case, there is no doubt that we have a very refined and distinguished leg.

This elaborately well-constructed leg should constitute one of the four legs of a folding stool (with either four or eight ducks‘ heads). The top of the leg still bears remains of the tenon that was inserted into one of the two seat rails. The bottom of the leg conforms to the popular technique of open duck beak containing the tenon to be entered into the foot-bar. Inlay exists throughout the leg around the beak, the eyes, the eight triangles (imitating feathers) as well as two rectangular squares consisting each of five lines. These lines as well as the small eight triangles between them show white gesso which was painted yellow. It is not clear why a royal, well-made leg like this was not inlaid with ivory, especially judging by the good quality of the wood. A pivot hole exists in order to connect this leg with a second one, to create an ―X.‖

V.2-Fragment of a stool leg; faience557 (fig. 128) JE 66010 (SR 4/12392) H. 3.1 cm; W. 3.7 cm Middle Egypt: Tell El-Amarna Dynasty 18 This fragment probably forms a part of a flared leg, although it is difficult to know for sure. All that currently remains are the ribbed lines (three of them) followed by a bulging surface and then more incised lines continue. V.3-Fragment of a stool leg; faience (fig. 129) JE 62781 (SR 4/12950) H. 5 cm; W. 2.7 cm Middle Egypt: Tell El-Amarna Dynasty 18

VII- Collection from the Tomb of Sennedjem VII.1- Latticework stool; wood painted white and rush 560 (fig. 132) JE 27290 (SR 4/4198) H. 35.5 cm; D. 31.5 cm; W. 38.5 cm Deir El Medina: tomb of Sennedjem TT1 Dynasty 19 (Reign of Ramesses II)

This is similar to the previous one except that this one is smoother, its color is darker and symmetry is preserved. Between each three incised lines there is a bulge which gives the impression of being better made. In addition, it does not feature the cylindrical curve that the previous one has.

This stool is supposed to consist of twenty six pieces attached together by two types of mortise and tenon. It currently consists of four slim rectangular legs joined to the slanting seat by stub mortise and tenon and pinned. The seat slopes in the center so that it will be more ergonomic. The top of the legs are carved together with the crossrails instead of the side rails.561 One of its features is the rectangular wooden bar existing on the top of the struts on the two side rails, creating more stability and strength to the seat. Wooden pins are used through the joints (at the top and bottom of each strut as well as each leg) to strengthen them. The seat consists of four

VI- Collection from the Tomb of Horemheb VI.1- Two pedestals for the feet of a chair; wood painted white558 (fig. 130) JE 46827 (SR 4/4052) H. 7 cm; W. at the base 10.7 cm; W. at the top 7.7 cm; L. of the bar 16.8 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, tomb of Horemheb Dynasty 18 This piece consists of two trapezoidal pedestals with a wooden bar that connects them, though it is broken in its upper part, allowing the grain of the wood to appear. This break makes it difficult to predict its whole length. It is executed on a simple manner of white paint over wood. A cylindrical indentation on the top of each block measures 5 cm in diameter. There exist some black spots on the blocks, as well as missing wood and a few cracks.

559

For the publication of this leg, see Davis et al., 107, no. 34. According to Davis et al., it is made of ebony which is likely. 560 Mahmoud, The Quest for Immortality, cat. no. 64. For a list of all the objects of Sennedjem, see Dominique Valbelle. Les Ouvr à L'Époque Ramesside. Bibliothèque d‘ tude 96. Cairo: IFAO, 1985. 294-298; George aressy. ―La écouverte et L‘Inventaire du Tombeau de Sen-nezem.‖ ASAE 20 (1920): 147-156; Jean Louis Podvin. ―Le Mobilier unéraire de la Tombe de Sennedjem.‖ GM 191 (2002): 77-83; Podvin, ―Composition, Position et Orientation,‖ 333-340; Adel Mahmoud Abd El-Qader. Catalogue of Funerary Objects from the Tomb of the Servant in the Place of Truth Sennedjem (TT 1): Ushabtis, Ushabtis in Coffins, Ushabti Boxes, Canopic Coffins, Canopic Chests, Cosmetic Chests, Furniture, Dummy Vases, Pottery Jars, and Walking Sticks, mainly from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York. Ed: Sylvie Donnat. Bibliothèque Générale 37. Cairo: IFAO, 2011. 18, 39, 51, 52, 57. 561 Compare with the small latticework stool of Tutankhamun. For the latter, see Eaton- Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools,107.

557

According to the Cairo Museum records, the following two fragments form parts of two stools. Unfortunately, I did not find these numbers in the Amarna publications and to the best of my knowledge I do not know of any example made of faience. See page 68 (fn. 818) for a model of faience stool that I was not able to locate in the museum. 558 For the publication, see Theodore M. Davis et al. The Tombs of Harmhabi and To Theodore M. avis‘ Excavations Bibân el Molûk 6. London: Constable and Co, 1912.107-108, no. 35. See also Cherpion, 37, fn. 43.

37

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom curved rails pierced by forty two holes (sixteen on the side rails and twenty six on the crossrails) through which pass double woven strands of rush which are attached beneath the concave seat. The piece bears signs of use suggesting its implementation in daily life. The area between the cross and side rails is occupied by the same latticework design consisting of one vertical strut and two diagonal struts. On each crossrail one strut is missing. Struts are joined to the stretchers by pinned barefaced mortise and tenon. The seat rails are most probably connected together by stub mortise and tenon. Judging by some areas of the stool, it seems that it was covered by more than one layer of gesso. One of the construction techniques of this type of stool ―is the slightly higher stretchers on the shorter sides, which not only preserve the strength of the wood by separating pairs of mortiseand-tenon joints but also gently offset any monotony in the design.‖562 This same design of latticework is employed on other furniture articles such as tables, boxes, chairs and stands.

―Osiris, the child of the tomb, Mes, true of voice.‖ VII.3- Low stool; wood and rush (fig. 134) JE 27289 (SR 4/4208) H. 12.5 cm; D. 30 cm; W. 34.5 cm Deir El Medina: tomb of Sennedjem TT1 Dynasty 19 (Reign of Ramesses II) This simple stool consists of ten pieces connected together by stub mortise and tenon, then glued. It is clear that the piece has undergone crude restoration that has resulted in its current appearance. At the top of each leg, there exist traces of gesso as well as yellow material which apparently has been added to make the seam less obvious but it has the opposite effect; even on one of the legs, there is a separation between the rail and the leg. In its current state this piece seems like a primitive version of other more elaborate low stools; although, it is partly due to sloppy restoration. The two stretchers on the front and back are broken, and it seems that there were some knots that have fallen out leaving the space empty. The seat is woven with a single strand of rush that is almost complete with the exception of two strands that are broken indicating its use. The number of holes pierced around the rails is inconsistent (6, 7, 8, 9) with a total of thirty holes. The legs of this stool look stylized. They are vaguely reminiscent of the turned out legs that we will see in the stool JE 43165 (fig. 154), although our current example does not exhibit the same level of care in its execution. It is difficult to consider it as a footstool because of the openwork rush webbing seat. Because of its height, it was likely used for kneeling or squatting.565

VII.2- Latticework stool; wood painted white (fig. 133) JE 27291 (SR 4/4206) H. 39 cm; D. 33.5 cm; W. 40.5 cm Deir El Medina: Tomb of Sennedjem TT1 Dynasty 19 (Reign of Ramesses II) This stool consists of twenty six pieces attached together by mortise and tenon. It is similar to the previous one except that the seat here is not sloping in shape, but rather flat; moreover, the lattice designs in the longer sides feature double vertical struts instead of single ones. The finishing prevents us from discerning the type of mortise and tenon used because of the layers of gesso that cover the joints areas, but it is probably like the previous example. The stool is not smooth, and even the crude finish of the piece does not conceal the bad quality of the wood beneath it. The seat is missing (the rectangle in the middle measures 24.3 x 17.5 cm). There are no holes to indicate that it was woven but we do have traces of linen with its distinctive hatched texture under the gesso on the middle and edges of the two crossrails. The seat was most likely covered with linen that was stretched over the hollowed area, even though this is not the common method used in these types of stools. Close examination of the piece, as well as the different color of gesso, indicate that the stool has undergone some restoration but this did not camouflage the crude workmanship of the piece. I feel that it made it worse judging by the gesso clumps that exist in some places; especially around the bottoms of the stretchers. Along the sides (crossrails) runs a black inscription that reads: Wsir msw xr563 ms mAa xrw564

VII.4- Imitation of a folding stool; wood painted red and linen566 (fig. 135) JE 27288 (SR 4/4205) H. 31 cm; D. 52 cm; W. 68 cm; W. of foot-bar 60 cm Deir El Medina: tomb of Sennedjem TT1 Dynasty 19 (Reign of Ramesses II) This unfolded stool consists of three main components expected in a folding stool, namely: the seat, legs and foot-bars. It consists of eight pieces and a seat.567 Its rigid construction reminds us of the Tutankhamun unfolded chair, and its seat technique is similar to the two flaredlegged stools from the same tomb (see below, JE 27255 a-b). The seat is made of woven linen that is stretched over the rails and then attached below the seat as well as on its edges to be thicker. The linen is then gessoed and Étude 50. Cairo: IFAO, 2001.117-118. See also Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 660 ―die Jungarbeiter vom Konigsgrab.‖ 564 The mAa xrw is not clear on the inscription but it is written in the Museum database, which makes sense. 565 Manuelian, ’ G n Age, cat. no. 44: ―The stool, which might seem uncomfortably low to us, was made for a popular sitting position in the Near East, both ancient and modern: a crouch with the knees drawn up near the chin.‖ See also, Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 43 ―Otherwise they may perhaps have been used as a child‘s stool.‖ 566 Eaton-Krauss, ―Three Stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem,‖ 180181, pl. I. 567 Four legs, two rails, and two foot-bars.

562

Manuelian, ’ G , cat. no. 42. For the xr only the ―x‖ and most of the ―r‖ are clear but the part below the ―r‖ is unclear. For a discussion of msw-xr, its different translations, as well as the examples in which it was found, see Adel Mahmoud Abd El-Qader. ―msw-xr = The Sons of The Tomb.‖ Egyptian Museum Collections around the World. Eds. Mamdouh Eldamaty and Mai Trad. Vol. II. Cairo, Egypt: Supreme Council of Antiquities, 2002. 763-776 especially 765, 774, no. 19; Jaroslav ern . A Community of Workmen at Thebes in the Ramesside Period. 2nd ed. iblioth que d' 563

38

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces painted red to imitate leather. Foot-bars and legs are painted black to imitate ebony. This stool exhibits two types of joints: through mortise and loose tongue to connect the foot-bars to the legs and through mortise and tenon to connect the legs to the seat which is clear from the top of the seat. The two curving seat rails carry the same hieroglyphic line painted in yellow: wsir sDm aS m st mAat snDm ―Osiris, the servant in the place of truth, Sennedjem.‖ The two sides of the inscription are decorated with diagonal lines painted in yellow and black as well as two thick lines between which are yellow diamond shapes. As mentioned by Eaton-Krauss, this stool has two unique features that stand out: [it] ―is the only example known to date with the text identifying the owner written on a seat rail.‖568 Moreover, the pivot attaching the two legs to form the cross shape is not made of bronze as usual in folding stools, but rather made of wood. Regarding this characteristic, Walter Segal comments that this indicates that the piece was originally made to be deposited in the tomb:

four wooden rails, gessoed and then painted red simulating the leather seats of valuable stools. The four legs are slightly tapered in the lower part, and joined in their middle by four rectangular stretchers painted yellow. The stool is painted with various colors greengray, yellow and white. Each leg is decorated on the same level of the stretcher by two miniature squares painted white evoking through joints. The use of white paint imitates the ivory squares used in luxury pieces. The center of the seat is decorated with seven concentric squares alternating in green and white. The stool exhibits two types of joints: mortise and dowel to connect the legs to the seat, and stub mortise and tenon to join the legs to the stretchers. The stool is in a bad state of preservation: one of the dowels is broken; there is a hole in the middle of the seat; and there are some separations, cracks and missing layers of wood.572 The linen layer is not clear underneath the seat but it is definitively apparent on the top of one of the legs. VII.6-Flared-legged stool; wood and linen, gessoed and painted red573 (fig. 137) JE 27255 B (SR 4/4201) H. 32.7 cm; D. 36.3 cm; W. 37 cm Deir El Medina: tomb of Sennedjem TT1 Dynasty 19 (Reign of Ramesses II)

―Die Kreuzarme sind miteinander durch einfache Holzstifte verbunden und nicht wie sonst durch Bronzestifte. Daraus erhellt wieder, daß der Klappstuhl lediglich Teil der Grabausrüstung ist.‖569

This stool also belongs to Iyneferti. 574 It is similar to the previous one in its technique of manufacture but with some difference in the decoration as well as the finishing (this one exhibiting a lower precision of workmanship). The paint has come off revealing the bad quality of local wood on the legs. This square seat has a concave shape consisting of four wooden rails. The seat (with no wood in the middle) is made of linen stretched over the four rails, gessoed and then painted red. The covering of the seat prevents us from seeing how the seat rails are connected together, perhaps by using the simple butt joint. Most likely, mortise and dowels are used between legs and rails (as in the previous one), and stub mortise and tenon between stretchers and legs. The seat consists of concentric squares decorated on the inside and outside by geometric and floral motifs. Three sides outside the squares have the same floral design and one differs. The seat is divided in four sections by lines and dots. Each part is inscribed in white with the name of its owner. The hieroglyphs only differ in orthography:

I feel it problematic to assume that one of the reasons that the pivot is wood is that we are dealing with a funerary piece, as said by some scholars. It is true that bronze is stronger, but it would be more convincing to pinpoint the seat material as being not as strong as leather. The stool is in a bad state of preservation; traces of gesso exist around the tongues and joints, and separations are evident in some layers at the edges. VII.5- Flared- legged stool; wood and linen, gessoed and painted red570 (fig. 136) JE 27255 A (SR 4/4202) H. 30 cm; D. 35.5 cm; W. 36 cm Deir El Medina: tomb of Sennedjem TT1 Dynasty 19 (Reign of Ramesses II) This stool belongs to Iyneferti, the wife of Sennedjem. On one of the seat sides runs a hieroglyphic inscription painted in black which includes her name: Wsir Iy-nfrty ―Osiris, Iyneferti.‖571 This square seat has a concave shape consisting of four wooden rails. The seat (with no wood in the middle) is made of linen stretched over the 568

Eaton-Krauss, ―Three Stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem,‖ 180183, especially 182. 569 Cited in Eaton-Krauss, ―Three Stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem,‖ 181. 570 Eaton-Krauss, ―Three Stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem,‖ 180181, pl. II a-b. 571 or discussions of the deceased being called ―Osiris‖ and later, for women ―Hathor,‖ see Mark Smith. ―Osiris and the eceased‖ UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology. Eds. Willeke Wendrich et al. Los Angeles: UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology, 2008. 1-6, especially 2. http://escholarship.org/uc/item/29r70244. For a general discussion about Osiris‘ name, see Racheli Shalomi-Hen. The Writing of Gods: The Evolution of Divine Classifiers in the Old Kingdom. Göttinger Orientforschungen 38. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2006. 97-113.

572

This stool and the chair of Sennedjem (JE 27256) were restored in the Cairo Museum in March 2009 as part of the Spanish exhibition organized in the museum on April 6 th, 2009, and which run until May 27th, 2009. For comparanda see: stool in the British Museum no. 2472 (Manuelian, ’ G , cat. no.40); stool no 6404 in the Turin Museum (Matilde Borla. The Pharaohs. Ed. Christiane Ziegler. New York: Rizzoli, 2002. 447, cat. no.148). For more examples of stools with flared legs, see ruwier, ―Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,‖ 46-57). 573 Eaton-Krauss, ―Three Stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem,‖ 184186, pl. II c-d. 574 Adel Mahmoud Abd El-Qader. ―Ii-Neferti, a Poor Woman.‖ MDAIK 55 (1999): 315-323.

39

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom middle of the seat consists of a big square inside of which thirty six small squares exist, in which leaves and grapes alternate with each other. This grape decoration on the seat is highly unusual; this piece is the only one that I know to possess such ornamentation. The grapes bear a religious meaning as a symbol of resurrection, and rejuvenating power (related to the renaissance of Osiris and that of the deceased).580 In all four corners of the seat is a motif recalling webbing with a chevron design. These small squares are joined together by a domino pattern (black, red) on a white background, each separated by green squares.

Wsir nbt pr Iy-nfrty mAa xrw ―Osiris, the mistress of the house,575 Iyneferti, true of voice.‖ Restoration576 is evident in the stretchers, and they seem to have added a small triangular piece in each corner of the four stretchers to strengthen and hold them more securely. An Insect attack is clear in the legs creating some holes and channels. One of the legs does not touch the floor. VII.7- Three-legged stool; wood (fig. 138) JE 30008 (SR 2/11627) H. 22.9 cm; D. 29.5 cm; W. 48.6 cm Deir El Medina: tomb of Sennedjem TT1 Dynasty 19 (Reign of Ramesses II)

The back of the seat is reminiscent of the palace façade decoration or recessed panels painted red and black. Horizontal and diagonal lines run along the two sides creating a geometric motif. Then, on the sides, spiral forms are painted black, blue and red. The whole decoration is framed by a black inscription written on a yellow base to imitate gilding. The inscriptions give the names and the titles of the deceased. Those on the left side read imxAy Wsir sDm aS m st mAat snDm mAa xrw ―The revered one, Osiris, the servant in the place of truth, Sennedjem, true of voice.‖581 The one on the right side is similar, except nfr m Htp ―good in peace‖ is written at its end. Only the orthography of Wsir and that of mAa xrw differ. The inscription on the middle, atop the palace façade decoration, names Sennedjem‘s son Khabekhent ―sA.f xabkhnt” who is offering the piece to his father.

Eaton-Krauss was the first to discuss this piece in her book The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, and Footstools from the Tomb of Tutankhamun.577 This three-legged stool is different from the normal known type. It is skillfully constructed and left without further decoration. It consists of a seat (two pieces), three straight legs (one flat and two ―L‖ shaped), as well as knee braces (most probably six pieces, only five remain now). The knee braces continue almost until the end of the seat to which they are fastened by wooden pins. The semi-circular seat is drilled in order to receive the webbing that is not preserved. Besides the holes that encircle the seat, others are for the pins that attach the knee braces. It is clear that the piece has undergone some restoration judging by the filler material used between the legs as well as the shiny glue used.

Friezes of petals and chevrons can be seen around the inscription. The top is lined with a checkerboard in black and red on a white background. On each side of the backrest, we find umbels of papyrus from which small leaves detach. The two sides are strengthened with notched elbow braces painted black and white (lozenges) to simulate the expensive counterparts made of ivory and ebony. Some cracks exist in the seat, but it was recently restored and had also undergone restoration in 1976. The method of applying the gesso gives a bad appearance to the piece. It is frequently assumed of inscribed and decorated pieces that they are ―specially prepared for funerary purposes,‖582 but I find it hard to make such a sharp distinction. It is difficult to know definitively if the piece has been used during the daily life of the person or not. Similarly, we cannot discern this based on the inscriptions. The inscriptions could simply have been written after the death of the person during the repainting of the piece, giving it a double use: one in the person‘s

VII.8- Chair; painted wood and linen578 (figs. 139-140) JE 27256 (SR 4/4203) H. 87.5 cm; D. 47.5 cm; W. 38.5 cm Deir El Medina, tomb of Sennedjem TT1 Dynasty 19 (Reign of Ramesses II) The chair with lion legs and slanting backrest became the standard type in the New Kingdom. This one is a good example for showing all legs connected together by stretchers and filled in with struts. The chair consists of no less than thirty four pieces. Its seat is covered with woven linen gessoed and painted with a grape motif recalling a multicolored tapestry. Part of the linen is evident on the seat where the surface is missing. 579 The 575

For a discussion of the title nbt pr, see Jaana Toivari-Viitala. Women at Deir El-Medina: A Study of the Status and Roles of the Female Inhabitants in the Workmen's Community During the Ramesside Period. Egyptologische Uitgaven 15. Leiden: Nederlands Inst. Voor Het Nabije Oosten, 2001. 15-18. 576 One of the problems encountered during the study of my corpus in the Cairo Museum was the absence of reports in the restoration department indicating exactly the time, as well as the work done to a specific piece. 577 Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 124, fig. 29. 578 For a discussion of Sennedjem chair: see G Exposition. Paris: Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais, 1976. 182-185; Jean Capart. . ruxelles: dition de la ondation gyptologique Reine Elizabeth, 1931. 120, fig. 84; Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 129, fig. 179; Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 58, 94, 96. 579 It seems that, as the result of a restoration, a linen layer was placed underneath the seat.

580

For a discussion of the wine symbolism, see chapter III, 73-74. For clear evidence of the use of grape vines as decorative motif on Theban tombs, see Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death, 114-115; Wilfried Seipel. G G 4000 Jahre Jenseitsglaube. Band. 2. Das Grab des Sennefer. Kataloge des OÖ. Landesmuseums. Neue Folge 22. Linz: O . Landesmuseum, 1989; Melinda K. Hartwig. Tomb Painting and Identity in Ancient Thebes, 1419-1372 BCE. Monumenta Aegyptiaca 10. Serie Imago 2. Turnhout: Fondation gyptologique Reine Elisabeth, 2004. 59; Mu-Chou Poo. Wine and Wine Offering in the Religion of Ancient Egypt. Studies in Egyptology. London: Kegan Paul International, 1995. 169. 581 This same sentence is repeated on the three struts of the back of the chair. 582 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 130.

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Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces life and one after his death to be placed in the tomb. Generally, chairs and stools used in daily life are not different from those deposited in the tomb, which suggests that they have been converted (adding inscriptions, decoration, repainting) to be utilized in the other life. With the exception of models, I feel more secure with the assumption of repainting and the double use of chairs and stools.

parts of the stretchers that are supposed to attach the legs together. For more strength, there are wooden pegs that pass from one side of the leg to the other through the stretcher joint. On the top of the leg, there is a tenon inside of which exits a hole. There are a few cracks in the wood, and knots indicating the local wood. The leg is engraved with a line of hieroglyphs giving the titles of its owner as follows: sS nsw mAa mry.f imy-rA xAwt (?)585 n nb tAwy Imn-Htp586 mAa xrw ―The true royal scribe, his beloved, the overseer of the altar/offering table of the lord of the two lands, menhotep, true of voice.‖ Judging by this title ―sS nsw mAa,‖ it is clear that the piece‘s owner had an influential position in the society.587

Looking once again at our specific example, the Sennedjem chair leads us to a comparison with that of Kha.583 The material of the Sennedjem chair, his two flared- legged stools and his folding stool—linen gessoed and then painted—is the reason to think that, in their current state, they are destined to be used in the afterlife based on the fact that they could not support much weight. However, it is not the inscriptions or the decoration that lead us to this conclusion. Speaking about materials, as mentioned by Manuelian, it seems that those for solely afterlife purpose are made of low quality material, as seen in a model of a chair as well as the folding stool from our corpus, as ―[they] would be called upon to serve only as spiritual, and not a physical function.‖584 If the Sennedjem chair had been made of rush (as Kha) and inscribed or decorated, I would suggest in this case to leave it open about double function. We have already seen clear evidence of the seat being changed in the Sitamun chair. For this reason it is entirely possible that our example originally possessed a rush seat, in which case the designation as ―funerary object‖ would not have been so clear. Furthermore, in the case of Kha chair: its seat is made of rush which means that it could have been used. But on the other hand, it is well preserved. Of course, signs of wear are other indications of an object‘s status of ―useful‖ or ―funerary,‖ but we have other examples of pieces with no wear signs: are we going to categorize all of them as ―funerary‖ In the Kha case, I believe that it is difficult to know whether the chair‘s exclusive function was to be used by Kha in his afterlife or if it was used before. Maybe it had double use as seen in other articles of furniture such as boxes, which play double roles, with the exception of those destined for the ushabtis, canopics and others.

VIII.2-Model of a leg (likely from a stool); 588 wood (fig. 142) TR 5/11/26/7 (SR 2/11357) H. 23.7 cm Unknown provenance Perhaps Dynasty 18 This model of a cylindrical leg, most probably of a stool, bears a vertical inscription written on white and framed on the two sides by two other vertical lines. The decoration consists solely of the four horizontal white lines on the top followed by a wooden dowel that is not stable but rotates. The text outlines the normal offering formula in which the king makes an offering to the god so that he will sustain the ka of the deceased. 589 The god mentioned here is Ptah, the chief god of Memphis, known for his association with craftsmen who worshipped him in several locations, where artisans were present including Deir El-Medina. Based on the great number of persons named ― menmose,‖ it is difficult to identify this workman. My guess is that this leg could be from the early or middle of Dynasty 18 and might come from Memphis but nothing is definitive without knowing the person in question. The inscription can be read as follows: Htp di nsw ptH nb mAat nsw tAwy nfr Hr Hry st wrt 590 585

The reading of this word is problematic as the first sign below the ―overseer‖ is not clear: if it is crude writing of the― x‖ followed by a ―t,‖ then the following line could possibly have an ―offering table‖ and finally ―the house‖ sign. WB III, 224 (13-14), 226; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 624-625. 586 It is also difficult to identify this ― menhotep‖ because of the large number of workmen holding the same name, though the one that I think could be similar is menhotep ―the scribe of the altar of the lord of the two lands (inspector of scribes)‖ who was contemporary with Amenhotep IV (See PM I/2, 816). 587 Onasch outlines the rise in usage of this title ―sS nsw‖ to distinguish high rank during the time of Hatshepsut/Thutmose III until Amenhotep II, see ngela Onasch. ― er Titel "Schreiber des Königs" - Ursprung und Funktion.‖ Jerusalem Studies in Egyptology. Ed. Irene ShirunGrumach. Ägypten und Altes Testament Bd. 40. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1998. 331-343. 588 In the Cairo Museum database stands only ―pied de meuble‖ but the existence of the dowel here reminds us of stool construction . 589 For a discussion of Htp di nsw formula, see Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, 67-73, 87. 590 For the epithets and titles of Ptah, see Christian Leitz et al. Lexikon d G G Vol. IV. Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 113. Dudley, MA: Peeters, 2002. 214-217; Ashraf

VIII- Inscribed Collection VIII.1-Model of a leg (from a chair or bed); wood (fig. 141) TR 5/11/26/6 (SR 2/11356) H. 28 cm Unknown provenance Perhaps Dynasty 18 This leg has two mortise holes: one contains only a small wooden piece and the second has a larger one. These are 583

For the photo of Kha chair along with his stools, see Ernesto Schiaparelli. La Tomba Intatta Dell'architetto Kha, Nella Necropoli Di Tebe. Torino: AdArte, 2007. 112-122. 584 Manuelian, ’ G 66. For a discussion of the difficulty of knowing if the Kha chair has been used in daily life or not, see Christian Loeben. ―La unction unéraire des Meubles gyptiens.‖ Égypte : Afrique & Orient 3 (1996): 20-27, especially 23-24.

41

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom chair would not be the only specimen bearing inscriptions on the splats of the back.594 The idea of having large splats on the chair back is not unique and they could be compared to the chair from Naga Ed-Deir595 that has been redated by Fischer to the early New Kingdom. The inscription on the long fragment reads:

di.f iAw nfr smA m Hsw n kA n sS nswt imy-rA pr Imn-ms ― n offering which the king gives (to) Ptah, lord of truth, king of the two lands, beautiful of face, chief of the great place. May he give a good old age united with praise for the ka of the royal scribe, the overseer of the house, menmose.‖

[swr. i]596 mw Hr bbt597 n kA n iry-pat […] sS Smsw nswt Imn-Htp Ddw […]

VIII.3-Three fragments, probably of a chair; cedar (figs. 143-145) JE 94397 (SR 4/15755) Long fragment: H. 16.5 cm; W. 5.9 cm Middle fragments: right part (36 B) H. 9.7 cm; W. 2.5 cm; left part (36 B): H. 6.7 cm; W. 4 cm Small fragment (36 C) H. 5.5 cm; W. 3.5 cm. Assasif: Tomb I591 Likely Dynasty 18

― rinking/May (I) drink water from the watering place for the Ka of the hereditary nobleman, the scribe, the follower of the king, Amenhotep, called […]‖ The middle fragments read: […]598[n?] Hb mry n[…]599 […] of the festival, the beloved of […]600 On the small fragment, we can see the msi sign followed by nbt ―mistress‖ and a house sign pr ―[…] msi nbt [pr]‖ ― orn of the mistress of the house ( )‖ parallel to this example, as far as the titles of Amenhotep are concerned, can be found on a fragment of a stool leg in the Brooklyn

These pieces were found in the debris of tomb I of the Austrian concession, which is a Middle Kingdom safftomb, numbered by Winlock MM 737.592 Since the tomb was reused in the early Eighteenth Dynasty, the pieces can likely be dated to the same period. These three fragments currently consist of one large piece and three small ones. The three small ones were originally two, but one of them has been broken. It is not easy to confirm the actual location of these pieces on the original object but I think they most probably come from a chair back (Fig. 145); maybe the largest one (consisting of two pieces) forms the middle vertical panel that was mortised and tenoned to the back chair rail on the bottom and the top.593 The other fragments may come from the two other splats, also from the backrest. These fragments are unique in our corpus because of the contents of the inscription which as far as I know does not exist in any other wooden chair. Second, if my reconstruction is correct, it could be compared to the one discussed by Fischer and preserved in the MMA, in terms of the position and placement of the hieroglyphs and their separation by lines, though not in the contents of the inscriptions. In this case the MMA

594

ccording to ischer (― Chair of the Early New Kingdom‖ 151) the MM chair ―is the only non-royal example...that appears on a functional chair-one that would have withstood actual use, and was not designed as an insubstantial piece of tomb equipment.‖ ischer excludes those of Kha and Sennedjem based on the funerary formulae written on their crestrails or back. For our purpose now, the technique and placement of painted hieroglyphs on both Kha and Sennedjem chairs are similar to each other, even though the quality of Kha is better, but they are both different from the MMA chair and our fragments here (in which the inscriptions are carved into the wood and not painted, and which have similarly placed hieroglyphs). 595 For the photo of this chair see Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, pl. 85; for the correction of the chair date mentioned by Killen, see ischer, ― Chair of the Early New Kingdom,‖ 149. 596 Maybe swr.i as parallel with the sentence in ―The Man Who Was Tired of Life.‖ or this see, aulkner. ―The Man Who Was Tired of Life.‖ JEA 42 (1956): 21-40, especially 24, 27 ―I will drink water at the eddy‖; Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich II, 2140-2142. See also Hans Goedicke. The Report about the Dispute of a Man with his Ba: Papyrus Berlin 3024. Near Eastern Studies (Johns Hopkins University). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1970. 119-120. 597 Or ―bAbAt‖ WB I, 419 (6-8), 455 ―Stelle des lusses;‖ Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich I, 785. For a discussion about bAbAt as well as other related words, see William A. Ward. The Four Egyptian Homographic Roots B-3: Etymological and Egypto-Semitic Studies. Collections Studia Pohl: Series Maior 6. Rome: Biblical Institute Press, 1978. Para. 33, 80, 195, 196, 197, 200. Ward discusses both bAbAt and bbt, emphasizing the idiom swr mw Hr bAbAt (nt itrw) ―to drink water from the bAbAt of the Nile.‖ He makes the distinction between bAbA and bAbAt indicating that the latter is ―an expression for the general inundation throughout Egypt not a more specific place such as water hole‖ (para.197). He asserts that Hbbt is a synonym for bbt (para. 200). For bbt, see S.R.K. Glanville. ―Some Notes on Material for the Reign of menophis III.‖ JEA 15 (1929): 2-8, especially 3; H.S.K. akry. ―Two New-Kingdom Stelae.‖ ASAE 57 (1962): 9-14, pls. I-III. For Hbbt, see E. .E. Reymond. ―The Primeval jeba.‖JEA 48 (1962): 81-88, especially 84. See also Fayza Heikal.―L‘Eau dans les Métaphores de L‘Egypte ncienne.‖ BdE 110 (1994): 205-211; Two Hieratic Funerary Papyri of Nesmin. Vol. II. Bibliotheca Aegyptiaca 15. Brussels : Fondation Égyptologique Reine Elisabeth, 1970. 30. 598 Budka reads this part as [sA]-n-Hb mry n[antw]… Hwt nTr? n… ―[Mann] des estes, Geliebter der [Myrrhe],… [im] Tempel des…‖, see Budka, Bestattungsbrauchtum und Friedhofsstruktur im Asasif, 518. 599 udka suggests ―antw” that I find plausible. See Budka, Bestattungsbrauchtum und Friedhofsstruktur im Asasif, 518. 600 I only see some signs which are difficult to make sense of. Budka attempts the guess―Hwt nTr ‖, though she is not certain.

Iskander Sadek. Popular Religion in Egypt During the New Kingdom. Hildesheimer gyptologische eitr ge 27. Hildesheim: Gerstenberg, 1987.100-107; Maj Sandman Holmberg. The God Path. Lund: C.W.K. Gleerup, 1946. 108-114; H. . Schneider. ―Ptah in Wings.‖ Essays on Ancient Egypt in Honour of Herman Te Velde. Ed. Jacobus Van Dijk. Egyptological Memoirs 1. Groningen: Styx, 1997. 293-300, especially 296-297. 591 For Tomb I, see Manfred Bietak. Theben-West (Luqsor): Vorbericht über die Ersten Vier Grabungskampagnen (1969-1971). Sitzungsberichte Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. Philosophisch-Historische Klasse) 278 Abh. 4. Wien: öhlau in Komm, 1972. 14-15. 592 In this context, I would like to thank Dr. Peter Janosi and Dr. Manfred Bietak who advised me to contact Dr. Julia Budka. A sincere thank you is directed to Dr. Julia Budka for discussing these pieces with me and providing me with details about the fragments which were mentioned in her thesis. See Julia Budka. Bestattungsbrauchtum und Friedhofsstruktur im Asasif: Eine Untersuchung der Spätzeitlichen Befunde anhand der Ergebnisse der Österreichischen Ausgrabungen in den Jahren 1969-1977. Wien: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2010. 518-519, fig. 216. The original number of the pieces was three as mentioned on the card during the excavations, as well as confirmed by Dr. Budka. 593 This form reminds me of the chair mentioned by Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, pl. 85.

42

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces Museum no. 37.446 E.601 The piece numbered 36 B bears traces of recent restoration on its back from which glue and linen remain, fixing its different pieces together. Most important for our purpose is the existence of a Middle Kingdom granite seated statue of high priest of Hathor, currently preserved at the Walters Museum, Baltimore (no. 22. 209). On its left side, we can read our same statement swr mw Hr bAbAt.602 The existence of this statue with the inscription on its seat side gives further indication that our reconstruction is highly probable, and that there is a possibility of finding more examples, though there is only a small number of preserved wooden chairs.

furniture such as boxes; thus, it would not be surprising to find it in a stool as well.606 The incised inscription on the top of the seat rail left side reads: nb Hsw m dd n.f nb.f sS nsw imy-rA xAwt n nb tAwy Hy mAa xrw nb imAxw ―lord of praises. Through that which his lord gives to him, the royal scribe, the overseer of the altar of the lord of the two lands, Huy, the justified, possessor of eminence.‖ On the right side, we have: n kA n Hsy aA mrr nb.f sS nsw mry. 607 f imy-rA xAwt608 n nb tAwy Hy609 mAa xrw nb imAxw ― or the Ka of the highly esteemed (one), the beloved of his lord, the royal scribe, his beloved, the overseer of the altar of the lord of two lands, Huy, the justified, possessor of eminence.‖

VIII.4-Fragment of a stool seat rail; wood (fig. 146) JE 15033 (SR 2/11358) H. 38.5 cm; D. 5.2 cm Western Thebes: Sheikh Abd El- Qurnah603 Dynasty 18604

Similar to the other inscribed pieces, and because of the prevalence of the common name, it is difficult to link the piece with a specific Huy.

This fragment is a part of a concave seat inscribed with the name of Huy. The broken holes around the seat rail are supposed to receive the webbing. It is most likely a flared leg stool with lattice bracing. The reason behind my estimation is the holes existing on the underneath of the fragment. The two mortises, one on each edge, are for the joint that would connect the seat to the legs. In the center, there are three holes: two of them are rectangular and large, and the one in the middle is smaller. These holes are to receive the straight and diagonal struts that form the bracing and that extend to the stretchers. The number of these holes fits well with the proposed reconstruction of Segal which I find plausible. In this case, we have three straight and two diagonal struts. If this assumption is correct, it would be significant first because, as suggested by Eaton-Krauss, ―If the piece in the Egyptian Museum derives from a flared-legged stool, the webbed seat of Tutankhamun‘s example would not be unique.‖605 We are familiar with flared legs with a leather seat rather than a linen one. Moreover, if our count of the struts is correct (three vertical and two diagonal), to the best of my knowledge, this would be the first example of having these numbers in a real stool, as we usually find two straight and two diagonal. However, three vertical and two diagonal is depicted in other real pieces of

VIII.5-Ten Fragments most probably from the back of a chair; wood (fig. 147) TR 7/11/26/16 (SR 2/11407) H. varies between 34-36 cm; W. varies between 3.5-4.5 cm Unknown provenance Likely Dynasty 18610 These ten slats are an anomaly in our corpus. 611 No other example that I know of exists in another museum. It is 606

For examples of boxes with three vertical and two diagonal struts, see the box of Tutu at the British Museum (Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 144-145, fig. 223); Box of Thuya (C.G 51119: Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture II, 30, pls. 16-17). In addition, the Cairo Museum contains a box (wrongly classified as a seat, TR 26/11/26/8), which also has the same design. 607 The word is not clear due to breakage. 608 Eaton-Krauss suggests sDAwty ―seal ‖ I prefer to translate it as xAwt, which is very similar to the leg that we have seen before except that here the ― x‖ sign is more clear and rounded. See Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools,121-122, fig. 28, pl. LIX; Eaton-Krauss, ―Three Stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem,‖ 186. 609 Hermann Ranke. Die Ägyptischen Personennamen. Band I. Glückstadt: J. J. Augustin, 1935. 233, no. 18. 610 This is according to the Cairo Museum database which I find it plausible. See Notice des Principaux Monuments Exposés au Musée de Gizeh. Cairo: Imprimerie Nationale, 1895. No. 503 (hereafter as, Notice de Gizeh). 611 In this context, I would like to thank Dr. Catharine Roehrig, Dr. Rita Freed, Dr. Peter Der Manuelian, Dr. Harco Willems, Dr. Marcus Mueller, Dr. Kara Cooney and all who have looked at this enigmatic piece. No one could place these unusual pieces for sure, and the suggestions ranged from chair to box to coffin. One of the possibilities that originally came to my mind was that they could belong to the bottom of a coffin. However, Dr. Willems points out that the unusual placement of the Coffin Texts is on the lid, not the bottom (the Heqata coffin is an exceptional case in which the slats are arranged in a grid pattern). He also adds that the slats would indeed be small for a coffin, unless it belonged to a child. Cooney also suggests the possibility that the slats belong to a sarcophagus or body container of some kind. The sarcophagi of Sennedjem and Khonsou in the Cairo Museum both are inscribed with Book of the Dead 17 but are much more lavishly worked. Since we can only try to narrow our options, the slats are regular and thin; they look to me as if they form the frame of some sort. For a discussion of Heqata coffin, see Harco Willems. The Coffin of Heqata:

601

Bietak, Theben-West (Luqsor), 15. Many thanks to Dr. Yekaterina Barbash, assistant curator at the Brooklyn Museum, who provided me with the images of the pieces and inscription which reads ―hereditary prince, chief friend, beloved, royal scribe, chief steward, Amenhotep, justified.‖ PM I/2, 842. 602 I would like to thank Dr. Regine Schultz for allowing me to see and photograph the statue. For the statue, see George Steindorff. Catalogue of the Egyptian Sculpture in the Walters Art Gallery. Baltimore, Md.: The Trustees, 1946. No.35, pls. VI, CX (35b). 603 ccording to the Cairo Museum database, this fragment was ―found in 1861.‖ 604 See Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 121-122, fig. 28, pl. LIX or ―coved‖ as called by some scholars; Eaton-Krauss, ―Three Stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem,‖ 186. 605 For a detailed description of Tutankhamun flared-legged stool, see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 119-122.

43

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom very unusual to find Coffin Text or Book of the Dead spells on a chair, which raises the question why they are depicted on these wooden slats. Did they belong to the same chair or multiple ones? Did they really belong to a chair or perhaps to other objects such as coffins or body containers of some kind? Several questions remain open and based on the absence of any similar piece; I think that we must hazard a guess based on our limited information and hope it will become clear in the future. I suppose that they might belong to a chair from the standard type of the New Kingdom. The number, dimensions, as well as form of the slats, could be compared with other examples in the Cairo Museum and elsewhere. The number correlates well with the common type consisting of seven slats making up the front of the backrest and three for the back. I assume that they come from the backrest of a chair, and not from the seat, which is often curved. The shape and technique of having tenons that are inserted in other parts of the chair and then pinned are common. There is no consistency in the size of the tenons, nor do all of them possess holes for pins. One might ask why some tenons do not have pin-holes as if they had never been used, while others do have these. The presence of two holes in the length of some of the slats is also enigmatic. They even mask some of the hieroglyphic signs. Are they not originally on the slats and then made upon the arrival of the piece to the museum to hold the slats together? Based on the absence of these holes in some of them, I would imagine that they were not originally in the piece. Based on the hieroglyphic sequence inscribed on them, it seems that they are most likely from the same chair (because we can reconstruct the order). They constitute excerpts from Book of the Dead 17.612 The only assumption that could be proposed is that they form part of a normal chair that was intended for use in daily life, and then inscriptions were added later on in order to be adapted for funerary use.

In these two very great marshes which are in Neni-nesu (Herakleopolis) […]618 3- Iwnw619 iry sip620 n nt(t) wn […] Heliopolis. The supervisor of that which exists621 […] 6-(a)Abt622 rxyt623 n nTr pw aA nty im (?)624 (in) which the offerings of the common folk are purified for this great god who is therein. 625 7- (xp)r (?) mdw nnk626 Ra–Itm627 m wnn.i628 wa. kwi ink Speech that (come into being), all belong to me. (I am) Atum-Re when I existed alone […] , and then we have ―r‖ followed by ―w‖ and two oblique strokes. It seems that the intention was to write “w w ” 616 Hannig , Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich II, 2138-2139. 617 We only have at the end of this line ―the wooden column‖ aA followed by ―the arm,‖ the rest of this word is at the beginning of line 6 to form aAbt ―offering‖ but it is strange that we have ―the vulture‖ followed by an ―m.‖ For a parallel passage from Book of the Dead chapter 17, see Hermann Grapow. . Leipzig: J.C. Hinrichs, 1915. 23; G nther Lapp. Totenbuch Spruch 17. Totenbuchtexte Bd. 1. Basel: Orientverl, 2006. 76-77. For comparanda with the Coffin Text 335, see Adriaan de Buck and Alan H. Gardiner. The Egyptian Coffin Texts. The University of Chicago Oriental Institute Publications Vol. LXVII. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1935. 211-212. See also, Raymond O. Faulkner et al. The Egyptian Book of the Dead: The Book of Going Forth by Day: Being the Papyrus of Ani (Royal Scribe of the Divine Offerings). San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1994. Pls. 7-8. 618 See line 6 for the rest of the translation. 619 Here, we have the ―reed leaf‖ followed by a crude writing of ―the bowl‖ (Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar, Sign list, W 24) and finally ―the city sign.‖ or this writing of Iwnw, instead of using ―the column with tenon at top,‖ see Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 1109 ―Heliopolis,On‖. 620 n ntt is not clear but compare it with Grapow, , 16. For iry sip, see Leitz et al., G G I, 411; Racheli Shalomi-Hen. Classifying the Divine: Determinatives and Categorisation in CT 335 and Bd 17. Göttinger Orientforschunge 38. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2000. 83-84; Molen, A hieroglyphic Dictionary of Egyptian Coffin Texts, 46; Ursula Rö ler-Köhler. literatur. Göttinger Orientforschungen 4. Ägypten Bd. 10. Wiesbaden: O. Harrassowitz, 1979. 82. 621 Literally ―the one who pertains to revising.‖ or the whole sentence, see Lapp, Totenbuch Spruch 17, 48-49; Grapow, , 16-17; Buck, The Egyptian Coffin Texts,198-201. 622 fter the ―b‖ and ―t” we have a sign that is supposed to be either ―the heaped conical cakes‖ (Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar, Sign list, M 19) or ―the wine on props‖ (M 43). See Georg Möller. w . Osnabr ck: Zeller, 1965. 25 (no. 267), 27 (no. 286). The following crude sign ( ) is supposed to be ―roll of bread‖ (X 4) or a ―sandy tract‖ (N 18). 623 We have ―r” followed by a ―x” then a ―t‖ I think what is supposed to be written but not clear is the rest of rxyt including the ―lapwing‖ (Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar, Sign list, G 23), maybe followed by a seated man and woman and finally we have three strokes. 624 The ―i” is not clear. For the whole phrase, see Grapow, Urkunden, 23-24; see Lapp, Totenbuch Spruch 17, 76, 78; Buck, The Egyptian Coffin Texts, 212-215. 625 Line 6 should come after line 1 in order. 626 For nnk (ni-ink), see Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar, para.114, 300; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 441. For this line, see James P. Allen. Genesis in Egypt: The Philosophy of Ancient Egyptian Creation Accounts. Yale Egyptological Studies 2. New Haven, Conn: Yale Egyptological Seminar, Dept. of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Graduate School, Yale University, 1988. 31, 88. llen prefers to translate it as ―the word developed, all was mine when I existed alone,‖ so he is transliterating nnk tm instead of Ra–Itm, which is plausible except that we have the sun determinative in this version. For the same translation, see Claude Carrier.

Five out of the ten slats are vertically inscribed in cursive hieroglyph with black ink. Four do not bear any inscription, and the last one only bears two signs. Beginning with the first slat from the right: 1-m SA613 ipw(y614) wrwy615(?) aA(wy) nty m Nni-nsw swab616 a(Abt)617 (Cairo JdE 36418): A Case Study of Egyptian Funerary Culture of the Early Middle Kingdom. Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 70. Leuven: Uitgeverij Peeters en epartment Ori ntalistiek, 1996. 33-36, pls. 3945; ―The Embalmer Embalmed: Remarks on the Meaning of the ecoration of Some Middle Kingdom Coffins.‖ Essays on Ancient Egypt in Honour of Herman Te Velde. Ed. Jacobus Van Dijk. Egypt Logical Memoirs 1. Groningen: Styx, 1997. 343-372, especially 358. 612 Thomas G. Allen. The Book of the Dead: Or, Going Forth by Day : Ideas of the Ancient Egyptians Concerning the Hereafter as Expressed in their Own Terms. Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilization no. 37. Chicago: Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, 1974. 26-32. 613 See Rami Van Der Molen. A hieroglyphic Dictionary of Egyptian Coffin Texts. Probleme der gyptologie 15. Leiden: Brill, 2000. 600 ―field, meadow, marsh, swamps.‖ 614 For ipwy demonstrative pronoun dual, see Molen, A hieroglyphic Dictionary of Egyptian coffin Texts, 28; Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar, para. 110. 615 The first sign is problematic, it looks like a vulture with a stroke going through it

,

44

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces 9- ntiw im·s […] bnw629 pw aA nty m […].630 Those who are there (in it) […] I am the great phoenix which is in […]

The straight back of the chair consists of four panels forming a cadre inside which exist seven splats. Each splat is separated from the other by four strips of dark and light wood.635 These strips simulate the luxurious strips of ivory and ebony used in the chair of Tutankhamun.636

IX-Collection with Known Provenance631

Signs of restoration exist throughout the chair: glue is evident on the back splats and there are three new pieces inserted into the wood on the side rails and underneath the drum. One of the legs is not properly attached to the rail. Two new metal nails exist underneath the seat. Insect attacks have caused missing wood portions on the front crossrail. This chair could be compared with three others: two of them in the MMA and one in the British Museum. The one in the British Museum is the most similar to our example with the exception that it possesses small ornamentation and ivory dots.637 One of the two at the MMA is that of Hatnofer: the construction is similar but the back of the chair differs (openwork motif, see fig. 40).638 All of these examples date to the Eighteenth Dynasty, which is why our chair fits well in this period.639

IX.1-Chair with straight back; wood and rush 632 (fig. 148) JE 33533=TR 26/11/26/6 (SR 2/11644) H. 62 cm; D. 43.3 cm; W. 47 cm Thebes: North-East Dra Abu El-Naga, excavated by Newberry, Spiegelberg for Compton in 1899633 Dynasty 18634 This well-carved chair consists of at least twenty five pieces. It has skillfully shaped lion‘s legs reposing on ribbed drums. The legs are inserted into the side rails as usual. Stub mortise and tenon is the joint used throughout the chair, whether to attach the four rails together, or legs to rails, or slats on the back together. They are rendered more secure by the wooden pins that are used throughout the chair (knee braces, elbow braces, legs to rails, and splats on the back to the frame that borders it). As is normally seen, two knee braces are used to fasten the legs to the crossrails. Each knee brace consists of two pieces. Only the front one is currently preserved as the one on the back is missing. Traces of black color exist around the knee brace. Two long elbow braces strengthened each by twenty six (13 x 2) wooden pins reinforce the side rails to the back of the chair. The seat (34 x 28 cm) is made up of a simple weave of one strand, though some webbing is missing. The number of holes is not consistent in each of the two sides.

IX.2- Chair with slanted backrest; painted wood (figs. 149-150) JE 29266=TR 24/11/26/6 (SR 2/11625) H. 79 cm; D. 51 cm; W. 39 cm Upper Egypt640 Dynasty 18, perhaps reign of Thutmose IV/Amenhotep III641 This chair is a good illustration of the classic type of chair used in the New Kingdom, not only seen as objects, but also on two-dimensional scenes. The main features of this type of chair is the sloping back, supported from behind by three vertical stiles (one center brace in the middle and one stile on each side), forming a triangle when seen from the side, all of which is joined at the top by a headrail. 642 The legs are carved in the shape of a lion with four toes and one rudimentary toe with knuckles to preserve the

Champollion. Monaco: Editions du Rocher, 2004. 804-805. 627 Shalomi-Hen, Classifying the Divine,131. For the translation of spell 335, see Raymond O. Faulkner. The Ancient Egyptian Coffin Texts: Spells 1-1185 & Indexes. Oxford: Aris & Phillips, 2004. 262-264. 628 I take wnn..i as second tense followed by a stative. For this whole sentence, see Grapow, 6; Buck, The Egyptian Coffin Texts, 184-185. 629 We are missing the beginning of the word bnw. What exists is ―the quail chick‖ followed by ―the heron‖ (Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar, Sign list, G 31). 630 Line 9 is supposed to be followed by line 3. For this whole phrase, see Lapp, Totenbuch Spruch 17, 49; Grapow, Relig , 16. 631 Sometimes we do not know the exact spot, only ―Upper-Egypt‖ or ― elta.‖ 632 For the publication, see William George Spencer Scott Compton, Wilhelm Spiegelberg, and Percy E. Newberry. Report on Some Excavations in the Theban Necropolis During the Winter of 1898-9. London: A. Constable and Co, 1908. 10, pls. V-VI. The excavators describe it as ―a cedar-wood chair inlaid with ebony and ivory with its rush seat still intact.‖ The color of the chair is a red-brown (good) wood which could be cedar as said. However, I did not see any ivory during my study of the piece. I am reasonably sure that we are dealing with the same piece because the drawings on plates V and VI fit exactly those of our chair. See also Maria C. etr et al. Seven Seasons at Dra Abu ElNaga: The Tomb of Huy (TT 14): Preliminary Results. Progetti 3. Pisa: Plus-Pisa University Press, 2009. 43-44, 72. 633 Warren R. Dawson and Eric P. Uphill. Who Was Who in Egyptology. London: Egypt Exploration Society, 1995. 104. 634 ischer, ―Stuhl,‖ 94, 98 fn. 36.

635

Compare with strips on the low chair no. 24/11/26/5 (54-55, X.5), even though the construction itself differs. 636 Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 94. 637 For the three chairs, see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 131132, figs. 182-184 and 313 (drawings). For the one in the British Museum,see http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/search_the_collection_databas e/search_object_details.aspx?objectid=119024&partid=1&IdNum= 638 Scott, ―Our Egyptian urniture,‖ 136-137, figs. 28-29, 32; Dreyfus, Hatshepsut from Queen to Pharaoh, 95, cat. no. 47. 639 s mentioned by ischer, ―composite sloping backrests did not entirely supplant simple vertical ones, which were still used in the New Kingdom.‖ See ischer, ―Stuhl,‖ 94. 640 This is all that is mentioned in the JE, no exact spot is provided. 641 ischer, ― Chair of the Early New Kingdom,‖ 147, fns. 28 and 29 ; ischer, ―Stuhl,‖ 94, fns. 31, 32; Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 35-36, fn. 63; Earl L. Ertman. ―Scribe ehind a Chair: nalysis of the Walters rt Gallery Relief No. 22.128.‖ Amarna Letters 4 (2000): 112-119. For the earliest evidence, see Norman G. Davies. The Tomb of Nakht at Thebes. Metropolitan Museum of Art Egyptian Expedition. Robb de Peyster Tytus Memorial Series Vol. I. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1917. 40-41, pl. XXIX. 642 Our chair is supposed to consist of twenty seven pieces. Compare our chair with the one preserved in the Brooklyn Museum (37.40 E). For the latter, see Manuelian, ’ G , cat. no. 37.

45

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom differentiation between the front and back. They repose on drums that are not ribbed, only painted. The two back legs are joined to the two stiles by a single open mortise and tenon joint, whereas stub mortise and tenon is the type used throughout the rest of the chair. 643 The seat frame itself is pierced by forty eight holes destined for the webbing that does not remain today. The front of the backrest consists of two horizontal backrails that are attached to two crestrails. The middle is occupied by six splats mortised onto the top and the bottom of the backrail. There is a space separating each splat from the other. Normally there are four elbow braces, though this example only has two, which connect the crestrails to the side rails of the chair. The left elbow brace is missing, but traces of the wooden pins are clear, as well as the original color of the wood. The two that are absent in this chair but are usually seen on ones like it join the two stiles on the back to the side rails. Instead of the knee braces, two stretchers are supposed to connect the front and back legs, but they are missing here, though rectangular holes still exist.

strands of rush, of which a part is not preserved indicating its use. In its construction, it resembles the classic chair but has the distinction of the two back legs being formed from a single piece with the stile. Through mortise and tenon with shoulders is the type of joint connecting the legs to the rails, which is very clear on the left back leg (figs. 94-95). The whole upper part of the left stile is missing, along with the center brace. The backrest consists of seven vertical splats that are surrounded by the crestrails vertically and headrails horizontally forming one unit mortised onto the seat. The splats are joined on the top and bottom by barefaced mortise and tenon. Four ivory pegs, two on each side at the top of the crestrail, give more strength. The curving headrail along with the top ledge is missing; only a tenon remains on the right side. Two square stretchers exist between the front and back legs for strength which are attached by barefaced mortise and tenon. Two notched elbow braces join the crestrails to the side rails of the chair. One of them is missing except for a small part. Wooden pegs reinforce them. Four short knee braces exist on the four corners of the chair. Only one of them is completely preserved, the others are either missing or broken. The central brace on the back of the chair is missing, only the rectangular mortise remains. There are cracks running with the grain of the wood. Traces of recent restoration is evident in the glue used, metal nails and white spots. Our chair could be compared with two others: one currently preserved in the British Museum is identical to it except that the front legs are more round. The second, housed in the Florence Museum, is more elegant in the construction of the legs.646 Both of them date to the Eighteenth Dynasty.

The chair has undergone restoration judging by the recent glue visible on some parts as well as the insertion of three new wooden pieces (on the drum below, between the left leg and the joint, left crestrail). Cracks and stains exist on the chair and some parts are not smooth. As Fischer compellingly points out, ―The earliest evidence for stretchers between true animal legs is no earlier than the reign of Thuthmose IV in the mid-Eighteenth Dynasty, while further examples are known from the reign of his successor, menophis III.‖644 Based on the form of the chair: inclined backrest, as well as the existence of stretchers between the back and the front legs (though not on the sides as appears later on), I think the chair could be dated to the time of Thutmose IV/Amenhotep III.

IX.4- Fragment of a chair with marquetry inlay; wood and bone (fig. 152) JE 43827 (SR 2/11414) H. 38.2 cm; W. of the base 11 cm Thebes: excavated by Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon in 1911647 Likely Dynasty 18

IX.3- Chair with straight legs; wood, ivory and rush (fig. 151) JE 43164 (SR 2/11647) H. 69.7 cm; D. 51.7 cm; W. 40. 8 cm Asasif (El Birabi): Tomb C. 37, excavated by Carter and Carnarvon645 Likely Early Dynasty 18

This expertly carved and elaborately executed fragment constitutes the right side of a chair. It consists of two layers: the vertical one behind is part of the backrest. The front part is the elbow brace that we usually see in chairs, but here it is very well-made, creating a column bordered and glued by thin strips of dark brown wood. Inside this column is a marquetry decoration consisting of dark lozenges filled in between by bone triangles, creating a very attractive appearance. The two layers are fastened by four through wooden pins. The bottom broken part is supposed to be inserted into the side rail of the chair and constitutes the rest of the elbow brace. The top of the elbow brace is notched and shows three wooden pins. The left portion of this design is made up of strips of light and dark wood alternating with each other reminiscent of

This chair consists of no less than thirty pieces. It has straight legs slightly rounded off on their top, which protrude higher than the seat rails. When seen in profile, the chair exhibits the same effect of creating a steep triangle. The seat (41.3 x 44.5 cm) is woven with double 643

It might be that the splats on the back are attached to the backrail by barefaced mortise and tenon but this is not clear based on the finishing and painting. 644 ischer, ― Chair of the Early New Kingdom,‖ 147. 645 For the publication of this piece, as well as the stool no. JE 43165, see The Earl of Carnarvon and Howard Carter. Five Years' Explorations at Thebes; A Record of Work Done 1907-1911. London, New York: H. Frowde, Oxford University Press, 1912. 72-73, pl. LXXI. For the tomb C 37, which as mentioned by Smith, was ―a large saff tomb of the Middle Kingdom which had been re-used in ynasties 17 and 18,‖ see Smith, ―Intact Tombs of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth ynasties from Thebes and the New Kingdom urial System,‖ 231; PM I/2, 615-616; etr et al., Seven Seasons at Dra Abu El-Naga, 73.

646

For more information about the two chairs: see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 132-134, 315, figs.187-189; Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 54, pl. 86. 647 This information is mentioned in the database under ―source‖ but I did not find this fragment in the publications.

46

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces the same design used in the low chair TR 24/11/26/5 (see fig. 174) but achieved with greater care. Our fragment seems to have belonged to a member of the high elite judging by its quality of workmanship. A similar inlaid fragment of a chair displaying the same technique was found during the MMA Excavations 1935-1936 and one of the rails has holes for the seat webbing. 648 I would imagine that our fragment is contemporary with those of the MMA.

curved feet only vaguely resembling those of lions, as attested from ynasty XI and early NK.‖ 652 Similar examples of this leg can be found on a fragmentary stool from Naga Ed- Deir (early Dynasty 11),653 as well as chairs on model boats of Meketre from the Eleventh Dynasty.654 The seat is woven with double strands of rush through forty six holes. Two rectangular stretchers exist between the front and back legs which are attached by barefaced mortise and tenon. Stub mortise and tenon is used throughout the rest of the stool. Twelve wooden pins secure the joints: two on each leg and rail making eight; and one on each stretcher and leg making four. The two sides that do not have stretchers have a curved profile as seen from underneath.655 A few cracks exist in the stool and there are minor portions missing from the seat webbing.

IX.5-Model chair with high back; wood649 (fig. 153) JE 28353=TR 7/11/26/7 (SR 1/11399) H. 17.8 cm; D. 8.5 cm; W. 8.7 cm Fayum region: Hawara, excavated by Petrie in 1887 Uncertain date

IX.7-Low stool with plain legs; wood (fig. 155) JE 29270 (SR 2/11626) H. 12 cm; D. 33 cm; W. 33.5 cm; Upper -Egypt Perhaps Dynasty 18656

This chair model, carved in one piece, is made of bad quality wood that is full of knots. It also exhibits low quality workmanship, clearly seen on the legs which are asymmetrical: the two front ones are square (one horizontal groove exists on one of them and two on the other); the back two are vaguely conical or just poorly shaped. Just below the seat three lines are incised and there are short grooves on the sides below the armrests. The back wraps around the seat, which forms a semicircle toward the rear. The top of the backrest runs from the low armrests up into a curve at the top of the back. The front is slightly dished. It might be possible that our piece comes from a boat model or just a model of a chair to be deposited in the tomb.650 IX.6-Stool with shaped legs; wood and rush (fig. 154) JE 43165 (SR 2/11648) H. 16 cm; D. 34.7 cm; W. 38.2 cm Asasif (El Birabi): Tomb C. 37, excavated by Carter and Carnarvon651 Likely Early Dynasty 18

This square stool consists of ten pieces, and the webbing is not preserved. Thirty eight holes are supposed to receive the webbing: eight on each side rail and eleven on each crossrail. It shows good workmanship in its execution and symmetry between holes. It has a similar feature as the last example of shaping from the inside of the leg to fit flush with the side rails that possess a small curve on one side. The front and back (with stretchers) are similar, but the curve is more angular and extends into the inside of the intersection between the leg and the seat rail. Two types of mortise and tenons are used in this stool: the first is the stub joint used between the seat rails, as well as between the rails and the legs. Barefaced mortise and tenon are used to connect the stretchers to the legs. Wooden pins are used to secure the construction. Some cracks exist on the rails, along with some knots and stains.

This stool consists of ten pieces expertly carved with curved legs that turn inward and repose on a trapezoidal base. s ischer suggests, this stool features ―legs with

IX.8- Square stool; wood and rush657 (fig. 156) JE 3332 (SR 2/11412) H. 14.5 cm; W. /D. 32 cm

648

652

Katz, The Art of woodworking, 27. I would like to thank Dr. Isabel Stuenkel, assistant curator at the MMA, for providing me with the information as well as the photo of these fragments (nos. 36. 3. 23 a-g). They currently consist of three legs, along with four fragments. As pointed out by Hayes, these fragments come ―from a plundered burial shaft under the south wall of Sennemut tomb courtyard [and they are] also of the same type and size as that of Hatnufer, but made of dark red wood (cypress?) inlaid with boxwood, ebony, and ivory.‖ For a description of these fragments, see Hayes, The Scepter of Egypt II, 202-203. 649 Unfortunately, I did not find any mention to such chair model in Petrie‘s publications at Hawara. It is mentioned in Gaston Maspero. G . Cairo: IFAO, 1915. No. 5238 but this is not helpful. 650 Compare this model to the previously described one from the tomb of Amenhotep II (JE 32444) which gives the impression of an armchair, 32-33 (II.1) 651 For the publication of no. JE 43165, see Carnarvon and Carter, Five Years' Explorations at Thebes: A Record of Work Done 1907-1911, 7273, pl. LXXI, 1.

ischer, ―Stuhl,‖ 94-95, fns. 30, 49. This same type exists on beds and tables from Jericho but dating to 1600 B.C. see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, figs. 358-359. 653 When discussing these legs, ischer states that ―if they derive from animal legs … the degree of stylization is strangely un-Egyptian‖ ischer, ― Chair of the Early New Kingdom,‖ 147, fns. 24, 27, pl. 32 B &C. See Petrie museum no. UC 16139 for a bed from Hawara with the same legs. http://petriecat.museums.ucl.ac.uk/detail.aspx?parentpriref= 654 Winlock, Models of Daily Life in Ancient Egypt, figs. 34, 38-39; Edouard Naville et al. The XI th Dynasty Temple at Deir El Bahari. Part I. The Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoirs 28. London: The Offices of the Egypt Exploration Fund, 1907. Pl. XX (high chair with the same feet leg). 655 Compare with the following stool JE 29270 (IX. 7). 656 Baker describes a similar stool to this one with the only difference being that it has a ―strengthening bracket running from leg to leg.‖ Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 136, no. 194. See also Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 44, no.15, date uncertain (no.19.671). 657 Notice de Guizeh, no. 498; Maspero, Guide, no. 5231.

47

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom from the New Kingdom,664 always associated with craftsmen working (alternating with the three-legged stools which are most famous). Our example is a simple rectangular stool painted white and carved in one block hollowed on the underneath in order to form two runners. The seat is not sharply curved as we usually see in scenes so as to make it comfortable for the person seated. However, it is also not flat. We still see a slight curve on the seat from the sides. There are some cracks throughout the stool. Some paint has rubbed off, and some wooden parts are missing.

Thebes West: Sheikh Abd El-Qurnah Perhaps Dynasty 18 This carefully executed and elaborately crafted stool consists of eight pieces and a well-preserved seat woven with rush. It has a twill pattern658 dividing the seat into six oblique sections. The legs are joined to the seat rails by through mortise and tenon joints (most likely with shoulders) maintaining the difference in height between them. The legs are rounded at the top and then squared off. Wedges are used to hold the joints in place. A similar example (in terms of technique with slight variation in the dimensions) to our stool is preserved in the Louvre Museum dating to the Eighteenth Dynasty659 and coming from the tomb of Satnem at Deir EL-Medina; this example is probably contemporary with ours.

IX.10-Low stool; wood (fig. 158) JE 26592 (SR 2/11495) H. 9 cm; D. 14.6 cm; W. 26 cm Lower-Egypt: Mahalla Perhaps Dynasty 18

IX.9 Low stool; wood painted white (fig. 157) JE 66284 (SR 3/2600) H. 10.6 cm; D. 14 cm; W. 23 cm El Assasif: Tomb of Sheshonq (TT 27), excavated by A. Lansing for the MMA in 1936660

This low stool is made of very bad quality wood. It is carved in one piece creating two thick runners. It is not smooth, and marks of a tool, most probably an adze, are clear on the piece: this is the type associated with workmen. Insect attacks are evident throughout the stool creating holes and revealing fibers. A similar example to this one is currently preserved in the Louvre Museum (E14442), though the one in the Louvre is better.665 According to the Louvre, it dates to the middle of Dynasty 18, and comes from Gurnet Murai. This type is attested in several scenes, but there are not many of actual surviving pieces, and it is sometimes confused with headrests that have the same basic shape, though curved for the comfort of the neck.666

This piece is falsely identified in Porter and Moss as the right door jamb of Menkheper, the mayor of Memphis (contemporary with Amenhotep III).661 The left door jamb is preserved in the MMA. 662 Based on my examination of JE 66284, it is actually a low stool, this may be a mix-up in numbers by Porter and Moss, especially since the piece is not inscribed. The museum database has all the same information as Porter and Moss except that the museum classifies the piece as a stool. This confusion raises the question whether or not this piece was originally found at El Assasif, or whether it is the right door jamb that was found, or if this stool was excavated by Lansing. I doubt this as there is nothing in the excavation report that refers either to the JE number or to this stool. All that is mentioned is the doorjamb at the MMA. Whatever is the provenance of the piece, it could be placed in the New Kingdom context by comparing it to other examples, most of which are made of limestone found at El-Amarna as well as Deir ElMedina.663 This type is also depicted in several scenes

IX.11-Stool painted white; reed and papyrus (fig. 159) JE 37628=TR 26/11/26/7 (SR 2/11646) H. 21 cm; D. 26.5 cm; W. 44.5 cm Provenance not sure667 Perhaps Dynasty 18

664

Davies, Two Tombs of Two Officials, pl. VIII; Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire at Thebes II, pls. LIX, LIV, LV, XLVIII. 665 http://cartelfr.louvre.fr/cartelfr/visite?srv=car_not_frame&idNotice= 10245 666 For examples of headrests, see Bridonneau, Les Artistes de Pharaon, 80-81, especially cat. no.10 d. 667 According to the SR it comes from the Valley of the Queens. Thanks to Dr. Eaton-Krauss for pointing out that on Segal notes it is attributed to the Mond Excavations in the Assasif. This is the same information as in the JE. Unfortunately, it was very difficult to find the piece in question in the publications but it could be compared with a depiction from the Tomb of Pehsucher, TT 88. For this, see Walter Wreszinski. Atlas Zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte. Vol. I/1. Leipzig: J.C.Hinrichs, 1923. Pl. 16. Wreszinski mentions a model in the Cairo Museum with no further information, and since this example is the only one made of reed, I wonder if this is the one that he means. Svarth illustrates two stools, neither of which possess a number, provenance or dimensions (both from the New Kingdom), but judging from the figures, I would imagine that the first one is meant to be our example here or one identical to it. The second, taller one with more complicated construction, though reflecting the same design, is reminiscent of one currently preserved in the Luxor Museum. Svarth, Egyptisk møbelkunst fra Faraotiden, 97.

658

Compare with the chair no. TR 26/11/26/12 (53, X. 2). Catherine Bridonneau. Les Artistes de Pharaon: Deir El-M . Eds. Andrew Guillemette and Christophe Barbotin. Paris: Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 2002. 77, cat. no. 6 c. 660 The date listed in the Cairo Museum database is ― ynasty 18.‖ The possibility that the stool was thrown into the tomb cannot be excluded based on the reuse of the tomb and the finding of several objects not related to its owner. 661 PM I/1, 43-45, especially 45. 662 Lansing and Hayes, ―The Egyptian Expedition 1935-1936: The Museum‘s Excavations at Thebes,‖ 4-5, fig. 6; see also Hayes, The Scepter of Egypt II, fig. 166. 663 Bernard Bruyère, Gaston Jourdain. Rapport Sur Les Fouilles de Deir el Medineh 1934-35. Troisième Partie : Le Village, les Décharges Publiques, la Station de Repos du Col de la Vallée des Rois. Fouilles de L‘I O 16. Cairo: I O, 1939. Pl. XXIV; Thomas Eric Peet et al. The City of Akhenaten. Vol. I. The Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoirs 38. London: Egypt Exploration Society, 1923. 62, pl. XIV (8). See also a stool made of limestone from the Petrie museum UC 16530 (according to the museum it is from Lahun 12th Dynasty). http://petriecat.museums.ucl.ac.uk/detail.aspx?parentpriref= 659

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Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces The frame of this attractive stool is made of reed stems, bound together with papyrus and then painted white. 668 The seat is covered by a layer in the form of strips that vary in thickness between 1.5-2.5 cm. It gives the appearance of woven linen that imitates the over one, under one design used in other rush seats. The underside of the seat is composed of a group of oblique and straight stems covered with paint. This construction seems to be functional, judging by this support structure underneath. An indication of new restoration is clear in the form of the black metal wire wound around the bottom of the frame and one of the supports.

Likely Dynasty 18 This elaborately carved folding stool exhibits high quality workmanship. It consists of eight pieces. Few remains of leather still adhere to the slightly curved seat rails 676 and one of them shows the way of fastening the leather: as if stitched together. The rest of the seat is missing. Drying has caused the leather to separate from the wood rails. The legs are attached to the seat rails as usual by through mortise and tenon. The rectangular squares of the joint are clear on the seat rail that does not have leather. Each set of legs is jointed at their intersection by a bronze pivot, which passes through both. Currently, as a result of restoration, there is a new metal nail passing through this junction. Evidence of restoration also exists in the form of a metal band inserted at the back of the crossing point. The legs are rounded on their upper part, and then tapered slightly as they cross. Moving down the leg, it becomes thicker for the duck‘s head, then tapered for the bill. Below the intersection point, inlaid triangles of ivory exist (though some of them are missing), bordered on both sides by engraved lines. Below is the head with the eyes inlaid with ivory around dark brown wood, as imitation of ebony pupils. 677 From the bill of the duck protrudes the tenon that is inserted in each foot-bar to create a through-mortise and tenon.

This piece is a good example of the p stool type.669 From the Old Kingdom, there is a well-executed cube-shaped statue of Spn in the same style as our example. 670 The front side of the statue is occupied by the owner titles; the other three sides are designed to look like wicker work. Evidence of its existence is well represented in New Kingdom tombs such as the tombs of Pehsucher, 671 Amenemhet,672 as well as other tombs.673 IX.12- olding stool with eight ducks‘ heads; 674 wood, ivory and leather (fig. 160) JE 29275 (SR 2/11643) H. 38 cm; L. of the seat rail 47.5 cm; L. of the foot-bar 52.5 cm; L. of the leg 47.5 cm Thebes West: Sheikh Abd El-Qurna675

IX.13- Flared-legged stool; wood (fig. 161) JE 53723 (SR 2/11650) H. 34.6 cm;678 W/D. 31.5 cm Saqqara: Mastabat Faraoun, excavated by Jéquier679 Likely Dynasty 18680

668

Thanks to Dr. Rim Hamdy from the Faculty of Science, Botany Department, Cairo University for identifying the material. 669 Silvia Köpstein. ―Altägyptische Bezeichnungen für Tische, Sitz- und Liegemöbel vom lten bis zum Neuen Reich.‖ Altorientalische Forschungen 16:1 (1989): 3-35, especially 19-20 ― Erst im NR erscheint p als selbständiges wort, aber es war sicher schon in der Frühzeit in

based on the fact that this is the only piece in the Cairo Museum that has eight ducks‘ heads, it is likely that this is the one mentioned by Wreszinski. For a discussion of folding stools, see Deborah Sweeney. ―The Man on the folding Chair: n Egyptian Relief from eth Shean.‖ Israel Exploration Journal 48 (1998): 38-53. 676 Compare the shape of the seat rails with that of Tutankhamun or the example mentioned by Manuelian and currently preserved in Berlin (Manuelian, ’ G , cat. no. 41). See also the one in the British Museum no. 29284 (Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 40-41, pls. 57-60 and fig. 21). 677 Compare our example with another small (and lesser in quality) folding stool (Tomb of Ani) in the British Museum discussed by Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 40-42, pls. 57-60, fig. 21. For the same stool, see Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 55, 66. 678 The leg that has an added wooden part as a result of restoration has a resulting height of 35,7 cm which is higher than the rest of the stool . 679 or the publication, see Gustave Jéquier and ows unham. Le Mastabat Faraoun. ouilles Saqqarah. Ed. Photographique. Cairo: L‘Organisation Egyptienne Générale du Livre, 1980. 32-34, fig. 30. 680 The stool was found together with a boomerang on the top of a mummy. Other objects (such as vases, headrest, and bowl) were also found in this modest tomb excavated by Jéquier near to Mastabat Faraoun. All that is mentioned by Jéquier is a brief list of the objects found which he dates to a tomb of the Eighteenth Dynasty with no more details. In any case, our stool fits well in this context. For comparanda with similar stools, as well as a reference to this one, see Manuelian, ―Notes on the So-called Turned Stools of the New Kingdom,‖ 126, fn.7; Eaton-Krauss, ―Three Stools rom The Tomb of Sennedjem,‖ 191; Marie-Cécile ruwier, ―Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,‖ 30, fig.1 (46-49 with their photos); Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 138, fig. 207. Baker just points to the existence of a number of this type of flared–leg stools preserved in the Cairo Museum. See also Martin Metzger. G

Gebrauch, denn die Hieroglyphe , eine Art Sitz, wird verwendet, was die Existenz eines ähnlich klingenden ägyptischen Wortes für den Gegenstand voraussetzt‖(19). See also WB I, 489 (3); Wilson, Ptolemaic Lexikon, 341; Klaus P. Kuhlmann. Untersuchungen zu Semantik, Ikonographie und Symbolik Eines Herrschaftszeichens. bhandlungen des eutschen rch ologischen Instituts Kairo d.10. Gl ckstadt: J.J. ugustin, 1977. 70; Henry George Fischer. Ancient Egyptian Calligraphy a Beginner's Guide to Writing Hieroglyphs. 2nd ed. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1983. 10, Q3. 670 For a detailed description of the statue, see Abdel-Moneim AbuBakr. Excavations at Giza, 1949-1950. Cairo: Govt. Press, 1953. 35-36, pls. XX a-b. 671 Wreszinski, Atlas Zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/1, pl. 16. 672 Nina M. Davies. Picture Writing in Ancient Egypt. London: Published on Behalf of the Griffith Institute, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, by Oxford University Press, 1958. 53, pl. XVII (3); Nina M. Davies and Alan H. Gardiner. The Tomb of Amenemhet (no. 82). The Theban Tombs Series I. London: Egypt Exploration Fund, 1915. 64, pls. XV-XVI. 673 Torgny S ve-Söderbergh. Four Eighteenth Dynasty Tombs. Private Tombs at Thebes. Vol I. Private Tombs at Thebes I. Oxford: Printed for the Griffith Institute at the University Press by C. Batey, 1957. 12, pls. X, XV (tomb of Antef No.155). 674 Maspero, Guide, no. 4936; Notice de Gizeh, no. 518. 675 See Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 64, fn.71. Wanscher when discussing the small group of folding stools with eight ducks‘ heads states that ―only one of the extant stools (not illustrated) has heads of a naturalistic shape, corresponding to those of the more usual type with four ducks‘ heads.‖ Then he footnotes (fn.71): ―Egyptian Museum, Cairo (Wreszinski, Atlas Zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/1, pl. 39 b)‖ Neither Wanscher nor Wreszinski mention the number of the piece but

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom This square stool originally consisted of twelve pieces, not counting the seat which is currently missing but was most likely made of leather. The seat is made up of four curved rails cut with a mitre angle at their corners. Through-mortise and tenon connect the legs to the rails, as well as the stretchers to the legs. Wedges are used in some joints on the upper legs for more strength. The lower part of the legs are decorated by groups of carved rings inconsistent in their number: two have six groups, two have seven groups. Three legs display a slight groove following the first band group. The fourth leg which bears vestiges of restoration evident in the wooden cylindrical part added in its middle features different decoration from the three others: the rings are incised inward rather than outward. The undecorated parts that separate the rings are flat in this leg rather than bulging, and the space between the bands is also wider. All of this suggests the possibility that it may have come from a different stool. It seems that the stool was in a very bad sate of preservation when it came to the museum. 681 Another yellow wooden piece was placed underneath one of the seat rails to hold the rail together. The stretchers are generally cylindrical in shape, and two of them seem to be new, not originally belonging to the stool. 682 New adhesive material can be seen. Cracks are clear throughout the stool. Black color is evident on the rails which may indicate burning. A big hole exists on the rail, seemingly the result of a knot that fell out. The construction as well as the finishing of the piece shows low quality craftsmanship.

the knots and insect damage. This typical leg shape can also be seen on the high stool of Deir El-Medina previously described (JE 63786),683 indicating the likelihood of this being from the same period. IX.15-Three-legged stool; wood painted white 684 (fig. 163) JE 14034 (SR 2/11621) H. 23.3 cm; D. 26.5 cm; W. 29 cm Memphis: Saqqara New Kingdom This fine stool consists of four pieces; it was not carved in one piece as the other examples of this type. The dished seat is cut in one piece together with the top of the legs. Then the straight legs were mortised and tenoned to this part. The legs are larger on their upper portion and gradually diminish in size toward the floor. Wooden pins secure the fastening of the leg to the seat. Part of the paint is gone exposing the original local wood that has knots and cracks. There are signs of wear, mainly on the seat, along with stains and cracks. This three-legged stool685 displays better technique of manufacture compared to the stool made of a single shaped piece of wood, though it is not of such high quality as the three-legged stool preserved in the British Museum (EA 2481).686 IX.16-Three-legged stool; wood (fig. 164) JE 26608=JE 30010 (SR 2/11496) H. 19.5 cm; D. 32.5 cm; W. 39.5 cm Southern Upper-Egypt: Gebelein687 New Kingdom

IX.14- Stool with shaped legs; wood (fig. 162) TR 28/11/26/1 (SR 2/11787) H. 26 cm; D. 42 cm; W. 43.5 cm Southern Upper Egypt Perhaps Dynasty 18 (if not earlier)

This simple three-legged stool is composed of two pieces.688 The whole stool is carved from one block except for the right front leg, indicating that the original block was perhaps not sufficiently large. Since this piece was intended for craftsmen, no attention was paid to its

This crude, almost square stool, consisted originally of twelve pieces, of which one leg along with the four stretchers are missing, in addition to the seat, of which there is no trace to judge. The top of the legs are rounded, then squared off, followed by a groove and ending in a shape consisting of two triangles mirroring each other. The legs are connected to the rails by through mortise and tenon. There were supposed to be four stretchers connecting the legs. Only the square holes exist. Evidence of bad restoration is clear: first, all the legs are misplaced; they all should be turned 90 degrees so that the squares are inside and not outside for the viewer. A brown material placed on the top of the legs creates an unattractive appearance. Along with stains and cracks, it looks like a portion of the wood is missing from one of the legs. Remains of modern glue also adhere to the rails. The original low quality of the local wood can be seen in

683

See the collection discovered by Bruyère (32, I.3). For a stool from the Middle Kingdom (Beni Hassan) with similar dimensions to our example but with different leg shape and looking like a hieroglyphic Sa sign, see Geoffrey Killen. ―John Garstang‘s iscovery of Wooden urniture at the Middle Kingdom Necropolis of eni Hasan.‖ Eds. Mamdouh Eldamaty and Mai Trad. Egyptian Museum Collections around the World, Studies for the Centennial of the Egyptian Museum. Cairo: Supreme Council of Antiquities, distributed by American University in Cairo Press, 2002. 645-656, especially pl. II C. 684 Briefly mentioned by Maspero, Guide, no. 4921. 685 For an example of a three-legged stool with straight legs, see Hermann Ranke and Luise Klebs. Abhandlungen der Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften, Philosophisch-Historische Klasse 9 Abh. Heidelberg: Carl Winters, 1934. 103, fig. 73 (from the tomb of Pyemre I). 686 http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/search_the_collection_datab ase/search_object_details.aspx?objectid=119073&partid=1&IdNum=2 481&orig=%2fresearch%2fsearch_the_collection_database%2fmuseu m_no__provenance_search.aspx 687 ccording to the Cairo Museum database, this stool was ―found in 1885.‖ It was later reentered under JE 30010. 688 Compare this piece to that of Sennedjem (JE 30008) even though the latter is well made. See also Davies and Davies, The Tombs of Menkhepe , pl. XI, 2nd register, in which is depicted a three-legged stool with splayed legs. One of the legs seems to be constructed in the same technique as our leg here.

Zweiten Jahrtausend vor Christus stament. Alter Orient und Altes Testament Bd. 15. Kevelaer: Butzon & Bercker, 1985. 60, pl. 30, no. 216. 681 ― ecayed‖ according to the Cairo Museum database. 682 Compare with the original drawing made by Jéquier, in which he indicates the absence of two stretchers by dots. Jéquier, Le Mastabat Faraoun, fig. 30.

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Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces aesthetics. The legs are straight and not splayed like the majority of three-legged stools.689 The right leg (13.5 in height) is connected to the seat by through mortise and tenon joint with shoulders. The tenon passes through the seat and is clear on the surface. Wedges are used to keep it in place. The stool has a flat seat, not a dished one. One big knot seems to have fallen out, causing a large hole in the seat. There are other knots on the bottom of one leg and throughout the seat, along with some cracks, missing wood, and dirt. Traces of a tool, most probably an adze, are visible on the stool.

than the last example. Knots, stains, as well as insect attacks are present. It has a dished seat that has a few cracks. There exists a slight difference in the legs: two of them have a height of 5.5 cm and the other two 6.5 cm. IX.20- Four-legged stool (divided in two); wood (fig. 168) JE 26610 (SR 2/11888 First piece : H. 11 cm; D. 21.5 cm; W. 48 cm Second piece: H. 10.5 cm; D. 16.2 cm; W. 48 cm Southern Upper-Egypt: Gebelein Likely New Kingdom

IX.17-Three-legged stool; wood (fig. 165) JE 41307690 (SR 2/11420) H. 19.3 cm; D. 25.5 cm; W. 37 cm Southern Upper Egypt: Elephantine Island New Kingdom

This stool is broken in two pieces down the middle. It is similar to the previous example but it has a more rectangular shape and pronounced raised edges. The concave seat has a thickness varying between 2 - 2.5 cm. The same fastening material as found in JE 26609 is evident in the seat, leading me to believe that the two pieces may have been restored at the same time. New small metal nails are underneath the seat for more strength, but they seem not to have been effective in holding the two halves together.

This stool was carved from one piece with three graduated-conical legs. The seat is slightly dished.691 Cracks, insect attacks, as well as stains are clear on the piece. The stool may have been painted, but little evidence of these remains (mostly on the seat). IX.18- Three-legged stool;692 wood (fig. 166) JE 26609 (SR 2/11622) H.10 cm; D. 36.5 cm; W. 39.5 cm Southern Upper-Egypt: Gebelein Likely New Kingdom

These last two examples of four-legged stools are not well-documented either in real objects or on scenes, in which we always see the three-legged type. At first glance, one might think of identifying them as tables but the fact that they are dished in shape (not flat top) prevents us from making such a classification. 694 Moreover, I do not know of any scenes depicting such a low table.695 In addition, the concept of a four-legged stool is not totally unparalleled. An example is the crude four-legged stool from Kahun (no. 261). It is currently preserved in the Manchester Museum and dates to the Middle Kingdom (Dynasty 12).696 I think that the development of this coarse example can be seen in our specimen. It constitutes a category that could be placed with the three-legged stool and not those with rush seats, even if the latter are also for domestic use. The low number of the four-legged type is the reason for confusing it sometimes with tables.

The stool is carved in one single piece and has three graduated conical legs. They are beveled and bear traces of a tool, likely a chisel. The oval dished seat (thickness 1.5 cm) has several fractures and remains of recent fastening material mixed with wood chips. IX.19- Four-legged stool;693 wood (fig. 167) JE 26677 (SR 2/11623) Max. H. 11.5 cm; Min. H. 9.5 cm; D. 28 cm; W. 38 cm Southern Upper-Egypt: Gebelein Likely New Kingdom This stool is cut out of one block of wood. The four legs are also conical, and slightly longer and more tapered 689

Compare this stool with the one at Amarna, see Peet et al., The City of Akhenaten I, pl. XIV (8). Cf. also a limestone stool from Petrie Museum (UC 16532) http://petriecat.museums.ucl.ac.uk/detail.aspx?parentpriref= 690 Porter and Moss mistakenly switched this number with the number of another piece. JE 41307 is described by Porter and Moss as ―black basalt headless statue of Tefnakht‖ but this is wrong as this is the number of our piece with the JE inscribed underneath the stool (PM IV, 37). The same applies for Beinlich-Seeber who mentions JE 41307 as a ―statue‖ based on aressy classification. See Christine Beinlich-Seeber. -1946. Vol III. gyptologische Abhandlungen 61. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1998. 779; Georges aressy. ―Statues de Mendès.‖ ASAE 17 (1917): 21-24 (He described JE 41307 as ―statue en basalte noir‖). 691 For comparanda, see Ranke and Klebs, Die Reliefs und Malereien des Neuen Reiches,170, fig. 107. 692 Maspero, Guide, no. 4929. 693 Maspero, Guide, no. 4930.

694

The Cairo Museum database describes JE 26677 as a stool or table. For a concise discussion of table forms throughout different periods of time: see ischer, ―Möbel,‖180-189, especially 184, fig. 3; Manuelian, ’ G , cat. no. 45; Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 150-155; Susanne Wohlfarth. ―G 695

Ikonographischen und Kompositionellen Bestimmung.‖ Diss. U of München, 2005. 339-340. See also, Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, pls. 103-113, especially 103-106, to compare how flat the earliest types of tables were. 696 Thanks to Dr. Karen Excell, the curator at the Manchester Museum, for providing me with the photo and information concerning this piece.

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom typical drawer form.701 On the other hand, the edges of our example are embellished with the famous torus moulding ―cavetto corniche‖ which is an unusual feature for stools and footstools, but often found in tables. Moreover, the slats that constitute the top could work for footstools (even though they have more space between each other), but I think also for a stool or table. Height is not the determining factor as we have evidence of low stools as well as tables.702 Jéquier calls it a ―tabouret‖703 which could mean ―stool‖ or ―footstool.‖ Thus, it is clear why our piece is confusing. Two-dimensional scenes usually depict footstools with the form of reversed drawer: rectangular in shape. I have found one scene from the Eighteenth Dynasty tomb (no. 73) showing a footstool with bound enemies figured on it. 704 The scene is not well preserved, but one of its top edges recalls the cavetto corniche design with its outward curve. Still, we have no real comparison on which to base our conclusion, or to definitively designate it as footstool or table. I think that our example is perhaps a footstool but of unusual design. If my assumption is correct, then I think that we could place it in the Eighteenth Dynasty, as Hayes posits: ―Footstools … did not come into use in Egypt until well along in the Eighteenth ynasty.‖ 705

Eaton-Krauss has moreover pointed to this same confusion in relation to a three-legged stool of Tutankhamun.697 Judging from the scant number of tables in general, and the four-legged type in particular, and taking into consideration the height of tables, I do not see any reason for the confusion.698 Returning back to our three stools of Gebelein, even though we cannot know the exact spot they come from, based on the fact that the majority of the stools for which we have a provenance date to the New kingdom, and also the popularity of workmen stools in this period, I tend to attribute them to the same era. IX.21-Rectangular footstool ; wood (fig. 169) JE 52348 (SR 2 /11649) H. 8 cm; D. 27.5 cm; W. 41 cm Saqqara South: pyramid complex of Pepy II mortuary temple, excavated by Jéquier in 1928699 This object consists of twenty three pieces (four legs, four rails, eleven slats, two stretchers, and two supports). It has two long and two short sides (cross and side rails) connected together by stub mortise and tenon, and attached to the four rectangular legs by through mortise and tenon that are clearly visible on the surface. Inside these four sides are eleven slats forming the middle of the construction. Wooden pins are used throughout the piece to strengthen each slat to the sides, and the pins pass through so as to be seen underneath the object. Two short sides are supported each by a wooden plank immediately beneath them to secure the construction, and it also gives a nice appearance as if imitating the cavetto corniche design. Each of the two long sides possesses a stretcher, but leaves a space between it and the crossrails. The stretchers, supports, as well as eleven slats are connected by barefaced mortise and tenon. The wood quality is not good, judging by the cracks and separation in some parts exposing the original wood. Moreover, there are insect attacks as well as missing portions of the wood.

X-Collection with Unknown Provenance X.1- Chair with slanted backrest; wood and linen706 (fig. 170) TR 24/11/26/3 (SR 2/11638) H. 81 cm; D. 51.7 cm; W. 44.2 cm Unknown Provenance Perhaps 1st half of Dynasty 18 This elegantly carved chair consists of thirty pieces. The seat is missing but remains of the linen still adhere to some of the holes (total of 74). The chair features the usual triangle when seen in profile and it is supported by the sloped back. The backrest consists of five splats that are fitted into the backrail from the top and bottom. Twenty two wooden pins exist on the chair back to attach

This piece is problematic in its categorization as it has no parallel. It was found with other objects (mirror, two ostraca, and box) which, according to Jéquier, all date to the Eighteenth Dynasty.700 The problem with this piece resides in its features of construction. On one hand, it is completely different from Tutankhamun footstools, which have been discussed in detail by Eaton-Krauss, as it does not possess the normal battens underneath, or the

701

Even the elite footstool from the tomb of Kha and Merit (inscribed with the name of Merit), conforms to the normal shape of Tutankhamun‘footstools. As emphasized by Eaton-Krauss, ― ootstools were not the prerogative of the elite in Ancient Egypt; examples made of wickerwork or small slabs of wood or stone were common in poorer dwellings‖ (126). or those of Tutankhamun which are more elaborately executed and full of decoration and symbolism, see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 127-144. For the footstool of Merit, see Leospo, ―Woodworking: urniture and Cabinetry,‖ 149-150, fig. 200. 702 I am indebted to Dr. Eaton-Krauss for discussing this piece as well as others with me. 703 Jéquier, 43-45, fig. 38. 704 S ve-Söderbergh, Four Eighteenth Dynasty Tombs, 6, pl. IX (left side of the scene, upper register). 705 Hayes, The Scepter of Egypt II, 27. 706 Manuelian points to a chair in the Cairo Museum made of ebony inlaid with ivory and he refers to the figure mentioned in Wreszinski‘s book. According to Wreszinski, this piece has an old number, 4498 (Catalogue Maspero). I think that our chair is the one meant by Manuelian but there is no trace of ivory or ebony. In addition, the same number of Maspero is the one registered in the Cairo Museum database for this chair. Unfortunately Wreszinski does not mention any JE or TR numbers. Wreszinski, Atlas Zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/1, pl. 7 c, no. 12; Manuelian, ’ G , 67, fn. 4.

697

Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 125. For a flat, three-legged table in the British Museum (EA 2469), see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 153. As pointed out by Baker, ―although the three-legged table does not seem to have been commonly used in Egypt, it had an advantage over the usual four-legged type, since it could stand firmly on uneven ground.‖ Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 126. 699 or the publication of this piece, see Gustave Jéquier. e Pepi II : Tome III. Les Approches du Temple. Fouilles à Saqqarah. Cairo: IFAO, 1940. 43-45, fig. 38. 700 ―Quelques autres objets, s‘ils ne proviennent pas du pillage de ces sépultures, appartiennent sans aucun doute à la même époque : un tabouret de pieds en bois…‖ Jéquier, Le Monument Funéraire de Pepi II, 44. 698

52

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces the crestrails, the splats, headrail, and backrail. Four notched elbow braces secure the construction; each is strengthened with wooden pins (twelve pins on each front elbow brace). Two long knee braces (each one divided in two and pinned) are used to fasten the legs and rails together. The lion legs are intricately carved, but one of the peculiarities in the front legs is the existence of five toes on the lion paws. I have not come across this fascinating characteristic in any other chair, though a few loose legs exhibit this feature.707 The lion legs repose on ribbed drums each consisting of five bands. On the back of the chair, the two stiles are attached to the legs by a single open mortise and tenon. Two wooden pins used on the top of each of the four legs from the outside add more security. This feature is usually attested in twodimensional scenes. Most likely stub mortise and tenon is the joint used for the rest of the chair joints. Evidence of modern glue is clear on the chair, especially around the knee braces. A few cracks are present. The chair exhibits the same elements used in the standard classic chair of the New Kingdom, but with the absence of the stretchers on all sides. The absence of the stretchers might suggest the possibility that our chair dates from the first half of Dynasty 18. 708

backrail. The legs are rounded on the top, and then slightly tapered until ending with a trapezoidal form separated by a thin groove from the square base at the end. This type of leg harkens back to a Middle Kingdom stool excavated by Garstang at Beni Hassan. 712 The shape persists in the New Kingdom furniture from Deir ElMedina, but it is not identical to our example (as it lacks the base).713 Our chair here could be compared to the one found in Deir El-Medina and housed now in the Louvre Museum (E 14437).714 They differ in the leg ends as well as in the division of the splats on the back. Nonetheless, they are both good examples of practical household pieces. The two are identical in their measurements 715 as if they were produced by the same workshop, despite the slight difference in style. It is also important to mention that we do not possess examples to compare them with. Recent restoration is evident in the insertion of four wooden parts on the four corners underneath the chair. Four new metal nails are clearly visible, a fact which negatively impacts the appearance of the legs. Remains of glue are around the stretchers. Three types of mortise and tenon are used in this simple chair. Barefaced mortise and tenon exist on the splats on the back. All the parts of the backrest are secured by pins. Through mortise and tenon are found between the legs and the seat rails. Stub mortise and tenon are used between the legs and the stretchers, except for the rear left leg which has a through joint instead of stub. This indicates that symmetry was not important for the maker of the piece. Knots and a few cracks appear on the chair.

X.2- Chair with straight back; wood and rush 709 (fig. 171) TR 26/11/26/12 (SR 2/11655) H. 74.5 cm; D. 42.5 cm; W. 40 cm Unknown provenance Perhaps Dynasty 18

X.3-Chair with straight back; wood painted white (fig. 172) TR 26/11/26/5 (SR 2/11652) H. 67 cm; D. 41.8 cm; W. 44.4 cm Unknown provenance Perhaps early Dynasty 18 (if not earlier)716

This piece reminds us of the crude chairs used in rural areas. It is a kind of domestic and usable piece totally different from the sophisticated chairs full of decoration and with detailed construction. The only decoration here is the weaving of the seat, of which a few parts are missing. ―The weaving pattern is a twill pattern710 and runs over 2, under 10 (but in some rows 9 or 11) strands with a shift of 1. This means that the next weaving strand moves one strand to the right, which causes an oblique effect in the weave.‖711 The chair was used in daily life as can be seen in the signs of wear. It consists of fourteen pieces. The back legs form one unit together with the crestrails. They create a frame which is divided by two vertical splats inserted between the headrail and the

This chair, consisting of at least twenty seven pieces, is in a very bad state of preservation despite the fact that it was sent to the restoration department in 1981 and came back in 1986. Since then, it has been wrapped and stored in the basement of the museum because of its condition. It is evident that it is clumsy, unpolished, and coarse, but I think that a part of this awkwardness is the result of poor quality restoration. It has lion legs reposing on ribbed drums that are not consistent in the number of bands. In its overall construction, our piece could be compared with the chair JE 33533 (Fig. 148) except for the clear difference in the high level of craftsmanship visible in the latter one, the slight difference in the dimensions of both,

707

See legs nos. TR 23/11/26/44 (XII. 25) and TR 23/11/26/39 (XII. 26 ). 708 Compare this example to the one preserved in the Brooklyn Museum discussed by Manuelian who dates it to the reign of Amenhotep III. Manuelian, G ’ , cat. no. 37. The existence of stretchers help us in determining a date in a specific period (after Thutmose IV /Amenhotep III) however, I wonder why we have simple chairs depicted without side stretchers or bracing in the tomb of Sennedjem. Is this instance just an exception, or are the stretchers perhaps absent because there are girls depicted underneath the chairs? we must deduce from this example that the idea of chairs with no side decoration did not disappear completely from the scenes after the middle of Dynasty 18: see, Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, 248, 250 (tomb of Sennedjem). 709 Maspero, Guide, no. 4927. 710 This pattern is not frequently used in our corpus. 711 I would like to thank Dr. Willeke Wendrich for providing me with this explanation (email communication, November 1st, 2009).

712

John Garstang. The Burial Customs of Ancient Egypt as Illustrated by Tombs of the Middle Kingdom: Being a Report of Excavations Made in the Necropolis of Beni Hassan During 1902-3-4. London: A. Constable & Co, 1907. 120-122, figs. 115, 117 b. 713 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 142, fig. 216. 714 Letellier, Le Louvre présente aux Musées de Metz: La Vie Quotidienne Chez les Artisans de Pharaon, no 4; Bridonneau, Les Artistes de Pharaon, cat. no. 8. 715 The one in the Louvre has the following dimensions: H. 74.5 cm; D. 42 cm; W. 40 cm. 716 Evidence of the presence of straight-back-rests exists in the tomb of Ramose.

53

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom as well as the seat technique. Standard pieces of this type have woven seats, but contrary to these and those of Tutankhamun,717 the seat of this chair is made of five wide curved vertical panels that are parallel to the side rails and not to the crossrails. Two conventional, pinned elbow braces secure the structure. The braces are stiff and seem to have been badly restored. The legs are also problematic on this chair: I believe that the back right leg is not the original chair leg718 based on the color, the new wood on the base of the drum, the absence of the back ornamentation clearly seen on the back left leg, and finally by the lack of any trace of the knee brace (neither pin nor change of color, as would be expected). Moreover, I think that the right front leg is the one that is supposed to occupy the place of the current back right leg. Thus, it seems to have been the right front leg that was originally missing. The straight backrest is composed of four panels forming a frame, inside which are five pinned splats (one is missing). Judging by the back of the seat, open mortise and tenon is the one used. In summary, we have a coarse piece full of imperfections, whether introduced in the construction itself or later restoration: missing and broken wood and splats, recent glue traces as well as other material for filling, and unequal layers of gesso in some areas.

the two stiles on the sides of the chair. They are attached by wooden pins. These braces are notched and, as mentioned by Eaton-Krauss, ―this feature may have had a practical origin, but in the examples of Dynasty XVIII furniture…the notches appear to be purely decorative.‖720 The low chair of Tutankhamun exhibits similar notched elbow braces.721 The chair of Hatnofer is also a good example of this.722 As mentioned by several scholars, judging by depictions on two-dimensional scenes, this type of chair was primarily used by women and children.723 X.5-Low chair; wood and ivory724 (fig. 174) TR 24/11/26/5 (SR 2/11511) H. 47.3 cm; H. of the leg 9.5 cm; D. 42 cm; W. 44 cm Unknown provenance New Kingdom This chair is composed of at least thirty three pieces of which seven pieces of marquetry decoration are missing.725 The two front legs are squared off and rounded at their top with a slight bevel on the top front edge. Through mortise and tenon attach the legs to the seat rails. Two notched elbow braces join the side rails to the backrest and are rendered secure with wooden pins. The backrest has a unique manufacturing technique. The idea of having vertical dividers is seen in one chair of Deir El-Medina726 but it is a crude example compared to this one. The backrest of this chair has the form of a square inside of which two dividers (one of them consists of two parts) are perpendicular, creating the appearance of four squares measuring each 12.3 x 11.5 cm. Each part is bordered with three strips of light and dark wood cut at a mitred angle and glued together.727 Only one square is complete: the other three partitions are missing some of their decoration. The panels of the backrest are mortised and tenoned together, and then ivory pins are used to fortify the construction. These also create a decorative appearance through the alteration between the good wood and ivory. Even though the backrest here has a new form, some features could be compared with other pieces. The mitred border strips are similar to two identical fragments of chairs: one in the collection previously discussed JE 43827728 and the other in the MMA.729 The chair is

X.4-Low chair; wood painted white and rush (fig. 173) TR 24/11/26/4 (SR 2/11639) H. 28.5 cm; H. of the leg 5 cm; D. 40 cm; W. 44 cm Unknown provenance New Kingdom This low chair with short square legs consists of at least twenty two pieces.719 Only a few traces of the webbing of the seat still remain. The piece is painted white which prevents us from definitively discerning the number of pieces, holes or joint type. It is also clear that new restoration has been made leaving some parts full of white paint such as the elbow braces, as well as the holes pierced for the webbing. Forty five holes are clearly visible, though there are obviously more. The back of the seat consists of five splats (one is missing) that are attached to the top headrail, as well as the seat rail by barefaced mortise and tenon and then pinned. For more strength, each splat has two wooden pins: one on the top and one on the bottom. The two front legs are attached to the seat rails by stub mortise and tenon, and the two on the back are connected by through mortise and tenon. The four seat rails are attached together, and the legs are joined to the side rails. One long knee brace connects the two front legs, of which a part is broken. Two small knee braces join the side rails to the two back legs. Two uncommonly long elbow braces connect the side rails to

720

Eaton-Krauss, ―Notes on Some New Kingdom Stools,‖ 88, pls. 6 c-d. Or ―curved brackets‖ as mentioned by Eaton-Krauss. For a discussion of the Tutankhamun low chair as well as our chair here, see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, chairs, Stools, 100-102, pl. XI. 722 Hayes, The Scepter of Egypt II, 201, fig. 115. 723 Eaton-krauss, The Thrones, chairs, Stools, 101; ischer, ― Chair of the Early New Kingdom,‖ 148-149. 724 Unfortunately, following the curator request, I was not able to see this chair outside of the case because of its bad state of preservation, and by consequence the photos were taken only from the front. 725 I am counting each part of marquetry consisting of three thin strips of wood as ―one piece.‖ Thus each square of the backrest contains four with a total of sixteen. 726 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, figs. 185, 214. 727 Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools,138, pls. LXXIII, LXXV, LXXVI. They recall the same ―thin strips of veneer with mitred corners‖ that are ―made of ebony and ivory‖ in several footstools of Tutankhamun. 728 For this fragment, see 46-47 (IX. 4). 721

717

For the chairs of Tutankhamun in which the boards are going other way (parallel to the crossrails), see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 57-74, 68-74, 93-96, pls. XI-XV, XVIII-XXI, XXXI-XXXIII. 718 My suggestion is confirmed by the description from the Journal ‘entrée which describes the piece as with ―un pied manque.‖ 719 Four legs, four seat rails, two elbow braces, three knee braces, a headrail and eight splats.

54

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces reminiscent of 24/11/26/4 in its depth and width, 730 but our example shows a higher level of workmanship. Our chair gives the impression that the backrest was constructed separately and then attached to the seat. The seat webbing is missing, and there are fractures on the rails (cords are used to hold them together). Poor quality restorations have created a sloppy appearance around the elbow braces and are most likely the cause of the white spots on the backrest.

mistake by the craftsman must be left open. It is difficult to judge, but what is certain is that we usually find two stretchers connecting the two front legs and the two back ones, but not one on each side in the absence of the front/back ones. The use of stretchers on all four sides appears only later on. Much of the paint is gone, revealing the original wood. X.8- Fragment of a chair; wood gessoed and painted white (fig. 177) TR 2/12/26/10 (SR 2/11898) H. 28.5 cm; W. 34.5 cm; L. of the stretcher 30 cm Unknown Provenance 2nd half of Dynasty 18 or later

X.6- Frame of a chair; wood (fig. 175) TR 30/11/26/2 (SR 2/11831) D. 54 cm; W. 42 cm Unknown Provenance New Kingdom This part of a chair includes only the seat rails with the one toward the back rounded for more comfort. The rail on the very back is missing, as well as the rest of the chair, but it can be compared with the chair TR 24/11/26/3.731 It should be a part of the classic type that has an acute triangle in profile and which was the standard in the New Kingdom. Remains of the two elbow braces still exist with rows of pins and they have three incised lines. Immediately behind the elbow braces are two holes that are supposed to receive the crestrails. Underneath the frame, there are four holes for the tenons of the legs. It is evident that the front two legs were fastened by a knee brace, judging by the pin traces as well as the difference in the wood color. The seat (30.7 x 35 cm) itself is missing; only a few traces of linen still cling to a few holes underneath (total sixty: sixteen on each side rail and fourteen on each crossrail).

This part of a chair consists of two legs connected together by a stretcher that is broken and rejoined by metal wires and a wooden supporting piece on its top. They may form the back (?) legs of a lion chair but the shaping is not distinct enough in order to say for sure. The gesso and paint mask everything, even the three ribbing on the drums. Each leg has a tenon on its top to be inserted into the seat rails. Much of the gesso is missing but it is clear also that some areas are bright in color and not smooth, probably due to the restoration. The paint as well as the technique indicate that this fragment and the last one most likely originated from the same workshop.733 X.9-Square stool;734 wood and linen (fig. 178) JE 30003 (SR 2/11491) H. 15.5 cm; D/W. 40 cm Unknown provenance New Kingdom

X.7- Fragment of a chair; wood gessoed and painted white (fig. 176) TR 2/12/26/11 (SR 2/11899) H. 28.7 cm; L. of the stretcher 18 cm Unknown Provenance 2nd half of Dynasty 18 or later732

This piece is supposed to be built of twelve pieces (four stretchers are currently missing). Parts of the seat webbing of linen strands still cling to the holes, which vary in number between 13-14 holes on each side. The legs are squared off higher than the seat rails themselves. Similar examples exist in museums, but sometimes the legs are rounded at their top.735 The legs are connected to the seat rails by through mortise and tenon. Around the squares of the joint, as well as the seat rails, is a brown material which is the result of a new restoration. It appears that during the restoration, they placed a wooden dowel between two rails of the seat. This is odd, especially since the joint from the exterior is rectangular. Wedges are used to hold joints in their place. This stool has two distinguishing features: the eight rectangular slits that are assigned to the stretchers are placed at the edge of the leg, not in the middle as usual. 736 The 90° angle of the

This piece is comprised of a front lion leg and a stretcher that is meant to be connected to the back leg. Paint covers the leg and the drum, but the spur on the leg‘s back can be seen. It has a tenon on its top to attach it to the seat side rail. The strange feature about this leg is that there is no other hole for the other stretcher that normally runs to the second front leg. Whether the piece has undergone recent restoration that masks the hole or whether it is a 729

Katz, The Art of Woodworking, 27. Our example could be compared to TR 24/11/26/4 on the low seat height but the tall backrest of our example creates the difference in the overall height. 731 See 52-53 (X.1). 732 Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 35-36; Manuelian, Egypt G ’ e, cat. no. 37; ischer, ―Stuhl,‖ 94 ―In the reigns of Thutmosis IV and Amenophis III, and the succeeding Amarna Period, the old reservations were gradually broken down and stretchers were introduced between animal legs, initially at the front and back only, then on all four sides.‖ For a parallel, see Heike Guksch et al. G des Nacht-Min und des Men-Cheper-Ra-Seneb: Theben Nr. 87 und 79. Archäologische Veröffentlichungen 34. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 1995. Pl. 50 (d) ―Stuhlfragment.‖ 730

733

According to the museum, they belong to the same chair. If this is correct, then our legs here should be the back ones. 734 Notice Gizeh, 132, no. 499. 735 Compare with Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 142, fig. 215, as well as those from Deir El- Medina (fig. 214); Hayes, The Scepter of Egypt I, 258-259, fig. 166 (Middle Kingdom stool). 736 I wonder if this is a mistake in construction as it is better to make the slits in the middle so as to preserve the equilibrium.

55

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom Palace of Amenhotep III at Malqata.740 In addition, the same motif of ducks, lotuses as well as other plants is present in some Theban Tombs. Ducks, as well as lotuses, are both symbols of rebirth and regeneration.741

four seat rails is formed by cutting the ends to 45° before joining. This enhances its appearance as against a simple 90° corner. X.10- Low Stool, wood and rush (fig. 179) TR 7/11/26/13 (SR 2/11404) H. 7.8 cm; W/D 23.5 cm Unknown provenance New Kingdom

X.12-Fragment of a low stool, wood and ivory (fig. 181) TR 10/4/23/5 b (SR 3/2078 b) H. 9.5 cm; W. 36.4 cm Unknown provenance Likely from El-Amarna Period

This small square stool originally consisted of eight pieces of which only six remain: the stool rails as well as two legs. The two other legs are missing, creating imbalance on one side. The remaining two are also in a very bad state of preservation, as is the rest of the stool. It is evident how the rails were connected to the square legs by through mortise and tenon. The seat webbing has a twill pattern first wrapped around the rails and then woven, creating a nice oblique pattern of which a portion is missing. It is clear how the palm material was rolled between the hands of the craftsman to twist it. This piece could be compared to those of Deir El-Medina even though there is a difference in the height.737 There are metal nails as result of recent restoration.

This fragment forms the second of a pair along with the previous piece. It is not as elaborately decorated as the one above, as it is likely unfinished. The local wood is veneered with an ivory layer forming a large panel into which is inserted three rectangles (7.5 x 2.6 cm) glued into the indentations. Two more rectangles are attached to the short legs. All of these were supposed to be elaborately embellished like the previous one. Wooden pins are used to fasten the wood and ivory together. Part of the seat is still clinging horizontally to the top of the stool. Traces of restoration are clear on the inside back of the piece in the form of recent glue. I imagine that the area of light brown wood (on the back) is supposed to hold two strips that extend to the floor. The back is gessoed and painted grey. The middle of the seat itself, which would connect this side to the previous one, is also missing. There are some cracks.

X.11-Fragment of a low stool; wood and ivory (fig. 180) TR 10/4/23/5 a (SR 3/2078 a) H. 8 cm; W. 36 cm Unknown provenance Likely from El-Amarna period

X.13-Fragment of a stool; wood and rush (fig. 182) JE 25985 (SR 2/11494) H. 17 cm; D. 31 cm; W. 36 cm Unknown provenance New Kingdom

This is a distinguished and interesting fragment in our corpus because of its theme of decoration, as well as the lavish use of ivory in a low stool such as this. It consists of one side of a stool made of wood, veneered with ivory, then finally painted with ducks, lotus flowers, and buds.738 This natural motif of ducks and lotuses is then framed to create rectangles edged by a geometric motif in the form of alternating small squares painted dark brown. The decoration is reminiscent of the ―water-bank design‖ (as designated by Weatherhead), which is welldocumented in Tell El-Amarna in the North Palace (especially the green room as well as the cattle/gazelle garden), along with the Maru-Aten building.739 The theme used in El-Amarna pavements and wall paintings possesses some similarity with the decoration of the

This rectangular stool actually consists of at least eight pieces and the webbing: four rails for the seat, two runners, and two supports below the side rails. It is unusual in its technique of construction. The seat consists of four rails shaped concavely, attached together and containing thirty six circular cut holes (eleven on each crossrail and seven on each side rail) to allow the double strands of rush to pass through and attach to its bottom. Each one of the side rails has a curved supporting bar underneath to strengthen the construction (as if there were two layers), which have rectangular holes likely destined for the struts that are usually connected to the stretchers (here missing). It is hard to presume exactly how its final shape would have looked like, and whether there were stretchers to which the struts were connected. The simple weave, as well as the side rail construction, remind us of the stool of Sennedjem JE 27290 (Fig. 132) but the uncommon feature here is that the wide runners form the two long sides. This make the piece seems like a combination of two types: the lattice bracing stool and the simple stool with runners depicted on most of the

737

Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, fig. 215; Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, figs. 65-67. 738 For the blue lotus, see Marie-Louise Ryhiner. . Rites gyptiens VI. ruxelles: ondation gyptologique Reine Elizabeth, 1986. 1-2; William J. Darby, Paul Ghalioungui, and Louis Grivetti. Food: The Gift of Osiris. Vol. II. London; New York: Academic Press, 1977. 620-634. 739 Fran J. Weatherhead and Alan B. Lloyd. Amarna Palace Paintings. The Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoir 78. London: Egypt Exploration Society, 2007. 143-146, 180-182, 210-211, 342, figs. 71, 117, col. pl. 3 a-b, col. pl. 8, pl. 39; ran Weatherhead. ―Painted Pavements in the Great Palace at marna.‖ JEA 78 (1992): 179-194; Rita E. reed, Yvonne J. Markowitz, and Sue H. ‘ uria. Pharaohs of the Sun: Akhenaten, Nefertiti, Tutankhamen. Boston: Museum of Fine Arts in Association with Bulfinch Press/Little, Brown and Company, 1999. 122-123, fig. 83.

740

Desroches-Noblecourt, Toutankhamon et son Temps, 58-59, no. 19. A discussion of the lotus and duck symbolism will follow in chapter three, 72, 75. 741

56

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces workmen scenes.742 The piece gives the impression of being the top of a lattice stool, placed on these runners, resulting in this unique design. The crossrails are attached to the runners by long wooden pins, clearly visible on the edge. Traces of white paint exist on some parts of the seat, along with dirt. It is in a bad state of preservation as complete parts of the sides are missing, and there are some cracks. Unfortunately, I do not know of a similar piece with which to compare it. Based on its similarity to the lattice stool which is a well-documented type, as well as the stool with runners, I would say it is likely New Kingdom in date.

some stains, cracks and knots. The two flattened seat rails are joined to the legs by stub mortise and tenon, and four wooden pins secure the construction. It is unusual that the legs are attached to foot-bars by two different joints. Two of them are through mortise and tenon and the other two are stub mortise and tenon. Both are pinned (four pins in total). A similar stool to this one is currently preserved in the Ägyptisches Museum Berlin (no.12551) and dated to the Eighteenth Dynasty by Baker and Wanscher (14501400 B.C.).743 When discussing this piece from Berlin, Wanscher points to a similar example housed in the Cairo Museum (Width 46 cm) but which is ―of inferior quality.‖ He does not mention a specific number, but this one, as well as the next piece (JE 30005), are the only folding stools that lack the ducks‘ head motif, and I assume that the intended one is JE 30005. Speaking about quality, I think that this one is better than the following piece, but we also have to take into consideration the inconsistencies between the types of joints. As emphasized by Wanscher, we do not have many examples of this type to compare.744

X.14- Three-legged stool; wood (fig. 183) TR 26/11/26/9 (SR 2/11640) H. 12 cm; D. 16 cm; W. 29 cm Unknown provenance New Kingdom This is a crude example of the three-legged stool that is carved from a single piece of wood. Traces of white paint exist on the legs, which have a conical shape. Missing wood is clear in one of the legs, as well as the slightly dished seat (thickness 3 cm). A knot has fallen out, leaving a hole in its place. The legs are slightly different in length creating an uneven height. The piece as a whole shows poor craftsmanship but it is the common type used and is well depicted on two-dimensional scenes. Because of its popularity, it is difficult to assign it to a specific context, lacking a precise provenance.

X.17-Fragment of a folding stool; wood and bronze ( fig. 186) JE 30005 (SR 2/11409) H. 47.5 cm; L. of the seat rail 43.5 cm; L. of the foot-bar 47 cm; L. of the leg with tenons 44.5 cm; L. of the inserted leg 39 cm Unknown provenance Perhaps mid Dynasty 18

X.15- Low three-legged stool, wood (fig. 184) TR 24/11/26/2 (SR 2/11637) H. 9.5 cm; D. 13 cm; W. 20 cm Unknown provenance New Kingdom

This is part of a stool which is supposed to be composed of eight pieces, of which three are missing (one seat rail, one leg and one rounded foot-bar), as well as the seat itself, that was most likely made of leather. The two legs are fastened with a bronze pivot (the color has become green over time) that passes through the two legs. The other pivot does not exist. What currently can be seen are the four stub (mortise and tenon) joints connecting the two legs to the upper seat rail, as well as to the footbar. A wooden pin should exist for more strength at each point of the intersecting joint, though three are missing now. Traces of modern glue still remain, and there are some instances of insect attacks. This stool is similar to the previous one in the construction, as well as the absence of ornamentation, and seems to date from the same period. It is perhaps also from Thebes like the one in Berlin.

This modest stool is fashioned from a single piece of wood. The seat is very slightly shaped with rounded edges. The legs have a graduated conical form. A few cracks and small knots indicate the low quality of wood and are reminiscent of the low stools used by craftsmen to sit on while working. X.16-Folding stool; wood (fig. 185) TR 26/11/26/11(SR 2/11654) H. (when open) 33 cm; L. of the seat rail 43.3 cm; L. of the foot-bar. 46.5 cm; L. of the leg 51 cm Unknown provenance Perhaps mid Dynasty 18

X.18- Fragment of a folding stool leg; wood (fig. 187)

Even though this stool is lacking decoration, it is a nice piece of craftsmanship. It consists of eight pieces and a missing seat, most likely of leather. The two cylindrical foot-bars are attached by a modern cord because of the piece‘s bad state of preservation, especially since the two pivots that connect the legs are absent. Some wood is missing at the intersection of the two legs, and there are 742

743

Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 136-137, fig. 196; Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 13, 40, 42, 308. Wanscher, when discussed the example in erlin, states ―this simple stool is extremely refined in both design and workmanship. The joints of the legs and the foot-bars are smoothly rounded into a form allowing a strong tenon and mortise construction. The legs are not turned, but tooled by hand into a baluster shape, whose oval section is twisted to align with both the seat rails and the foot-bars. This is a very advanced detail. The gently concave seat rails are rounded on the underside, tapering to a thin edge‖ (42). I think our example also fits in this period. 744 Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 40.

Compare with the low stool previously discussed JE 66284 (48, IX.

9).

57

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom TR 26/11/26/2 (SR 2/11512) L. 51 cm. Unknown provenance Likely Dynasty 18

this model is the number of ducks, as well as the construction of the piece; in other words, how would it look in its final state? We are accustomed to seeing folding stools either with four or eight ducks‘ heads to create equilibrium between the seat, legs, and the footbars. Judging by the perpendicular leg with one duckhead, there is neither a space nor an intention for a second duck head leg. The next piece that we will discuss is also fashioned in the same way, which is why I imagine that they belong to each other. Maybe because it is fashioned to be a model, and not for daily use, the craftsman were not concerned about stability. In this case, the two legs could have been attached together at their intersection and finished with a simple wooden seat.

This fragment constitutes one of the four legs of a folding stool with ducks‘ heads. It is simple and lacking decoration comparing to other well-executed and nicely inlaid ducks‘ heads stools that became common during the second half of the Eighteenth Dynasty.745 The hole in the middle of the leg is intended to receive a bronze pivot to connect it with the second leg forming an ―X‖ shape, thus allowing the folding of the piece. The tenon that protrudes from the bill of the duck is supposed to enter into one of the two foot-bars in order to make the joint and fasten the whole stool together. The leg has cracks. Imitation of the ivory ducks‘ eyes and the triangles are simply carved here.746

X.21-Fragment of a model of a folding stool; inlaid wood (fig. 190) TR 15/6/26/11 (SR 2/11339) H. 14 cm; L. of the foot-bar 11 cm Unknown Provenance New Kingdom

X.19-Fragment of a folding stool leg; wood and ivory ( fig. 188) TR 26/11/26/3 (SR 2/11513) H. 19.2 cm Unknown provenance Likely Dynasty 18

This is similar to the previous piece, possessing the same decoration and quality of wood. The only difference is the height or length of the piece, as this one is more broken. It seems that we have a model consisting of six ducks‘ heads.

This part constitutes the end of one of four legs forming a folding stool with ducks‘ heads (either four or eight). 747 The eyes, as well as one small triangle decorating the duck head, are inlaid with ivory. The front of the slightly open duck bill forms the tenon that will be inserted into the foot-bar (missing) as if it were biting it.

X.22-Square stool with flared legs; wood and leather (fig. 191) TR 7/11/26/1 (SR 2/11393) H. 22 cm; W./D. 38 cm Unknown Provenance Likely Dynasty 18 but could be 19

X.20-Fragment of a model of a folding stool; inlaid wood (fig. 189) TR 15/6/26/10 (SR 2/11338) H. 23 cm; L. of the foot-bar 10.5 cm Unknown Provenance New Kingdom

This nicely carved stool (currently composed of eight pieces) consists of four legs connected by four stretchers ending each with a papyrus umbel. The seat made of leather is missing, but traces still adhere to the top of three legs. The leather was supposed to be stretched over the seat covering the leg tops which is why we see yellow paint followed by black, most likely to imitate gilding and ebony.749 One leg still bears green traces. The tenons on the top of the legs are wedged so as to hold the structure tightly. Each leg is decorated with eight groups of four incised rings. The good quality of the wood combined with fine workmanship is evident in this elaborate piece. The legs are cylindrical in their upper part then tapered and flared again, expressing the typical flared legs that appear at the beginning of the New Kingdom.750 Four out of eight papyrus umbels are missing; they give a nice appearance to the stretcher, and at the same time conceal the joints connecting the

This fragment depicts one side of a folding stool decorated with three ducks‘ heads: two of them (with turned heads) form the edges of the foot-bar, and the third one, as usual, has a half open bill to firmly hold the footbar. It is attached by means of through mortise and tenon and secured with a through peg. It has inlaid eyes (perhaps ivory?)748 inside which is a darker wood conforming to the normal practice of having the inner circle darker in color to emulate the pupil. The top is decorated with four lines separated by a row of five circles. The wood is much damaged. What strikes me in 745

Manuelian, ’ G cat. no. 41. For the Tutankhamun discussion, see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 112-119. 746 For an inscribed and more elaborate leg, see Eva Eggebrecht and Arne Eggebrecht. Aufstieg Zur Weltmacht. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 1987. No. 220. For complete versions of this type of stool, see Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 21, 23. 747 Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 19. Compare this fragment with the one found in the tomb of Amenhotep II, C.G. 24669 (33, II. 2). 748 It was difficult to clearly judge the material but I think that above the eyes are three feathers bearing recent white gesso as the result of restoration, although the gesso could also be original, in order to be painted yellow.

749

Compare with the luxurious flared-legged stool of Tutankhamun which is in a very bad state of preservation. Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools,119-122, pls. LVI-LVIII. 750 Manuelian, ―Notes on the So-called Turned stools,‖ 126. Compare also with the crude craftsmanship of the stool JE 53723 (49-50, IX.13) in our corpus.

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Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces stretchers to the leg.751 There are two squares painted black approximately on the same level as the stretchers, imitating the stylized through joints.752 Traces of restoration are clear in the leather wrapped around the stretchers and the umbels. A vertical crack exists on one of the legs. The absence of the bracing might let us place it in the first half of Dynasty 18, though there is a possibility of it being from a later period.753

cylindrical on their top, tapered at the bottom and then flared out again to create the usual delicate and attractive form of this type of leg. On the outside of the legs two squares imitate through joints. On the inside, two rectangular holes can be seen: they are supposed to receive the missing stretcher as well as one of the diagonal struts. Vertical cracks run down the legs, and there is missing wood on the rail. As mentioned by Manuelian and others, the supporting lattice bracing appears in flared-legged stools starting with the reign of Amenhotep III.755 The best and finest surviving example of this type is the one currently preserved in the British Museum (no. 2472).756 The general construction of our fragment here could be compared to that of the British Museum, except that the latter has cylindrical stretchers and struts. In addition, our example features less decorative detailing. Based on this evidence, our stool fragment could be dated to the second half of Dynasty 18 or later.

X.23- Frame of a stool; wood and leather (fig. 192) TR 7/11/26/3 (SR 2/11395) W. 40 cm; D. 39.5 cm Unknown Provenance Likely Dynasty 18 but could be 19 This frame forms the seat of a flared-legged stool, which is in a very bad state of preservation. I suspect that this is the seat of the previously described flared-legged stool (7/11/26/1); I base this assumption on the dimensions of both, which fit well together, and also on the remaining part underneath the frame which includes three holes for the missing legs and the upper part of another leg. Moreover, there is no other flared stool that our frame could nicely correspond to.754 The color of the leather seems to have darkened over time. It consists of four curved rails attached together and then glued to the leather. Traces of gesso exist on the seat. Very distinctive are the holes bordering the square that exists in the middle of the seat, perhaps in order to affix the leather to the rails. In any case, the execution of the seat is elaborately achieved. There are several separations in the leather on both sides, as well as modern glue and stains.

X.25 -Fragment of a stool; wood painted white (fig. 194) TR 29/5/32/2 (SR 3/2602) H. 35.3 cm; W. 42.2 cm Unknown provenance Dynasty 18 or 19 This piece is a part of a stool supposedly with lattice bracing, and painted white. It constitutes one of the two larger sides to which two square, plain legs are attached by stub mortise and tenon. A wooden pin is used on the top of the rail and the leg to secure the construction as is typical. The stool exhibits the standard technique for manufacturing this type, and was very popular in all categories of society from the king to the workers. This is clear from the many surviving examples and representations in tomb paintings. 757 The underneath of the seat rail has two rectangular holes for the struts. From each hole, two struts are supposed to derive (one diagonal and one straight). The total should be two straight and two diagonal struts that run from the middle of the seat rail to the missing stretcher. Each leg has on its bottom two slightly offset holes for the stretchers. From the inside, the concave seat rail has two slots on one side and one larger slot on the other. It seems that the original intention of the craftsman was to make double stub mortise and tenon joints to be inserted in the side rail of the stool. The other larger side most likely has been broken. There is no clue as to the kind of seat used;

X.24- Side of a flared- legged stool; wood (fig. 193) TR 5/11/26/5 (SR 2/11355) H. 32 cm; W. 37.2 cm Unknown provenance Likely 2nd half of Dynasty 18 or later This side of the stool consists of eight pieces: two flared legs are inserted into a seat rail which in turn is separated from the stretcher below by latticework composed of two inner vertical and two diagonal struts. The top of one of the struts clearly shows that it was attached to the seat rail by barefaced mortise and tenon. It seems that dowels are connecting the legs to the seat rail. There is no evidence of any kind of seat. Each of the two legs is engraved in seven groups. Each group contains four incised rings except the top group, which consists of two. The legs are 751

755

In elaborate examples, these umbels as well as the squares of ―stylized through joints‖ as called by Manuelian are made of ivory as in the example from the British Museum no. 2472. 752 Manuelian, ―Notes on the So-called Turned stools,‖ 125. 753 s stated by Manuelian, ―The earliest examples of flared-leg stools contain stretchers only, without lattice bracing.‖ Then he proceeds on, ―The simpler versions, however, both with and without bracing, continue throughout ynasties 18 and 19.‖ See Manuelian, ’ Golden Age, cat. no. 40. 754 For a list of flared-legged stools see ruwier, ―Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,‖ 46-49. Then Eaton-Krauss (Three Stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem 191) completes the list.

For a detailed discussion about flared-legged stools, their dating along with their earlier appearance, whether in two-dimensional scenes or in real objects, see Manuelian, ―Notes on the So-called Turned Stools of the New Kingdom,‖ 125-128; Bruwier, ―Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,‖ 29-49; Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 121-122. For a brief mention of our piece here, see Eaton-Krauss, ―Three stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem,‖ 191. 756 Nigel Strudwick. Masterpieces of Ancient Egypt. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, 2006. 196; Manuelian ’ G cat. no. 40. 757 For a comparative example of how our stool would look, see Manuelian, ’ G , cat. no. 42.

59

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom whether paneled or woven.758 Some of the paint has fallen off, leaving the wood exposed. The curved seat rail is broken in its middle. As mentioned, several examples have survived from this type such as the stools of Kha at the Turin Museum, and those of Sennedjem at the Cairo Museum as well as countless others. This popularity makes it difficult to assign a specific period, though it might be from Thebes.

X.27-Pedestal of a canopy; faience765 (fig. 196) TR 1/12/26/3 (SR 2/11869) H. 8.5 cm; each side of the base 11 cm Unknown provenance Uncertain date This is a nice example of a type of pedestal that Vercoutter pointed to in his article ―Supports de Meubles, léments rchitectoniques, ou ‗établis‘‖ 766 The museum database classifies it as ―a pedestal for a bed or a chair‖ but this is not exactly its true function as it is hollowed from its inside, which means that it is supposed to hold an upright (likely cylindrical) post free of decoration (not lion claw and drum). Our example here is square at its base with a rounded top. Its main function is to support the posts of the canopy. A fine depiction illustrating this use can be seen on the Old Kingdom tomb of Kai-emanch at Giza.767 Here, the cylindrical tent poles are inserted in heavy conical stone pedestals. Because of the uncommon form of this pedestal, it was confused with the above-mentioned pedestals of trapezoid form. 768 Although this piece is not intended for use with chairs or stools, I have included it to provide a point of contrast to the others in our corpus.

X.26 -Cylindrical fragment of the rail (of a stool or bed)759 (fig. 195) Wood and leather TR 7/11/26/17 (SR 2/11408) L. 73 cm Unknown provenance Uncertain date This long cylindrical part constitutes a rail of a stool or a bed. It has eight rectangular slots (0.5 cm) for the webbing made of leather, of which only a part exists measuring 28 x 31cm. These slots exist on the interior and bottom surfaces of the rail so that leather straps interwoven together could pass through them to form the webbing of the seat. The leather design has a chevron or ―V‖ shaped pattern. This rail construction is not so frequent in stools; the only two examples of which I am aware are a simple large wooden stool with remains of leather straps preserved in the Royal Ontario Museum in Canada (no. 910. 37. 14) with unknown provenance, 760 and one in the Musées Royaux d‘ rt et d‘Histoire at Brussels which, according to Seipel, dates to the New Kingdom (Dynasty 19/20).761 The latter is a very elaborately carved stool with the front having lion heads. No clue exists about the webbing of the seat, but the side rails are pierced with circular, not rectangular, slots and the dimensions do not match with the fragment that we have. The fragment in question reminds me of the beds found at Tarkhan in which the legs, as well as the side and crossrails, meet in the intersection in a ―cross halving joint,‖ where one side crosses over the other part.762 This old type, adopted in beds in the early dynasties, remains in use in the New Kingdom.763 Based on the shape and design of beds, as well as their dimensions, along with the examples mentioned, our fragment could either be a crossrail of a stool (in this case it would be early in date) or a side rail of a bed.764 In any case it is valuable for the purpose of comparison.

XI-Elbow Braces XI.1-Two elbow braces (from a chair or bed); wood painted black and white (fig. 197) TR 29/5/32/5 a-b (SR 3/2604 a-b) Piece a: H. 18 cm; D. 9.5 cm; Piece b: H. 18.7 cm; D. 8 cm Unknown provenance These two braces belonging to the same piece are supposed to connect the side rails to the crestrails. They are made of local wood which is why the craftsman masked its bad quality by painting them black on the margins with lozenges on a white background to imitate luxurious ebony and ivory pieces.769 Some of the wooden pegs are still in place while others are missing. XI.2-Elbow brace (from a chair or a bed); wood painted black and white (fig. 198) TR 2/12/26/7 (SR 2/11895) H. 26 cm; D. 29 cm 765

Maspero, Guide, no. 5236. Vercoutter, ―Supports de Meubles, léments rchitectoniques, ou ‗établis‘‖ , 81-102. 767 Naguib Kanawati. Tombs at Giza. Vol. I : Kaiemankh (G 4561) and Seshemnefer I (G 4940). The Australian Centre for Egyptology Reports 16. Warminster: Aris and Phillips, 2001. 33, pl. 32 (upper register); Hermann Junker. Gîza IV. Bericht über die von der Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien auf gemeinsame Kosten mit Dr. Wilhelm Pelizaeus unternommenen Grabungen auf dem Friedhof des Alten Reiches bei den Pyramiden von Gîza. Bd. 4. Die Mastaba des Kai-emanch. Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien Philosophisch-historische Klasse Denkschriften Bd. 71, Abh 1.Wien: Hölder-Pichler-Tempsky, 1940. 40- 41, pl. 10. 768 But the latter only possess a depression that allows the reposing of the ribbed drum on it giving more protection to the leg. 769 Compare these elbow braces with those in the chair of Sennedjem JE 27256 (40-41, VII. 8). For a luxurious and very elaborately made example, see the fragment number JE 43827 (46-47, IX.4). 766

758

Considering the lack of mortise holes that would have indicated a paneled seat, I believe it was intended to be woven. However, the width of the seat rail is unusually thin. 759 The Cairo Museum database categorizes our fragment as ―cylindrical fragment of a chair,‖ though the ―chair‖ classification is clearly wrong. 760 See Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 37, pl. 47, in which he describes the stool (L. 82,6 cm; W. 48,2 cm; H. 26 cm). 761 Seipel, G G 246, no. 409 (H. 36.3 cm; W. 46.1 cm; L. 38 cm). For this same stool, see Dorothea Arnold, ―The Royal Palace: rchitecture, ecoration and urnishings,‖ 271295, especially 272, cat. no.147. 762 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 24-26, pls. 29-34. 763 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 26, pl. 35. 764 For examples of beds, see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 2425, figs. 7-8; Seipel et al., G 72-73, no. 33.

60

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces Unknown provenance

can be easily affirmed by the presence of two significant titles that Fischer alludes to,773 examples of which exist on Middle Kingdom seals, stelae and a papyrus from Dynasty XIII. The first is mDH xndw ―carpenter of chairs.‖774 The second and more telling for our purpose is the imy-rA wart775 n irw wHmt “the overseer of the guild for making furniture legs,‖ 776 as well irw wHmt777 ―the maker of furniture legs.‖ rom the Early ynastic Period, we are accustomed to seeing bull legs made of ivory along with those of wood. As pointed out by Baker, they show ―tangible evidence of the skill of the early craftsmen, they exhibit crisp carving and a design combining realism with a highly stylized sense of form which served as a model for the furniture-makers of Egypt for the next three thousand years.‖778 Egyptian craftsmen were able to execute these splendidly shaped legs with animal form (bull legs begin to diminish in number during the Old Kingdom, and then are replaced by lion legs).779 These skilful carpenters were successful in differentiating between the front and back legs which is why we can distinguish them by the straightness of the front and the curve of the back. Often, we can even identify the right from the left further indicating the precision of the craftsmen. Even though we do not have many examples mentioning chairs and stools in texts, the above evidence deduce that there does exist a category of craftsmen specialized in the legs production also in the New Kingdom. The existence of the above mentioned titles, even on seals and stelae only, emphasizes that each person appears to be accomplishing a specific task. This does not deny the possibility that, in the case of a simple piece, it could be made by one craftsman from the beginning to its end.

This brace is similar to the previously described braces except that this one is painted completely white, and black is used only to make three lines on each edge. Six pegs are used throughout the brace, of which two cylindrical long ones remain. It creates a 90° angle, which underscores our previous discussion about the difficulty of bending with such pieces (see chapter one). Usually, we find a row of two pegs to fasten the braces and not one as seen here.770 XI.3-Elbow brace (from a chair or a bed); wood painted white (fig. 199) TR 2/12/26/8 (SR 2/11896) H. 31.5 cm; D. 12 cm Unknown provenance This is a very roughly shaped elbow brace that shows low craftsmanship. The corner does not form a 90° angle as would be expected. Even the six wooden pegs are placed without measuring between them. XII- Legs The Cairo Museum houses a group of loose legs (fortysix furniture legs) of different forms and dimensions (TR 23/11/26/1-46). I am not going to cover all of them as I have excluded those which likely belong to beds, as well as those the construction technique of which places them in the earlier periods. I think that many of them could have come from chairs and stools based on their length, as beds are usually shorter, but this is difficult to consistently ascertain as we have low chairs and stools in some cases.771 Dimensions only are not a reliable indicator. I have placed them here because I suspect that the majority of them belong to my corpus, but I cannot rule out the possibility that some of them belong to beds. A good portion of them might be from Deir El-Medina, but nothing is definitive as we have no information about them. The provenance of all of them is unknown.772 I will only mention their numbers and dimensions with the hope that in the future more data become available.

XII.1-Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot; wood (fig. 200) TR 5/11/26/1 (SR 2/11351) H. 36.5 cm; Dia. at the top 2.6 cm;

773

ischer, ―Stuhl,‖ 93, fns. 9-10. WB III, 314; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 405 (Stühleschreiner). For the example of the title, see Alan Gardiner. ― Unique unerary Liturgy.‖ JEA 41 (1955): 9-17, especially 14, pl. 5 (81). Gardiner also correctly reads the word nHpty immediately after mDH xndw, which means ― rillbohrer.‖ or nHpty, see Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 446 (which is very interesting because the tool used is indicated to explain what the carpenter is using to achieve the task). 775 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch. Mittleres Reich I, 644 (Gilde). 776 For this title, see William A .Ward. Index of Egyptian Administrative and Religious Titles of the Middle Kingdom: With a Glossary of Words and Phrases Used. Beirut, Lebanon: American University of Beirut, 1982. 19, no. 109. For seals titles, see Geoffrey Thorndike Martin. Egyptian Administrative and Private-Name Seals: Principally of the Middle Kingdom and Second Intermediate Period. Oxford: Griffith Institute, Ashmolean Museum, 1971. Nos. 193, 281, 614, 875, 1651, pls. 8 (10), 20 (39), 22 (28), 42 (24). For some stelae preserved in the British Museum (EA 223, EA 558), see Stephen Quirke. Titles and Bureaux of Egypt, 1850-1700 BC. Egyptology 1. London: Golden House, 2004. 76-77. Quirke translates the title as ―overseer of a section of furniture carvers.‖ 777 Hannig, Ägyptisches Wörterbuch: Mittleres Reich I, 374 ―Möbelbeinhersteller.‖ 778 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 21. 779 Eaton-Krauss, ―Notes on Some New Kingdom Stools with ulls‘ Legs,‖ 85. 774

The extensive collection of legs, whether for chairs, stools or beds suggests mass-production, that is, the presence of a category of craftsmen specialized in the manufacturing of chairs legs. This specialization of work 770

Compare with chair JE 29266 (45-46, IX. 2) that also has only one row of pegs. 771 Animal legs could also be used for game boxes such as the one of Tutankhamun. For this, see Christiane Desroches-Noblecourt. Tutankhamen:Life and Death of a Pharaoh. New York: New York Graphic Society, 1963. 233, 304, pl. XLIX B; Howard Carter. The Tomb of Tut-Ankh-Amen. Vol. III. New York: Cooper Square Publishers, 1963. 232, pl. LXXV. The Cairo Museum contains three well-made legs that could be categorized under this group. However, they are more likely for beds or game boxes, and not for chairs or stools, as they possess a tenon underneath their drum in order to be inserted into a sledge or something similar. They form a group of three legs inscribed all with the same number JE 29088. 772 All the legs that will be discussed below, with the exception of three (XII. 5; XII. 27; XII. 31), have an unknown provenance.

61

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom middle 2.4 cm; bottom780 2.2 cm

stool legs.785 It is decorated with three incised lines that do not continue around the back. The beveled base also has the shape of a webbed duck foot. A few parts are missing, along with a portion of the tenon top.

This leg made of low quality local wood has severe insect attack that creates a tunnel that runs along its side. It is incised with four lines. The tenon is broken. The leg is beveled at the bottom to allow its easy repose. The general appearance of the piece is not elaborate as compared to the following legs of three-legged stools but, of course, the wood quality plays a role here. Apart from the decoration, it does not feature the sharp curve that will be seen on the next two legs. This leg seems to be one of three forming a three-legged stool, but contrary to the usual undecorated state of such legs, this one shows some definition. The practice of using animal legs in three-legged stools is documented in the one of Tutankhamun which has canine legs.781

XII.3-Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot; wood (fig. 202) TR 5/11/26/4 (SR 2/11354) H. 31 cm; Dia. at the top 2.5 cm; middle 3.5 cm; bottom 3.4 cm This leg is similar to the previous one in its technique of manufacture, decoration as well as the color of the wood. One side of the upper leg is broken and there is no trace of the tenon. I would suggest that this one as well as the previous one belong to the same three-legged stool.

Otherwise, the three-legged stool is the most utilitarian type that is associated with craftsmen and artisans. However, we have two plain three-legged stools deriving from the tomb of Kha and one from the tomb of Sennedjem that is a little bit different in its design (see fig. 138). Eaton-Krauss is correct in her commenting on those of Kha that ―the design and workmanship of both are comparatively crude.‖782 The presence of these three stools indicates that they were also sometimes incorporated into tombs of the elites. Of special interest here is the ducks‘ webbed feet. The duck motif, especially heads, is well documented in a considerable number of preserved folding stools, but this is not the case for three-legged stools. Their existence is not inconceivable, but new to the best of my knowledge in this category.783 Judging by the inclusion of the duck theme starting in the middle of the Eighteenth Dynasty and later, I estimate this type of leg could be dated no earlier than this period.784 Based on the fact that the majority of examples known to us come from Thebes, especially Deir El-Medina, I suppose that this leg together with the following three could also come from the same area and that they belong to an elite person despite the fact that not all of them exemplify high quality workmanship, though some are elaborately made.

XII.4-Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot; wood (fig. 203) TR 5/11/26/3 (SR 2/11353) H. 36.8 cm; Dia. at the top 3.4 cm; middle 2.8 cm; bottom 2.4 cm This leg differs from the two previous ones in being straighter; in addition, the three incised lines (just on the top of the webbed foot) continue all around the leg in the back and are slightly oblique. Some black spots exist on the leg and a few cracks are present. It is difficult to ascertain if this leg forms the third of a stool with the two previous ones, especially because of the height discrepancy, as well as the slight difference in the decoration, though this is still a possibility. XII.5-Flared leg of a stool; wood and ivory (fig. 204) JE 43389 (SR 2/11364) H. 42 cm; Dia. at the top 4.1 cm; middle 786 2.7 cm; bottom 4.4 cm Thebes: Dra Abu El-Naga, Tomb of Mentuherkhepeshef (TT 20) Dynasty 18787 This skillfully carved and well decorated leg is very heavy,788 shiny and varies between brown and black in color. It is a very elaborate example of a typical flared leg. It is decorated with ten groups consisting each of four incised rings. The bulging between the rings is very carefully executed. It has two ivory squares (1.1 x 1.1 cm each) used to conceal the joint place and at the same time to create an attractive appearance. There are two other rectangular holes for fastening the legs to the stretchers, which still bear some traces. avies claims that ―the leg

XII.2- Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot; wood (fig. 201) TR 5/11/26/2 (SR 2/11352) H. 32 cm; Dia. at the top 4.2 cm; middle 3.3 cm; bottom 3.3 cm This well carved leg is made of good quality wood, reddish-brown in color. Its curve and inclination is slightly more pronounced than the normal three-legged

785

Compare with JE 63856 (I.4) as well as the nice one housed in the British Museum EA 2481 http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/aes/ w/wooden_stool.aspx 786 It is not exactly in the center but it is the area after the two or three groups of bands in which the leg begins to diminish in size. 787 For the publication, see Davies, Five Theban Tombs, 5-6, pl. 17. See also Manuelian, ―Notes on the So-called Turned stools,‖ 125, fn. 2. 788 It is a hardwood, likely ebony. Compare this wood texture and the duck leg found in the tomb of Horemheb, discussed above (37, VI. 2: JE 55326).

780

Immediately before the webbed foot. 781 or a detailed discussion about Tutankhamun‘s stool, its construction as well as decoration: see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 122-125, no. 19, pls. LXI-LXIII. 782 Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 124. 783 The Duck motif is well-documented in several objects (e.g. boxes, vases, spoons). A discussion of the duck symbolism will follow in the next chapter, 75. See phillippe Germond. ―En Marge du estiaire: Un Drôle de Canard…‖ BSEG 25 (2002- 2003): 75-94. 784 Manuelian, ’ G , cat. no. 41.

62

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces was turned in a lathe, the pivot hole being apparent at the foot.‖789 My examination of the piece did not show any hole on the base of the leg, though I found one round one on the top.790 The upper part of the leg is broken. ccording to avies, it is ―a hardwood leg, rung, and part of the seat of a chair.‖791 Unfortunately, there is no rung visible now, seemingly having been broken, and I could not see any piece that could fit with it. Still, it is a piece that exhibits high quality workmanship and also emphasizes how its owner had access to skilled craftsmen.792

four holes, one of which is wedged. Vertical cracks lead to a separation in some parts. XII.8- Flared leg of a stool; wood (fig. 207) TR 5/11/26/12 (SR 2/11368) H. 29.8 cm; Dia. at the top 2.8 cm; middle 2 cm; bottom 2.8 cm This leg exhibits the low quality of local wood, as well as poor craftsmanship. It lacks symmetry between the size of the two through rectangular holes that are destined for the mortise and tenon, and even in the space between the rings. It is decorated with six series consisting each of three incised rings. A hole exists on the base of the leg, but not exactly in its center indicating what we have previously discussed about the possibility of using a primitive vise only to hold the leg in place and allowing the manual incising of lines (the asymmetrical decoration is the best proof of not using the lathe). The top of the leg exhibits much insect damage.

XII. 6-Flared leg of a stool; wood (fig. 205) TR 5/11/26/10 (SR 2/11366) H. 34.8 cm; Dia. at the top 3.2 cm; middle 2.5 cm; bottom 3.4 cm This leg is smooth in its upper part, and then it narrows and finally spreads again toward the base. It is decorated with eleven rings consisting each of three incised rings. Four rectangular holes are present: the upper two are those for the joint of the legs with the seat rails. The two lower ones (just before the first group of rings) are to connect the legs to the stretchers. Wooden traces still cling to these holes. No pivot hole exists on the leg base, indicating manual work rather than lathe use. White gesso still adheres around the top of the leg as well as the joints holes. There are a few cracks and knots. The absence of any means of attachment at the top of the leg (for example, a dowel) most likely indicates the leather seat was stretched over the legs and the rails. 793 This type of leg is seen on the stools ―from an earlier period in ynasty 18,‖794 after which time it developed into the typical, very elaborately made flared leg. 795

XII.9- Flared leg of a stool; wood (fig. 208) TR 5/11/26/11 (SR 2/11367) H. 30.5 cm; Dia. at the top 3.1 cm; middle 2.2 cm; bottom 2.8 cm This is similar to the previous one (5/11/26/12) in its shape and decoration, except that this leg is a little more symmetrical in its bands and is better preserved but still has cracks and knots. They seem to be the product of the same workshop. Holes are also not perfectly cut. XII.10-Fragment of a cylindrical leg; wood (fig. 209) TR 31/3/32/2 (SR 2/11514) H. 20.5 cm

XII.7-Flared leg of a stool; wood (fig. 206) TR 5/11/26/ 9 (SR 2/11365) H. 34.8 cm; Dia. at the top 3.2 cm; middle 2.5 cm; bottom 3.4 cm

This fragment likely constitutes the upper part of a flaredleg stool with slots at the top for the joint. It can be compared with an example housed in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.796 The good quality wood, reddish in color, is smooth but some black stains are present on the leg.

The dimensions, as well as the technique of the decoration of this leg, are identical to the previous one, indicating the work of the same craftsmen and possibly even the origin as part of the same stool. It has the same

XII.11-Model of three flared legs; wood ( fig. 210) TR 2/12/26/6 (SR 2/11894) First: H. 13.3 cm; Second: H.13.2 cm; Third: H.14 cm

789

Davies, Five Theban Tombs, 6. See lathe discussion in chapter I, 12-13. 791 Davies, Five Theban Tombs, 6. 792 See PM I/1, 34-35 for Mentuherkhepeshef titles ―fan bearer and mayor of phroditopolis.‖ 793 For a similar leg, see the one in the Petrie Museum (UC 35938). Compare also with the restored stool housed in the Museum of Fine Arts at Boston no. 72.4265, as well as JE 53723 (49-50, IX. 13) which has been discussed. 794 Manuelian, ―Notes on the So-Called Turned Stools,‖126, 128, fig. 4. This is not to deny that they could be used later, such as the one mentioned at Petrie Museum which, according to the database, dates to the Amarna Period. http://www.accessingvirtualegypt.ucl.ac.uk/detail/details/index_no_logi n.php?objectid=UC__35938__&accesscheck=%2Fdetail%2Fdetails%2 Findex.php 795 Such as the stool preserved in the British Museum. See Strudwick, Masterpieces of Ancient Egypt, 196-197; Manuelian, ’ G Age, cat. no. 40. 790

These three well-made small legs are tied together with a string. The damage to the wood prevents us from knowing the precise decorative motif. There is no question, however, that they show good workmanship in the rings design despite their being a model intended to be used in the afterlife. Following the two first groups of incised lines there is a groove, and then the rest of the groups follow. The bulging between each group is also well achieved.

796

63

Manuelian, ―Notes on the So-called Turned Stools,‖ 128, fig. 4.

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom XII.12-Lion leg; wood painted black and white (fig. 211) TR 15/6/26/12 (SR 2/11340) H. 25 cm; D. 6 cm; W. 3.4 cm

XII.16- Lion leg; wood painted white ( fig. 215) TR 15/6/26/23 (SR 2/ 11337) H. 28.5 cm; D. 6.9 cm ; W. 4.1 cm This well-carved leg represents the left back leg of a lion with its detailed anatomy. The gesso layer is gone on some parts, exposing the reddish color of the wood. The drum is ribbed with four sections. A cavity for the stretcher is present on the inner right side of the leg.

This carved leg represents the left back leg of a lion. It is painted black with a drum ribbed with four series and painted white. There are traces of white paint underneath some parts that are covered with black paint. Some of the paint is gone, exposing the original color of the local wood. The right side of the leg has a cavity that is destined for the stretcher that would be attached to the second back leg. Based on the presence of a stretcher hole between lion leg,797 our piece could be dated to the second half of Dynasty 18.798

XII.17-Lion leg; wood and ivory (fig. 216) TR 23/11/26/17 (SR 7/19656) H. 22.5 cm; D. 5.6 cm; L. of the brace 14.5 cm This elaborately carved leg represents the back right leg of a lion. Two claws are still inlaid with ivory. A part of a knee brace is still attached to the leg to which it is pegged. The wood of the brace seems to be different from that of the leg and traces of red paint exist underneath the brace.799 The leg reposes on a conical wrapped drum consisting of five sections separated from each other by a groove. There are traces of white gesso at the top of the leg, as well as around the broken tenon.

XII.13-Lion leg; wood painted black and white (fig. 212) TR 15/6/26/13 (SR 2/11341) H. 25 cm; D. 5.5 cm; W. 3.4 cm This leg is almost identical to the previous one in its dimensions, decoration, and technique of manufacture. It depicts the back right leg of a lion judging by the stretcher hole showing on the inner left side of the leg. There are a few cracks. This leg, along with the previous one, probably constitute the two back legs of the same chair, whether they were made separately with the intention of making a specific chair or manufactured as a group with others in the same workshop.

XII.18-Lion leg; wood and ivory (fig. 217) TR 23/11/26/19 (SR 7/19647) H. 24.5 cm; Max. D. 6.5 cm; Min. D. 3.1cm This leg depicts a back left lion leg with four ivory claws. It is identical to the previous one in shape and decoration with a slight difference in the dimensions. 800 This and the previous leg have been grouped together.801 The two through pegs remain (though loose), but the knee brace is missing (compare previous leg).

XII.14-Lion leg; wood painted black and white (fig. 213) TR 15/6/26/14 (SR 2/11342) H. 24.5 cm; D. 5.8 cm; W. 4 cm This leg is also similar to the two previous ones and seems to belong to the same chair as well as the same workshop. Based on the stretcher hole, we can place this one as the front right leg.

XII.19-Lion leg; wood and ivory (fig. 218) TR 23/11/26/22 (SR 7/19645) H. 21.3 cm; Max. D. 6.1 cm; Min. D. 3 cm

XII.15-Lion leg; wood painted white (fig. 214) TR 15/6/26/22 (SR 2/11348) H. 27.7 cm; D. 7.3 cm; W. 4.3 cm

This intricately carved leg depicts a right front leg of a lion. Three claws as well as the rudimentary one still have ivory inlay. The same technique of manufacture was used as the previous two legs, as it constitutes the third leg of the same piece. Knuckles are clearly depicted with raised bumps. This group is unusual in that it has a squarish section above the foot which narrows significantly before gradually flaring again up the leg.

This leg depicts the back right leg of a lion. It has a ribbed drum. There are traces of restoration on the back (modern glue and filler material). From the inside the leg bears a hole for the stretcher, as well as two small cylindrical holes perhaps for the knee brace of which there is no trace. As usual, there is a tenon on the top of the leg (2.8 cm in height).

799

This same feature of manufacturing is also found in royal pieces, as indicated by Eaton-Krauss when discussing the cedar throne of Tutankhamun: ―the joints of the legs to the crossrails are conventionally reinforced by knee braces, grooved and painted red- brown, which suggests that they could be made of local timber, rather than the coniferous wood of the rest of the throne.‖ See Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 58. 800 The difference in the height is the result of the broken tenon in TR 23/11/26/17. 801 According to the Cairo Museum database, TR 23/11/26/17, 23/11/26/19, 23/11/26/22, 23/11/26/23 all belong together. This is surely correct based on their common decoration, technique of manufacture as well as the position of the legs.

797

There is no second hole in the leg to suggest that the chair should possess stretchers in all four sides. Compare our leg as well as the following ones with a similar leg from Gurob (UC 7918: New Kingdom; H. 28.5 cm; W. 6.7 cm; D. 3.7 cm), see Peter Lacovara. Excavating Egypt: Great Discoveries from the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, University College, London. Eds. Betsy Teasley Trope, Stephen Quirke, and Peter Lacovara. Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, 2005. 124, no. 93. I assume that our legs could also be placed in the same period of time. 798 ischer, ― chair of the Early New Kingdom,‖ 147-148.

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Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces one), which is unusual.802 One of the two pegs is complete.

XII.20-Lion leg; wood and ivory (fig. 219) TR 23/11/26/23 (SR 7/19646) H. 23.6 cm; Max. D. 6.4 cm; Min. D. 3.8 cm

XII.26-Lion leg; wood (fig. 225) TR 23/11/26/39 (SR 7/19676) H. 31.2 cm; Max. D. 7.2 cm; Min. D. 4 cm

This constitutes the fourth leg together with the three mentioned above. It shows the left front leg of a lion. The same number of claws is inlaid, and it features the technique previously described.

This is a left front leg and most likely belongs to the previous one. They are both probably from the same piece (chair or stool).803 It also has the rough shape of five claws. Only a small part of the tenon is missing, but from the remaining part it is clear that there are holes for three pegs. There are knots, cracks, and wood separation, as well as probable insect damage. As usual, there is red paint around the area destined for the knee brace and pegs.

XII.21-Lion leg; wood (fig. 220) TR 23/11/26/16 (SR 7/19657) H. 24.3 cm; Max. D. 5.9 cm; Min. D. 2.4 cm This leg constitutes the back left leg of a lion. It is elegant; even the two pegs usually found do not penetrate through the light brown wood, which gives it a refined appearance. The ribbed drum is cylindrical in form and divided in four bands. There are a few cracks.

XII.27-Lion leg; wood (fig. 226) JE 33860=C.G. 24978 (SR 7/19662) H. 17.2 cm; Max. D. 5.4 cm; Min. D. 2.8 cm; W. 3 cm Thebes: Valley of the Kings, KV 37 (unknown owner)804

XII.22-Lion leg; wood (fig. 221) TR 23/11/26/20 (SR 7/19643) H. 25.2 cm; Max. D. 5.8 cm; Min. D. 2.5 cm This is the back right leg in the shape of a lion. A small part of the pegged knee brace remains. Even though there is no inlay in this group of legs, they are clearly wellmade.

This is a back left leg. It has some cracks and knots. It stands on a drum like a cup consisting of four sections. It is possible that the whole leg was gessoed and painted white, as some traces remain. The tenon here has the same width as the leg itself and is pierced for the peg. One wooden peg is visible on the inside of the leg.

XII.23-Lion leg; wood (fig. 222) TR 23/11/26/21 (SR 7/19642) H. 24.8 cm; Max. D. 6.1 cm; Min. D. 3.9 cm

XII.28-Lion leg (likely a chair); wood (fig. 227) JE 37688 (SR 7/19632) H. 40.6 cm; Max. D. 7 cm; Min. D. 5.4 cm; W. 2.4 cm

This leg forms the left front leg of a lion. It clearly differentiates the four claws, the rudimentary one, as well as the spur.

This handsomely carved leg depicts the right front leg of a lion. It is unique in its claw decoration, which is surmounted by three short raised ridges. This embellishment is unique to this and one other piece as far as I know.805 The smooth wood is of high quality. As is the convention, the tenon, as well as the area on the front edge, (which is supposed to be occupied by the knee brace) are gessoed, and then painted red, which is why white and red color is visible. One wooden peg, not passing through the wood, is present for fastening the brace to the leg. The leg stands on a ribbed drum shaped like a gently waisted cylinder and divided into nine sections.

XII.24-Lion leg; wood (fig. 223) TR 23/11/26/29 (SR 7/19641) H. 24.8 cm; Max. D. 6 cm; Min. D. 2.5 cm This leg represents the right front leg of a lion. It is similar to the previous one (likely produced in the same workshop), but it has some cracks. XII.25-Lion leg; wood (fig. 224) TR 23/11/26/44 (SR 7/19674) H. 31.3 cm; Max. D. 7.5 cm; Min. D. 4.1 cm

XII.29-Lion leg; wood (fig. 228) TR 2/12/26/5 (SR 2/11893) H. 24.5 cm; Max. D. 4 cm; Min. D. 2 cm

This right front leg is made of poor quality wood that is gessoed and painted black. The drum is divided in four bands of unequal width. The leg has sustained damage that is clear on the claws: extensive small holes, and channels likely the result of insect attack. It looks as if five claws are represented (rough depiction of the small

802

Compare with the distinctive chair with five claws TR 24/11/26/3 (52-53, X. 1). 803 Because of the similarity in their dimensions as well as of claws number. 804 Daressy, Fouilles de la Vallée des Rois (1898-1899), 300, no. 24978. aressy describes the leg as ―patte de lion ayant formé pied de meuble (tabouret?). Elle est munie d‘un tenon traversé par une cheville.‖ He also mentions the wood as ―tamaris.‖ 805 For another example in our corpus, cf. leg no. JE 46877 (66, XII. 31).

65

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom XII.34-Canine leg; wood (fig. 233) TR 23/11/26/15 (SR 7/19660) H. 26.5 cm; base 4.3 x 6.6 cm

This is the right leg (likely front) of a lion. Part of the knee brace still adheres to the leg and is fastened with two pegs. The leg reposes on a conical ribbed drum. Cracks and damage are clear on the leg.

This canine leg is unique in our corpus. It is nicely shaped with five toes. A big part of the leg is missing. Canine legs do exist on the three-legged stool of Tutankhamun, but Eaton-Krauss points out to this leg as ―[being] the only other furniture leg in canine form…which is a piece…of unknown provenance and uncertain date: the paw is carved in one with a shieldshaped base.‖808 The wood is medium brown, smooth, and appears to be of good quality considering the delicate carving around the base.

XII.30-Lion leg; wood ( fig. 229) TR 23/11/26/33 (SR 7/19659) H.19 cm; Max. D. 5.8 cm; Min. D. 2.4 cm This well carved example depicts the right back leg of a lion. It stands on a reversed conical drum consisting of five groups. It is made of a good quality wood that has undergone restoration on the part immediately below the tenon (glue traces). A restoration scar runs down the front of the leg half way, as if a section were broken and glued back on. From the inside, an impression destined for the knee brace (that is missing) exists, in addition to the two holes for the pegs.

XII.35-Bull leg809 (of a stool or bed), wood (fig. 234) TR 23/11/26/18 (SR 7/19669) H. 17.3 cm; Max. D. 5.6 cm; Min. D. 2.9 cm

XII.31-Fragment of a lion leg; wood and ivory (fig. 230) JE 46877 (SR 4/2182) H. 14.8 cm Thebes: Deir El Bahari

This left leg of a bull reposes on a ribbed drum. The upper part of the leg seems to be gessoed and painted red. Most of the tenon is broken. From the inside, there exists a groove likely intended for a knee brace, but only one hole for a peg exists (usually we find two). The quality of the wood is not good.

This delicately carved fragment forms the lower part of a lion leg, likely of a chair. Four claws are depicted; one of them bears red color that is probably painted with ivory inlay. The claws have the same ridges over their tops. The conical drum consists of seven incised lines. Most of the leg is missing, revealing the wood fibers.

XII.36- Shaped leg (of a stool or bed); wood (fig. 235) TR 15/6/26/19 (SR 2/11347 a) H. 21 cm; D. 7.2 cm; W. 2.9 cm This elegantly carved right back leg has the tendentious shape of a horse, or maybe a bull (without cloven hoof) resting on its short drum, which has two horizontal grooves. Two through holes are made in the leg on the inside for the knee brace that will be fastened by two pegs, which is why we see the two exterior holes. The majority of the tenon is broken.810

XII.32-Stylized leg; wood painted black (fig. 231) TR 15/6/26/15 (SR 2/11343) H. 21.7 cm; D.10.5 cm; W. 2.8 cm This leg forms the back leg most likely of a stool. It is roughly shaped in the form of a lion leg but without any details such as claws. Part of the tenon still remains. The leg ends with a trapezoidal drum. It has knots. No evidence for the stretchers can be seen. 806

808

Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 125, pls. LXI-LXIII and especially 125 for a mention of this leg. 809 In this context of discussing bull legs, it is relevant to mention one well-carved stool currently preserved in the Cairo Museum (TR 7/11/26/8) with a height of 26 cm and a seat made of linen, measuring 49.5 x 48.3 cm. The reason for not incorporating this elaborate stool in the body of our text is that it seems contemporary with the one discovered by Petrie at Qurneh and dated to Dynasty XVII. Both of them are similar in their techniques, as well as the absence of stretchers between animal legs. This leads us to the group of bulls‘ legs as well as others which are vaguely shaped as animal legs (XII. 35-42). I am unsure about their dating, whether they likely belong to beds or stools, especially considering the small example of stools to compare with. For a discussion of bull‘s legs, as well as a discussion of the bull stool in the Oriental Institute Museum, see Eaton-Krauss,―Notes on Some New Kingdom Stools with ulls‘ Legs,‖ 85-92. For examples of a bed that have bull‘s legs, see Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 24-26, pls. 30-35. For Qurnah stool, see William Matthew Flinders Petrie and James H. Walker. Qurneh. British School of Archaeology in Egypt and Egyptian Research Account 16. London: School of Archaeology in Egypt, 1909. 7, pl. XXVI (1:5). 810 ased on the few examples of stools that have bulls‘ legs during the New Kingdom-even this preserved one is different in shape from other legs in our corpus-I find it difficult to ascertain if it belongs to a stool or a bed.

XII.33-Stylized leg; wood painted black (fig. 232) TR 16/6/25/16807 H. 21.5 cm; D. 9 cm; W. 2.7 cm This leg is similar to the previous one, but it constitutes a straight front leg. The trace of a wooden peg exists on the top. They seem to belong to the same piece.

806

The absence of the stretchers in addition to the stylized form, make it difficult to attribute the piece to a specific period. 807 The SR of this leg is problematic. SR 2/15930, which possesses the same TR, is described as a vase from Abusir. Another leg, 15/6/25/16 (SR 2/11344), is described as a furniture leg (H. 21.5 cm) which fits well with our piece but, unfortunately, it is difficult to know whether the mistake came about in writing the TR number on the leg or whether it is in the SR. What I am sure of is that this TR number does currently exist on the leg.

66

Description of the Chairs, Stools, and Other Related Pieces XII.37-Shaped leg (of a stool or bed); wood (fig. 236) TR 15/6/26/20 (SR 2/11347 b) H. 22.2 cm; D. 7 cm; W. 2.5 cm

TR 23/11/26/25 (SR 7/19666) H. 21.2 cm; Max. D. 5.8 cm; Min. D. 3 cm The technique, shape, as well as the dimensions of this leg let us place it with the two previous ones, though its curve is most likely of a back leg.

This leg is similar in its technique and decoration to the previous one except that it is a left back one. It has the same smooth, good quality wood. The tenon here is complete, painted red along with the rest of the leg, and pierced. It is clear that the two legs are intended to belong to the same piece.

XII.43-Leg in the shape of Sa sign (from a stool); wood (fig. 242) TR 23/11/26/34 (SR 7/19637) H. 25.5 cm; Max. D. 4.7 cm; Min. D. 1.8

XII.38- Shaped leg (of a stool or bed); wood (fig. 237) TR 15/6/26/21 (SR 2/11347 c) H. 21.5 cm; D.6.7 cm; W. 2.6 cm

This leg is rounded on its top, then tapers until it reaches a band which is decorated with six incised lines separated each by a thin groove (achieved with chisels). The size of these groups are asymmetrical. Immediately below the band, the leg narrows toward the base before flaring out into a rectangular foot, suspended off the ground by a small inward-sloping pad.812 The shape of this leg recalls the Sa sign.813

This right front leg seems to belong to the two previous ones, and is the work of the same workshop. XII.39- Shaped leg; wood (fig. 238) TR 23/11/26/28 (SR 7/19668) H. 23.2 cm; Max. D. 6.8 cm; Min. D. 3.4 cm

Two square holes are cut through the upper part of the leg (totaling four holes) to allow one tenon to pass across the second, preserving the usual difference in their height. A loose part of the tenon still exists. The form of this leg could be compared with similar legs (belonging to a stool and a bed) discovered by Garstang, at Beni Hasan, and dating to the Middle Kingdom.814

This carved leg is reminiscent of the three legs previously described (TR 15/6/26/19; 15/6/26/20 and 15/6/26/21). This one is likely the left front leg because of its straightness. Its technique of manufacture is identical: the same shape of the leg, same two through holes, same shape of the tenon, same red paint around the top, as well as the inside, likely for the knee brace. Even though the numbers are not consecutive, the above reasons lead me to assume that if our leg does not form the fourth missing leg, then at least it is the work of the same workshop. Its state of preservation is good except a small missing part on the base.

The only difference is in the decoration of the band, but the base and the top are identical. Variations of this type exist in two stools ( Dynasty XVII) from Petrie excavations at Qurnah.815 This form occurs in the New Kingdom but sometimes in a different expression such as the stool found at Deir El-Medina (Tomb No 1377, Dynasty XVIII).816 Based on the popularity of this type, it is difficult to place our piece in a specific period of time.

XII.40- Shaped leg; wood ( fig. 239) TR 23/11/26/14 (SR 7/19658) H. 21.5 cm; Max. D. 5.3 cm; Min. D. 2.2 cm

XII.44- Leg in the shape of Sa sign (from a stool); wood (fig. 243) TR 23/11/26/4 (SR 7/19635) H. 32.8 cm; Max. D. 6.2 cm; Min. D. 2.2 cm

The shape of this leg is difficult to categorize though it might be a rough shape of bull leg, but one very stylized and streamlined.811 Its straightness lets us classify it as likely a front leg. There are a few cracks.

This leg is similar to the previous one in its technique of manufacture with the exception of the absence of incised lines adorning the waist. The base here is more

XII.41-Shaped leg; wood (fig. 240) TR 23/11/26/24 (SR 7/19644) H. 21.2 cm; Max. D. 5.9 cm; Min. D. 2.2 cm

812

Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 39. For sA (Sa), see Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar, Sign list ―V 17.‖ The Cairo Museum database compares this form with wAD (sign list M 13: stem of Papyrus). I tend to believe that ―sA” is better or it would be a reversed ―wAD.‖ The latter only seems to make sense if the leg is upside down. See also Bruwier, ―Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,‖ 34; Hayes, The Scepter of Egypt II, 27. 814 Killen, ―John Garstang‘s iscovery of Wooden urniture at the Middle Kingdom Necropolis of eni Hasan,‖ 645-656, pls. IA-IIC; Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 39, no. 6, pls. 51-53. 815 Petrie, Qurneh, 7, pl. XXVI. 816 Bruyère and Jourdain, Les Fouilles de Deir El Médineh (1934-1935): Deuxième Partie, 169, fig. 92; Podvin, ―Composition, Position et Orientation‖ II, 307-308; Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 139, fig. 216. 813

This leg has the same shape as the previous one (likely a front leg) and I assume they probably belong to the same piece. XII.42-Shaped leg; wood (fig. 241)

811

The Cairo Museum records an identical piece (TR 23/11/26/24) as being in the form of a lion‘s leg but I do not agree with that.

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom location of some others)818 there is no doubt that the museum contains a much greater wealth of objects and fragments than I realized at the beginning of my research, especially since a large number of them are not on display. In total, we have 11chairs, 33 stools, 54 legs, 6 pedestals, 4 elbow braces, 2 models, 1 footstool , 20 fragments and other related pieces. The objects that are currently exhibited (excluding those of Sennedjem and Yuya and Thuya) are in four vitrines: two of them contain mostly legs, and the two others stools and chairs. As previously pointed out, our current knowledge is not complete and we still need more work on our database in order to create a single source combining the information from the SR, JE and C.G. Moreover, furniture articles (beds, tables , legs and others) still need further study. It is truly regrettable to possess such a number of objects with no provenance, and in other cases we only have ―Valley of the Kings‖ or ―Upper-Egypt‖ which still does not lead to further consequence as to their exact place of discovery. Publishing these pieces is the only way to shed light on both the known and unknown aspects of our corpus. The main focus of this chapter was to describe, categorize and compare our pieces with other documented ones, or depictions, if available. Some pieces were unique, either in their inscriptions or their forms. A discussion about the type of each chair and stool will follow in the last chapter after looking at a few twodimensional scenes. I have also refrained from discussing symbolism, whether of animals or other iconographic elements or gendered motifs, as this will be dealt with in my next chapter, alternating with the tomb discussion.

pronounced with a clear trapezoidal form on each of its four surfaces (the very bottom is a small square). Cracks and stains are clear throughout the piece. XII.45-Leg in the shape of Sa sign (from a stool); wood (fig. 244) TR 23/11/26/2 (SR 7/19636) H. 30.4 cm; Max. D. 4.3 cm; Min. D. 1.7 cm This long, slender leg differs from the previous examples seen in its length, as well as the inexistence of the pad and more elaborate workmanship. It reposes flat on the floor. At its waist, it is chiseled with four raised bands. The upper part is totally missing, but was most likely rounded with two holes for the joints. 817 Traces of white gesso are visible on its top. XII.46- Leg in the shape of Sa sign (from a stool); wood (fig. 245) TR 23/11/26/3 (SR 7/19634) H. 30.2 cm; Max. D. 4.1 cm; Min. D. 1.8 cm The technique of manufacture for this leg differs from the previous one in that the base consists of two trapezoids mirroring each other. The leg‘s waist is embellished with five thick square sections. Remains of a wedge can be seen on the top of the leg. XII.47- Leg in the shape of Sa sign (from a stool); wood (fig. 246) TR 15/6/26/3 (SR 2/11329) H. 38.5 cm; Max. D. 6.4 cm; Min. D. 3 cm This leg could be compared with 23/11/26/34 (fig. 242) and 23/11/26/4 (fig. 243), but here the leg is obliquely beveled on the top (straight on one side and beveled on the other), and it also possesses an irregular base. It has some missing wood.

818

Pieces that I could not locate in the museum due to their unknown SR numbers (therefore their locations are classified in the database as ―to be determined‖). I am quoting the information as it is presented in the database with the hope that in the future more information will be available:  JE 2029: wooden stool painted white and with papyrus trellis. Sheikh Abd El-Qurna, excavated 1858 (H. 35 cm).  JE 2030: wooden stool painted white. Sheikh Abd El-Qurna, excavated 1858 (H. 36 cm).  JE 10057: wood and rush stool. Thebes: Sheikh Abd ElQurna (H. 30 cm).  JE 14082: model faience stool with lotus decoration. Memphis: Mit-Rahina, found in 1861 (W. 2.5 cm; D. 6 cm).  JE 2720: stool or headrest (according to the JE) made of Jasper. Saqqara.  JE 31170: sycamore stool with lion paws and gilding. Thebes: Sheikh Abd El-Qurna (H. 30 cm; D. 35 cm).  C.G 46141: ―two broken wooden chair legs with mortise hole on top.‖ Thebes: Tomb of Thutmose IV, excavated by Carter in 1903 (No measurements in the C.G). For the latter, see Carter and Newberry, The Tomb of Thoutmosis IV, 42, no. 46141.

XII.48- Leg in the shape of Sa sign (from a stool); wood (fig. 247) TR 15/6/26/2 (SR 2/11330) H. 39.5 cm; Max. D. 6.8 cm; Min. D. 3 cm This is similar to the previous one and likely belongs to the same piece. My intention in this chapter was to present the different pieces and fragments housed in the Cairo Museum. Despite the problems encountered during my study of this corpus (discrepancies between sources such as the SR and the JE; unrecorded information of several pieces, especially with TR numbers; inability of identifying the 817

Compare the legs with those of the well-made stool currently preserved in the Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh, no. 1956.110; for this see Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 39, no.7, pl. 54.

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been found either in the royal or private sphere. 822 Klebs is the only scholar to mention the presence of one original example from the Middle Kingdom, though with no further details, which makes it still an issue. 823 If Klebs is correct, it is still unsettling, in the face of such a large number in two-dimensional scenes and stelae, to have only one specimen at most. Regarding some of the suggestions proposed by Bruwier such as “fragility” 824 of the material that leads to non-preservation of different pieces, one might ask which type is more perishable, the “elongated chair” or “folding stool;” fragments of the latter are numerous in the Cairo Museum, along with other museums. When trying to put forward the reasons that the preserved examples reflect only a part of the production, Bruwier points out that the collection of Tutankhamun, which contains at least one exemplar of the majority of seats in use in the Eighteenth Dynasty, does not provide us with a “cubic throne with low backrest” or a “stool with flared legs.”825 But we do have an elegant flared-legged stool of Tutankhamun that is currently preserved in the Cairo Museum, which, however, is still little known because it has only been recently published.826

Chapter III Two-dimensional Scenes: Symbolism, Usage, and Comparison with Sculpture This chapter primarily focuses on the two-dimensional scenes and what they reveal about our study objects. As we have seen in chapter one, the study of tomb scenes is very informative to provide important insights into the workshops and tools used by craftsmen, as well as the methods of production of the craft. Another benefit that we will gain from the close study of pictorial representations is the specific circumstances or social context related to each type of chair or stool. Only from scenes can we know on which occasion this one type is preferred over another; which kinds are reserved for men versus women; what are the genres mainly associated with workmen; and whether prevalence in scenes of a certain type is reflected in preserved examples. An example of a category commonly depicted on tomb walls and stelae, but not present as real object, is the “elongated chair.” Should it be understood as an icon for a “chair” or a “bed;” how should we interpret its existence only as image? Evidence of the inverse scenario is also found: a type could be well-documented as an object, but not in scenes: such as the “folding stool with ducks‟ heads.” In scenes, the “folding stool with lion legs,” is often depicted, so why is this fact not reflected in the actual objects? In addition, our aim is to discuss the symbolism related to these specific images such as “elongated chair,” as well as a brief look at some animals, elements that are sometimes depicted on the sides of the chairs on real sculpture, or on scenes. A brief overview will be given of sculpture, and whether it follows the same inclination of gender preference, and whether their decoration corresponds more closely to real objects or to scenes. Before beginning our discussion, it is important to note that it will be limited to known tomb scenes relevant to our purpose, and thus the possibility remains of additional tombs being published in this area.

Another means of understanding this lacuna is that the double seat is not preserved as a real object, but only in scenes (if one indeed exists, it would be an anomaly, such as the case of the folding stool with lion legs). In order to establish a connection between beds and elongated chairs, it is essential to compare them from different angles. From the lexicographical view, especially during the Old Kingdom, there is clear evidence that the word st has a wider implication and could mean either a bed or any piece on which one can sit.827 The best examples come from the Old Kingdom tombs such as that of Kaemankh at Giza which reads wxA828 st “brushing the armchair” (Fig. 98).829 There is another scene from the mastaba of Werirenptah at Saqqara in which two attendants are arranging a bed, with the caption: dw830 st in sDAwty(w) “preparing a bed by the treasurers” written above them (Fig. 99).831 A third example is from the tomb of Ptahshepses at Abu-Sir in which four men are shown, but from what is left of the scene, we can see that the last two

I Elongated Chair819 and Symbolism The double seat is a well-documented type, usually portrayed in tomb reliefs and paintings from the Old Kingdom.820 It persists in the New Kingdom but its depiction begins to decrease because of the use of two separate chairs for the couple.821 On this type of seat, a pair is usually figured, either a man accompanied by his wife, or his mother (more rare). Based on the archaeological evidence, until now, no double seat has

822

Bruwier, “Du Caractère Individuel du Siège Mobile en Égypte Pharaonique,” 90. 823 Klebs and Ranke, Die Reliefs und Malereien Des Neuen Reiches, 144, fns. 9 -10, in which she states: “Ein Solcher langer Stuhl wird in der Werkstatt angefertigt und ist im Original aus dem M.R. erhalten.” 824 Bruwier, “Du Caractère Individuel du Siège Mobile en Égypte Pharaonique,” 91. 825 Bruwier, “Du Caractère Individuel du Siège Mobile en Égypte Pharaonique,” 90-91. 826 Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, and Footstools, pls. LVI-LVIII. 827 Fischer, “Stuhl,” 92. 828 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 227 “bürsten”. 829 Brovarski, “An Inventory List from „Covington‟s Tomb,‟” 142-143, fig. 8. 830 As infinitive from the verb wdi, see WB V: 421(11), I: 384-385; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 241. 831 Brovarski, “An Inventory List from „Covington‟s Tomb,‟”142. For the scene, see T. G. H. James. Hieroglyphic Texts from Egyptian Stelae, etc. 2nd ed. London: Trustees of the British Museum, 1961. 31-32, pl. XXIX.

819

I will use “elongated chair,” “bench,” or “double seat” interchangeably throughout our discussion. 820 Cherpion, Mastabas et Hypogées, pl. 30. 821 For the different ways of depicting a couple seated, either on a double seat or separate chairs, see Bruwier, “Du Caractère Individuel du Siège Mobile en Égypte Pharaonique,” 101-107, figs. 5-13. For examples of the elongated chair, see Nina M. Davies. Scenes from Some Theban Tombs ( Nos. 38, 66, 162, with excerpts from 81). Private Tombs at Thebes IV. Oxford: Printed for the Griffith Institute at the University Press, 1963. Pl. III; Davies, nd Another, pl. XXIV.

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom persons on the left are carrying an armchair (Fig. 100).832 On the shoulder of the second person in front is a part of a footboard, likely indicating that it is a bed. The interesting point for us is that the inscription reads sxpt 833 swt r dw m st.sn “bringing the swt to be put in their places,”834 indicating that swt includes both articles of furniture: armchair and bed.835 Bruwier further adds that, until now, the lexicographical repertoire only contains words for individual seats, and there is no term for bench. 836 This flexibility is not only present in philology, but there is also a technical argument (manufacture along with mode of usage) that could be proposed. As emphasized by Brovarski; “Beds from the early dynastic tombs at Tarkhan are so short that a sleeper would have to curl up tightly when taking advantage of one. Actual early dynastic beds are usually low, rarely exceeding 30.8 cm, and chairs are often no higher. When depicted together in Old Kingdom daily life scenes, beds and chairs usually appear to be of similar height. Externally then, there is little to distinguish theriomorphic beds and chairs except breadth and the presence of a footboard in lieu of a low backrest. Perhaps for these reasons, the Egyptians did not draw a sharp distinction between beds and chairs.”837

bed and a bench can be seen in a Middle Kingdom stela of Amenemhet currently preserved in the Cairo Museum.840 It is very distinctive in its shiny colors. Here, a couple is figured seated and between them is their son. We have an elongated bed or bench with lion legs and backrests or footboards on both sides, a feature that is unique for both beds and chairs, even though I tend to believe that it is likely a bed. On other instances, one can find three persons depicted, seated on an elongated chair, but with only a backrest on one end.841 From the New Kingdom, in the scenes from the temple of queen Hatshepsut at Deir El- Bahari, different episodes of the divine birth are depicted in which goddesses are shown seated on beds that have leonine heads at each corner, as well as leonine legs (once with no lion heads). 842 Another example can be seen showing the divine birth of Amenhotep III in which his mother Mutemwia and the goddesses are seated on beds with lion heads at each corner and leonine legs.843 In addition, Bruwier points out that in the scenes in temples, palaces and houses, or those portraying furniture exported or imported, along with those in funerary processions, no bench, but rather seating for individual use is depicted.844 Furthermore, occasionally a chair for one person can be deeper than normal to the extent of leaving a space between the backrest and the person seated.845

In the Old Kingdom, the scene from Mereruka tomb depicts him and his wife seated on a bed next to each other.838 The bed has a mattress and a high footboard. His spouse amuses him by playing the harp. As discussed by several scholars, this scene shows an unusually explicit intimacy.839 The difficulty of distinguishing between a

Looking at the design of beds and chairs (along with some stools), one can detect some similarities. The large number of animal (lion, bull) legs that we have examined in chapter two is clear evidence that it is difficult in some situations to make a marked differentiation. 846 Moreover, beds occasionally had the same design as stools; and some stools borrow that of beds. An example of the first category could be seen in a bed depicted on the tomb of Ipuy at Deir El-Medina847 in which the bed has flared legs (Fig. 33), a feature usually associated with stools of the same period. A second example of the same legs can be seen also on a bed from the Eighteenth Dynasty tomb

832

Brovarski, “An Inventory List from „Covington‟s Tomb,‟” 143, fig.

7.

833

Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 806 “herbeiführen.” 834 Brovarski, “An Inventory List from „Covington‟s Tomb,‟” 142. See also Verner, The Mastaba of Ptahshepses, 26-27, in which he translates the line differently “bringing a seat and its emplacement (lit. putting it) in its place.” 835 Brovarski, “An Inventory List from „Covington‟s Tomb,‟” 144. As alluded to by Brovarski, “From the evidence of furniture lists, as well as the wall scenes in the tombs of Ptahshepses and Werirenptah, it is clear that st in the Old Kingdom was a term that encompass beds as well as seats.” 836 Bruwier, “Du Caractère Individuel du Siège Mobile en Égypte Pharaonique,” 92-93. She alludes to an example from the mastaba of Ti in which the determinative of the word ATt “bed” along with the depiction itself of the bed, is short in width to the point of being confused with a stool. See also Brovarski, “An Inventory List from „Covington‟s Tomb,‟”133, fig. 2 C. See also Wolja Erichsen. Demotisches Glossar. Milan: Cisalpino-Goliardica, 1972. 228. nsAt is also translated as “bench” in Demotic. 837 Brovarski, “An Inventory List from „Covington‟s Tomb,‟” 144. 838 Lise Manniche. Sexual Life in Ancient Egypt. London: Kegan Paul Limited, 1987. 39, fig. 27. 839 David O‟Connor. “Sexuality, Statuary and the Afterlife: Scenes in the Tomb-chapel of Pepyankh (Heny the Black). An Interpretive Essay.” Studies in Honor of William Kelly Simpson. Eds. Peter Der Manuelian and Rita E. Freed. Vol. II. Boston: Dept. of Ancient Egyptian, Nubian and Near Eastern Art, Museum of Fine Arts, 1996. 621-633, especially 630. According to O‟Connor this scene “may [be] interpret[ed] as either a preliminary to intercourse, or as a synonym for intercourse itself.” See also Lise Manniche. Music and Musicians in Ancient Egypt. London: British Museum Press, 1991. 114-115, fig. 70. For another example of seating on a bed, see Naguib Kanawati. The

Tomb and Beyond: Burial Customs of Egyptian Officials. Warminster, England: Aris & Phillips, 2001. 87, fig. 89. 840 JE 45626, see Alessandro Bongioanni, Maria Sole Croce, and Laura Accomazzo. The Illustrated Guide to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Cairo: American University in Cairo Press, 2001. 106-107. 841 Such as the stela (C.G. 20456), currently preserved in the Cairo Museum, depicting a deceased figured with his mother and his grandmother. Ahmed Kadrey. “Eine Stele des Kabinettsvorstehers ITfRHw aus dem Kairener Museum.” Mélanges Gamal Eddin Mokhtar. Vol.II. Eds. Paule Posener-Kriéger and Muhammad Gamal Eddin Mokhtar. Bibliothèque d‟Étude 97. Cairo : IFAO, 1985. 21-24 . 842 Gay Robins. Women in Ancient Egypt. London: British Museum Press, 1993. 46, fig.10; John Romer. People of the Nile: Everyday Life in Ancient Egypt. New York: Crown, 1982. 163. 843 Agnès Cabrol. Amenhotep III: Le Magnifique. Champollion. Monaco: Éditions du Rocher, 2000. 56, fig. 11. 844 Bruwier, “Du Caractère Individuel du Siège Mobile en Égypte Pharaonique,” 92. 845 Such as the stela of Nen-Waef (Dynasty 18) in which the daughter in the second register on the right is shown perched with a leg up. See Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 125, fig. 172. 846 See chapter II, 64-66 (XII.12-XII.31). 847 TT 217, Dynasty 19, Reign of Ramses II. For the scene of the bed, see Erik Hornung. The Valley of the Kings: Horizon of Eternity. New York: Timken Publishers, 1990. 169.

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Two-dimensional Scenes No.73,848 in which the bed has flared legs and underneath it a footstool. As far as I know, there is no real bed that has this type of leg; it rather points to similarity in the technique in two-dimensional scenes. On the other side, our corpus contains a cylindrical rail that is similar to bed construction (Fig. 195).849 In addition, there is a complete stool, in which the design along with technique of manufacture recalls that of a bed more than a stool, because of the stretching of the lion body.850 This flexibility in the use, decoration, technique in a few cases, along with the generality of the word mainly in the Old Kingdom, demonstrates that the Egyptians sometimes consider beds and seats similar in some way, or that the sharp distinction is not always expressed.

sniffing lotus flowers. Vandier has studied monkeys in different periods in detail, and their role in the life of ancient Egyptians.856 In the majority of cases, a vervet monkey is crouching under the chair of his mistress, though in few instances it is shown under the master‟s seat.857 Here, as with other animals commonly depicted on the sides of chairs or bench, or even sometimes stools,858 it is important to take into consideration that the two meanings are present, whether as a popular and domestic pet, and an animal conveying a symbolic meaning, in the case of the monkey, an erotic connotation due to its connection with female sexuality. 859 Several cosmetic articles are decorated with monkeys such as hair pins, kohl tubes, and jars.860 Monkeys are also shown playing harps.861 As Manniche points out, “some graffiti showing intercourse depicts the female partner as having distinctly monkey-like features.”862 Derchain points out that the presence of the hairdresser and monkeys break the realism of the scene, adding to the representation the tenderness of a couple, alluding to the love that they will need in the afterlife.863 He adds that even the existence of the hairdresser is suggestive. On the other hand, literature enhances our knowledge of the hair connotation. It indicates how hair conveys sexual connotation such as The Tale of Two Brothers (the allusion to the wig is obvious) and The Story of The Herdsman.864 So it is clear that there are several elements here that help us in understanding the underlying meaning of the scene.

The absence of this clear differentiation between seat and bed in some cases should be kept in mind in our next phase of investigation of the symbolism of some icons in which this genre of seat is portrayed. A view held by some scholars is that the animals and other elements depicted underneath the chair or double seat of private persons (and occasionally royal examples) should not be taken at face value because of their deeper implications that may not be apparent to us.851 These elements and animals that are shown in the same tableau are significant in transmitting a message. That is why exploring the symbolism, associated with some of these images, could be helpful in understanding the raison d‟être of this type and its connection within the whole tomb meaning. Derchain in his article “la perruque et le Cristal” points to two depictions that are significant to our discussion (Figs. 101-102).852 They are both from the tomb of Sebeknakhte at El Kab (dating to the Second Intermediate Period). The first shows a couple seated on an elongated chair with short backrest, in front of a heap of provisions. The wife is embracing her husband. The second scene depicts them in front of their family. Both scenes possess some indices that clearly demonstrate the idealized meaning of their context, along with the symbolism underneath it. First, the maid who is standing behind the wife to arrange her perruque seems unrealistic in such a setting. 853 In addition, the existence of two monkeys scampering around among the piles of food in front of the deceased couple,854 or on the top of the backrest is not randomly portrayed, but rather intentionally. Moreover, the elements depicted underneath one of the elongated chairs—sandals, mirror, along with unguents vases—are usually depicted in the bedroom rather than in such a setting. In addition, the extraordinary extension of the seat looks like a bed and not a bench.855 The couple are

The tendency of depicting specific elements under double seats, or separate chairs, persists in the New Kingdom, and it is related to the overall reading of the image. One of the essential animals portrayed under a woman‟s chair, not only on private examples, but also in the royal sphere, whether on a real object or in two-dimensional scenes, is 856

Jeanne Vandier D'Abbadie. “Les Singes Familiers dans l‟ Ancienne Égypte (Peintures et Bas-Reliefs). III. Le Nouvel Empire.” RdE 18 (1966):143-201. 857 Kessler, “Monkeys and Baboons,” 428-432, especially 429. As Kessler points out, the vervet monkey in this case is likely alluding to “male sexuality” a connotation that could be surmised from the equivalent depiction of its consort. 858 Jaromir Malek. The Cat in Ancient Egypt. London: Published by the British Museum Press for the Trustees of the British Museum, 1993. 62, fig. 37. 859 Patrick F. Houlihan. The Animal World of the Pharaohs. London: Thames & Hudson, 1996. 108. See also O‟Connor, “Sexuality, Statuary and the Afterlife,” 630 “Monkeys have a well-known association with eroticism;” Philippe Germond and Jacques Livet. An Egyptian Bestiary: Animals in Life and Religion in the Land of the Pharaohs. London: Thames & Hudson, 2001. 89. 860 For examples, see Freed, Egy t’ G ld g , cat. no. 231; Spalinger, Egy t’ G ld g , cat. no. 286. 861 Manniche, Sexual Life, 44 “monkeys with musical instruments are very likely to imitate female musicians.” 862 Manniche, Sexual Life, 43-44. 863 Derchain, “La Perruque et le Cristal,” 69. For more scenes of hairdressers, along with a discussion of the two examples from the tomb of Sebeknakhte, see Madeleine Gauthier-Laurent. “Les Scènes de Coiffure Féminine dans l‟ Ancienne Égypte.” Mélanges Maspero. T. 1, Fasc. 2. Mémoires de L‟IFAO 66. Cairo: IFAO, 1935. 673-696 especially 680-681. 864 Lynn Meskell. Private Life in New Kingdom Egypt. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2002. 158-159; Derchain, “La Perruque et le Cristal,” 55-60; Lise Manniche. Sacred Luxuries: Fragrance, Aromatherapy, and Cosmetics in Ancient Egypt. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1999. 129-130; Manniche, Sexual Life, 69.

848

The name of its owner is erased. For this scene, see S veS derbergh, Four Eighteenth Dynasty Tombs, pl. IX. 849 See chapter II, 60 (X. 26). 850 Franco, The Pharaohs, cat. no.147. 851 Philippe Derchain. “La Perruque et le Cristal.” SAK 2 (1975): 55-74; Gay Robins. “Ancient Egyptian Sexuality.” DE 11 (1988): 61-72, especially 63; Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, 90. 852 Derchain, “La Perruque et le Cristal,” 67-69. 853 Derchain, “La Perruque et le Cristal,” 68. 854 Philippe Derchain. “Symbols and Metaphors in Literature and Representations of Private Life.” Royal Anthropological Institute News (1976):7-10, especially 9. 855 Derchain, “La Perruque et le Cristal,” 68.

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom the cat.865 Te Velde argues that it “was related to female sexuality through the cat‟s association with the goddess Mut.”866 He also adds that “it is hardly to be expected, however, that it will be possible to demonstrate that the cat under the woman‟s chair is an erotic signal that this woman is not hampered by a menstrual period.”867 Other scholars, such as Warmenbol and Doyen, link the cat with Hathor which I see more plausible in this context.868 In the majority of the cases, the cat is portrayed alone under the chair of her mistress, usually sitting silently. 869 In a few cases, they are shown eating food.870 They are usually figured in side view but in some instances a frontal position can be seen. 871 The cat is associated with Hathor in votive offerings.872 Hathor was the goddess of fertility, sexuality, love, music, and dance. She was also assumed to be a source of fecundity. 873 Because of her salient role as goddess of sexuality, petitions are directed to her in love poems during the New Kingdom. 874 She plays a critical function in both birth and rebirth. In the funerary sphere, she protects the deceased in his journey in the afterlife.875 As a goddess of maternity, she supports women during pregnancy and delivery, along with protecting their children.876 In this setting, two other household deities should be mentioned, Bes and Taweret. Bes is an important apotropaic god connected with women, music, fertility and sexuality. 877 His frightening features help to push away demons and malicious spirits, which could harm the sleeper, children or the household.878 He is specially linked with the bedroom, which is why he is shown on the footboards of some beds, headrests, and chairs along with cosmetic articles from across the social spectrum. 879 Amulets with both deities‟ figures are used by women to reduce the risk of miscarriage and death after birth, on account of the deity‟s bond with pregnant women and infants. 880 In conjunction with Bes, Taweret, the hippopotamus goddess was also responsible for the protection of women during childbirth as she is connected with fertility and

sexuality. She is also depicted on beds, chairs, magic wands, along with cosmetic objects.881 Based on the role of these deities, it is natural to find them alternating together on the sides of the two chairs of Sitamun (Figs. 123,125). The allusion to Hathor in the form of her attributes, in connection with Bes and Taweret, strongly designate the decorational motif as belonging to the female milieu. In this context, it is informative to closely examine the gilded chair of Sitamun (Figs. 125-126).882 The backrest shows the queen seated on an armchair on a papyrus boat. Under the chair is a cat with raised tail. The whole scene takes place on a papyrus marsh, thus reflecting a Hathoric environment because of her association with the “papyrus marsh and vegetation.”883 The headdress, even in its bad state, shows the modius, the two feathers, and presumably the vulture headdress. As Bryan points out “the vulture headdress with modius and plumes belong commonly to queens who bear children or are of childbearing age. Naturally enough, the deities wearing this same vulture headdress are the mother goddesses Isis, Mut, and Hathor most particularly.” 884 Another important element is the lotus offered to the queen by her daughter Sitamun. Lotus was considered a symbol of rebirth and regeneration because the sun god was assumed to spring from a lotus.885 This symbolism underlines its frequent use in banquets scenes or its being sniffed by the couple seated or offered by members of their family.886 The fans carried by Sitamun and the second unnamed princess are also significant. The Swt (semi-circular with long handle) fan is adorned with poppy flowers, lotus and papyrus.887 Both princesses hold the xw fan composed of a single feather. These types of fans are mainly used in specific contexts related to divinity and kingship. 888 As mentioned by Teeter, during the New Kingdom, Swt is equivalent to “the presence of the god;”889 2w appears along with the ruler, or the royal family members as indication of status. According to Bell, the Swt is a sign of the “god's shade,” and the xw designates a “protected cult-image.”890 An additional significant aspect is the ankh held by the queen. It is one of the most influential

865

Cited in Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, 90. Cited in Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, 90. 867 Herman Te Velde. “The Cat as Sacred Animal of the Goddess Mut.” Studies in Egyptian Religion: Dedicated to Professor Jan Zandee. Eds. Van Voss M. Heerma et al. Studies in the History of Religions XLIII. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1982. 127-137, especially136. 868 Eugène Warmenbol and Florence Doyen. “Le Chat et la Maîtresse : Les Visages Multiples D‟Hathor.” Les Divins Chats D'Egypte: un Air Subtil, un Dangereux Parfum. Lettres Orientales 3. Eds. Luc Delvaux and Eugène Warmenbol. Leuven: Peeters, 1991. 55-67, especially 5560. 869 Houlihan, The Animal World of the Pharaohs, 83-85. 870 Malek, The Cat in Ancient Egypt, figs. 37, 39. 871 Malek, The Cat in Ancient Egypt, figs. 32-40, 44. 872 Geraldine Pinch. Votive Offerings to Hathor. Oxford: Griffith Institute, Ashmolean Museum, 1993. 184-197. 873 Claas J. Bleeker. Hathor and Thoth: Two Key Figures of the Ancient Egyptian Religion. Studies in the History of Religions XXVI. Leiden: Brill, 1973. 39-42. 874 Pinch, Votive Offerings, 222; Manniche, Sexual Life, 77; Geraldine Pinch. Magic in Ancient Egypt. London: British Museum Press, 1994. 124. 875 Bleeker, Hathor and Thoth, 42-45. 876 Pinch, Votive Offerings, 222. 877 Meskell, Private Life, 111. 878 Robins, Women in Ancient Egypt, 84- 85. 879 Robins, Women in Ancient Egypt, 85. 880 Robins, Women in Ancient Egypt, 85. 866

881

Robins, Women in Ancient Egypt, 85; Pinch, Magic in Ancient Egypt, 127, 130-131. 882 See chapter II, 35-36 (IV. 2). 883 Vischak, “Hathor,” 82-85, especially 82. 884 Bryan, Egypt's Dazzling Sun: Amenhotep III and his World Sun, 212, cat. no. 28. 885 Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, 64. 886 Silvana E. Fantecchi and Andrea P. Zingarelli. “Singers and Musicians in New Kingdom Egypt.” GM 186 (2002): 27-35, especially 33-34. 887 Robert Morkot. “Violent Images of Queenship and the Royal Cult.” Wepwawet 2 (1986): 1-9, especially 2. 888 Morkot, “Violent Images of Queenship and the Royal Cult,” 2. 889 Emily Teeter. “Feathers.” UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology, Los Angeles. Eds. Willeke Wendrich et al. Los Angeles: UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology, 2010. 1-6,especially 3. http://www.escholarship.org/uc/item/4737m1mb#page-2 890 Lanny Bell. “Aspects of the Cult of the Deified Tutankhamun.” Mélanges Gamal Eddin Mokhtar. Vol. I. Eds. Paule Posener-Kriéger and Muhammad Gamal Eddin Mokhtar. Bibliothèque d‟Étude 97. Cairo: IFAO, 1985. 31-59, especially 33, 37.

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Two-dimensional Scenes of a duck.902 On the top, a monkey is jumping. All of these are animals connoting fertility, fecundity, along with their link to the feminine sphere.

symbols to signify life. Such a symbol is usually held by a god or goddess to the noses of the king to give them “the breath of life.”891 As mentioned by Kozloff, its implementation in Theban tombs was more associated with Hathor than with other goddesses.892 The use of the ankh usually places the queen as its holder in a divine atmosphere outside the human domain. 893 It is also “the Egyptian word for “mirror,” whose reflective quality may have been considered a sort of reaffirmation of life.” 894 As highlighted by Troy “the analogy between the anx and the sistrum persists into the New Kingdom when the instrument, held at the side by the royal women is given a form resembling the anx.”895 Thus it is very meaningful that the queen Tiye holds an ankh here, while on the other chair Sitamun is carrying the attributes of Hathor: the sistrum and the menat.896

Another animal shown on the sides of the second armchair of Sitamun is the ibex (Fig. 124) that was usually considered a game animal, along with the gazelle and oryx.903 These three animals are usually observed in hunting scenes as well as in the processions of herds presented as offerings.904 They are linked to Hathor, who usually received them as tributes.905 In Egyptian iconography, hunting is an aspect of maintaining order over chaos (ensuring Maat).906 The crouching ibexes are employed in combs, along with other cosmetic and toiletry articles.907 The submissive pose of the ibex recalls that of a weaker animal offering himself to a stronger, more powerful one (or presenting himself for the service of the chair owner).908 Moreover, in love poems of the New Kingdom, “the speed and distress of a hunted gazelle is compared to that of the longed-for lover.”909 Both meanings can be understood here. The presence of the nebw sign refers to the goddesses Hathor who was often called “the golden one.” The presence of the sa sign on the sides and backrest of the chair, offers protection to the person seated.

The entire chair is gilded which adds another layer of symbolism to the piece through this solar aspect. Gold was appreciated by ancient Egyptians not only because of its high value, but also because of its symbolism.897 It is believed that the flesh of the gods was made of gold.898 In our corpus, the use of gold is mainly associated with the royal sphere (Tutankhamun, Sitamun). The chair of Sitamun is a clear manifestation of the lavish use of such material. Another important point is that Hathor is called “the golden one,”899 thus the assimilation of the queen with Hathor, and the presence of the other gods Bes and Taweret, all combine to convey a specific context for the chair as a whole. The piece stresses the role of the queen as a mother, along with the divinity of queenship as well as the solar aspect.900 The cat, along with the papyrus boat, emphasizes the association of the queen with the goddess Hathor.

Another theme of decoration that we encounter is grapes, which were connected to the god Osiris, called “Lord of wine.”910 This link stems from the idea that vintage is associated with the period of the inundation. The grape vines denote “the resurrection of Osiris and the return of a new life cycle.”911 Osiris is also related to flooding and fertility. Wine is moreover connected with the appeasement of Hathor.912 In addition, the resemblance between the color of the Nile water during inundation and that of the wine lends a further layer of symbolism to the wine because of its association with the flood and its creative force.913 It is this connection of the grapes and

A similar royal scene can be seen in the tomb of Aanen TT 120, in which the royal couple (Amenhotep III and Tiye) is depicted on separate thrones under a kiosk. 901 The side of the king‟s throne is decorated with the figure of the king in the form of a triumphant sphinx. Between the legs the sematawy motif is depicted. On the side of the queen‟s armchair throne there is a unique scene of three animals: A cat that drapes her leg around the neck

902

Warmenbol and Doyen, “Le Chat et la Maîtresse,” 57-58, fig. 25. Jan Quaegebeur and Nadine Cherpion. La Naine et le Bouquetin, ou, nigme de la Barque en Albâtre de Toutankhmamon. Leuven: Peeters, 1999. 116. For a scene depicting an ibex under the chair of the tomb owner, see S ve-S derbergh, Four Eighteenth Dynasty Tombs, pl.VIII. 904 Quaegebeur and Cherpion, La Naine et Le Bouquetin, 116. 905 Kozloff, Egypt's Dazzling Sun: Amenhotep III, 335. 906 Germond and Livet, An Egyptian Bestiary, 41-44. 907 Quaegebeur and Cherpion, La Naine et le Bouquetin, 30-32. 908 Mahmoud, The Quest for Immortality, cat. no. 39; Houlihan, The Animal World of the Pharaohs, 59. 909 Salima Ikram. “A Desert Zoo: An Exploration of Meaning and Reality of Animals in the Rock Art of Kharga Oasis.” Desert Animals in the Eastern Sahara: Status, Economic Significance, and Cultural Reflection in Antiquity; Proceedings of an Interdisciplinary Acacia Workshop Held at the University of Cologne, December 14-15, 2007. Eds. Heiko Riemer et al. Colloquium Africanum 4. K ln: HeinrichBarth-Institut, 2009. 263-291, especially 273- 274. For the poem, see Miriam Lichtheim. Ancient Egyptian Literature: A Book of Readings. Vol. II: The New Kingdom. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1976. 187: “O that you came to your sister swiftly, like a bounding gazelle in the wild; its feet reel, its limbs are weary, Terror has entered its body. A hunter pursues it with his hounds ... As you pursue your sister‟s love, The Golden (Hathor) gives her to you.” 910 Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, 59,107-108. 911 Poo, Wine and Wine Offering, 150. 912 Poo, Wine and Wine Offering, 155-157. 913 Poo, Wine and Wine Offering, 156, 163. 903

891

Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, 66. Kozloff, Egypt's Dazzling Sun: Amenhotep III, 331-341, especially 336. 893 Robins, Women in Ancient Egypt, 25 “When the queen carries an ankh, it is usually in contexts where she is in some way associated or identified with a goddess, or where she is shown in relation to private people to whom she was superior, rather to deities who were superior to her, or in cult or funerary contexts where she is represented as dead.” 894 Kozloff, Egypt's Dazzling Sun: Amenhotep III, 336. 895 Troy, Patterns of Queenship in Ancient Egyptian Myth and History, 85. 896 Desroches-Noblecourt, Toutankhamon et son Temps, 60-67. 897 Regine Schulz. “Gold: The Flesh of the Gods.” The Walters Magazine (2003): 2-4. 898 Maarten J. Ravern. “Magical and Symbolic Aspects of Certain Materials in Ancient Egypt.” Varia Aegyptiaca 4.3 (1988): 237-242, especially 238. 899 Bleeker, Hathor and Thoth, 25-26. 900 Robins, Women in Ancient Egypt, 52; Morkot, “Violent Images of Queenship and the Royal Cult,” 2. 901 Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, 56, fig. 35 892

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom whether it should be placed under “chair” or “bed,”924 it is difficult in my view to classify it as the latter. I prefer to describe it as a genre of seat used by Egyptian artists with a specific underlying meaning and symbolic connotation in some cases.

wine with deities, along with the charged symbolic meaning associated with prosperity, resurrection and rejuvenation, which is why it is one among the elements painted on the chair of Sennedjem (Fig. 139).914 Let us turn now to the other elements and animals that are portrayed beneath the double seat, as well as separate ones in two-dimensional scenes. As we have seen, cats are usually depicted alone under the woman‟s chair, but exceptions do exist, such as in the tomb of Nakht (TT 52), in which the cat is eating a fish.915 It might be a tilapia fish, as suggested by some scholars, which has a specific connection with fertility and regeneration. 916 It is also connected with Hathor “in her role as mother of the sun god.”917 If the type of fish is correct, it gives another layer of symbolism linked with fecundity and rebirth. According to Malek, the cat‟s association as symbol of female sexuality when placed under the woman‟s seat finds its pendant with the dog or monkey under the man‟s.918 Occasionally, a gazelle can be depicted beneath a seat, thus it is in this case considered a symbol of regeneration.919 Among objects depicted, one might find mirrors or kohl pots, not only in painting but also in sculpture (Fig. 105).920 These makeup articles are linked with beauty, attraction and therefore with sexuality. 921 We find them under beds because they constitute the essential prerequisites for a relationship between a couple which leads to their rebirth. Sometimes, children are depicted seated under the chairs of their parents: in this case they perpetuate the name of their father along with exemplifying “the principle of fertility,” 922 as they constitute the concrete offspring.

The understanding of our icon (double seat) accompanied by other elements and animals is related to the whole concept, as well as the purpose of the tomb decoration. It is this perspective that is supposed to be taken into consideration when trying to analyze these icons. We should see the tomb as “a single entity,”925 the whole point of which is to help its owner to rebirth in the afterlife. This goal can only be achieved through the depictions which symbolize the dominance of order over chaos and through the use of symbols which refer to rebirth and sex.926 In order to enjoy rebirth, one has to capture all enemies (destruction of animals and hunting bad birds), rebirth cannot occur without sexuality, which is an essential element to restore vitality and to enhance the person‟s sensuality.927 Finally we have to be flexible, and not restrict ourselves to only one interpretation when trying to understand a specific scene or certain animals, as they can be the carrier of different layers of meaning, as we will see below in the duck symbolism. II Circumstances and Social Context of Using Chairs and Stools In this part we will discuss the circumstances in which chairs and stools are used, emphasizing those which are mainly used by women, as well as those for workmen. Along these lines, it will be significant to look at few examples from sculpture in order to see whether the preference of specific chairs and stools for men and women is retained in sculpture and whether or not we can deduce any comments about their decoration.

To sum up, because of the presence of elements portrayed beneath it, the double seat in some instances can be carrier of erotic connotations, or Hathoric overtones. A few examples are indicative of the women being literate (scribal kit),923 or a symbol of regeneration (lotus, grapes). Some images do not have any elements beneath them, but they could be understood as a way of emphasizing the notion of the family, which is the paramount concept for the Egyptians, and the way in which the deceased expect to be portrayed. Concerning typology, I am convinced that “elongated chair” is an icon that should not be placed in our classification of real pieces because of its absence in archeological records unless a piece is published which enhances our understanding of it. Although it has been questioned

The folding stool appears in various social strata and is considered an upper-class article and a sign of status and prestige, likely because of its military associations (from the Middle Kingdom).928 The earliest depiction of a folding stool is on a stela, from Serabit El Khadam in Sinai, and dating to the Middle Kingdom (Reign of Amenemhet IV).929 The first real example that was thought to date originally to the Middle Kingdom, and that originates from Meir has now been re-dated to the Early New Kingdom by Fischer, who proves that Rifa, not Meir, is its provenance.930 The folding stool is characterized by its portability, considered a camp stool

914

See chapter II, 40-41 (VII. 8). Warmenbol and Doyen, “Le Chat et la Maîtresse,” 60. 916 Derchain, “Symbols and Metaphors in Literature and Representations of Private Life,” 8 “Nile fish was observed to gather its fry into its mouth in times of danger, after which they were seen to leave it again, and this habit made the fish a symbol of renewed life and of fertility, parallel to the persea fruit.” 917 Pinch, Votive Offerings, 287. 918 Malek, The Cat in Ancient Egypt, 59. 919 Germond and Livet, An Egyptian Bestiary, 91. 920 Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, fig. 17. 921 Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, 90. 922 Robins, “Ancient Egyptian Sexuality,” 63. 923 Davies, Scenes from Some Theban Tombs, pl. XVI. For more examples, see Betsy M. Bryan. “Evidence for Female Literacy from Theban Tombs of the New Kingdom.” BES 6 (1984):17-32. 915

924

Bruwier, “Du Caractère Individuel du Siège Mobile en Égypte Pharaonique,” 107. 925 Robins, “Ancient Egyptian Sexuality,” 63. 926 Robins, “Ancient Egyptian Sexuality,” 61. 927 Manniche, Sacred Luxuries, 128. 928 Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 16. 929 This stela is currently preserved in the Cairo Museum. Fischer, “Les Meubles Égyptiens,” 197, 199, fig. 62; Alan H Gardiner and T. E. Peet. The Inscriptions of Sinai. The Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoirs XLV. London: The Offices of the Egypt Exploration Fund, 1917. Pl. XLVIII, no. 121. 930 Fischer, “Les Meubles Égyptiens,” 197-198.

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Two-dimensional Scenes because it is lightweight, but sturdy when in use. 931 The best attestation to this can be seen in the bas-relief fragment of a military camp from the tomb of general Horemheb at Saqqara (Dynasty 18) in which a folding stool, along with a lattice one, are depicted among other furnishing equipment.932 The design resembles that of the Middle Kingdom but with more subtle and elaborate decoration associated with the addition of the ducks‟ head motif especially in the second half of Dynasty 18 (and on), the same period in which we see the lavish use of animals and birds in various objects such as furniture, cosmetic articles, and vases.933 Sometimes, the folding stool is used by the king such as on Tutankhamun‟s shrine, 934 as well as actual pieces.935 It is included among Nubian tributes (tomb of Huy), or among the New Year gifts presented to the Monarch.936 It is used by a king (Likely Amenhotep II) while teaching his son shooting.937 It is important to indicate that the first royal example of a real folding stool is the one belonging to Amenhotep II, a leg fragment which has been previously discussed in chapter II (Figs. 117-119).938 Occasionally, a folding stool could be used by commoners (despite its preeminent position) such as soldiers lining up for a barber, 939 selling merchandise,940 working,941 or sitting outdoors.942 It is mainly employed by the affluent class such as: scribes in diverse settings; 943 in banquet scenes by the owner of the tomb when seated next to his spouse (or mother),944 or by male guests, 945 in fishing scenes,946 by guardians,947 in scenes depicting the tomb owner supervising his estates.948

symbolism.949 The importance of the duck is not limited to its secular role but it also has magic, funerary and symbolic value related to the regeneration of the deceased.950 From the Old Kingdom, we are accustomed to seeing offering scenes in which both lotus and ducks are present.951 These scenes are developed in the decoration of the tombs in the New Kingdom, and are usually associated with a young girl in order to give erotic connotation.952 Arnst makes the analogy of lotus and duck: both of them coming from the egg (bud), they guarantee regeneration and rebirth.953 Hermann also sees erotic connotation of ducks with necks turned back. 954 In addition to the positive symbolic and regenerative role of the ducks, Germond alludes to another negative symbol in which the duck appears as the image of the potential enemy, and he interprets the scene (hunting birds) as a ritual gesture done by the deceased in order to neutralize any hostile manifestation in his afterlife. 955 As discussed by Wanscher, the folding stool with ducks‟ heads survives in ample number comparing with the one with lion legs, of which there is only one example. 956 The question that poses itself is why this preference of the duck motif in real pieces is not reflected in representations, in which the lion theme is favored. This does not mean that in representations ducks are totally absent, but they are less in number compared to lions. The lion motif was common in Egyptian art through different periods and it is considered a symbol of strength and power via its connection with the monarch.957 It is adopted in chairs as early as the Third Dynasty in the non-royal sphere.958 It was then elegantly used on the statue of Chephren (Dynasty 4), in which the lion heads flank the throne of the king and their paws constitute the legs. Lion legs replace those of the bull, which were also considered the embodiment of royal strength and power.959 The lion theme is not only restricted to thrones, chairs, and stools, but is also well-documented in beds and headrests.960 It is a motif present in daily-use objects, along with funerary decoration.961 The best incarnation can be seen on the sphinx, consisting of the combination of the lion body and the king‟s (or queen‟s) face.962 Lions

In this context, it is important to discuss another favorite motif. The duck (pintail) is often incorporated in the design of folding stools, and contains a lot of 931

Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 12, 38; Cabrol, Amenhotep III: Le Magnifique, 238, fig. 66. 932 Wildung, The Pharaohs, cat. no. 100. 933 Kozloff, Egypt's Dazzling Sun: Amenhotep III, cat. nos. 72-78. 934 For a discussion of the shrine and its symbolism, see Alison Roberts. Golden Shrine, Goddess Queen: Egypt's Anointing Mysteries. Rottingdean, East Sussex: Northgate, 2008. 16-26. 935 Eaton-krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, pls. XLVIII-L. 936 Sweeney, “The Man on the Folding Chair,” 49-50. 937 Peter Der Manuelian. Studies in the Reign of Amenophis II. Hildesheimer Ägyptologische Beitr ge 26. Hildesheim: Gerstenberg, 1987. 28, 31, fig. 15; Jacques Vandier. Manuel D'Archéologie Égyptienne: Tome IV. Paris: A. et J. Picard et Cie, 1964. 541, fig. 292. 938 See chapter II, 33 (II. 2 and II. 3). 939 Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, 75, fig. 43. 940 Norman De G. Davies and R .O. Faulkner. “A Syrian Trading Venture to Egypt.” JEA 33 (1947): 40-46, pl. VIII. 941 Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/2, pl. 416. 942 Sweeney, “The Man on the Folding Chair,” 50-51, fn. 49. 943 Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 28, fn.32. 944 E.g. the tomb of Horemheb. Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/1, pl. 39 a; Sheila Whale. The Family in the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt: A Study of the Representation of the Family in Private Tombs. The Australian Centre for Egyptology Studies 1. Sydney: Australian Centre for Egyptology, 1989. 211. For another scene of the deceased seated next to his mother such as Nebamun and Ipuky, see Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 30. 945 Davies, The Tomb of Two Sculptors at Thebes, pls. VI-VII; Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/1, pl. 39 a. 946 Davies, Seven Private Tombs at Kurnah, pl. XXXII. 947 Davies, The Rock Tombs of El Amarna VI, pl. XXX. 948 Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, 87, fig. 53; Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/1, pl. 48 a.

949

Germond, “En Marge du Bestiaire: Un Drôle de Canard,” 75-94. Germond, “En Marge du Bestiaire: Un Drôle de Canard,” 78. 951 Germond, “En Marge du Bestiaire: Un Drôle de Canard,” 83. 952 Germond, “En Marge du Bestiaire: Un Drôle de Canard,” 88-89. 953 Caris-Beatrice Arnst. “... und die Vögel, die als Bund Vereint sind, Kommen als dauerndes Opfer.” Morphologisches zum SchwimmvogelBündel. Begegnungen: Antike Kulturen Im Niltal. Eds. Erika Endesfelder et al. Leipzig: Wodtke und Stegbauer, 2001. 19-53, especially 31. 954 Cited in Pinch, Votive Offering, 287. 955 From the tomb of Niankhkhnoum and Knoumhotep at Saqqara (Dynasty 5), there is a legend “ Briser (le cou) des oiseaux des marais au milieu des fourrés de papyrus par le chef des manucures de pharaon, Niankhkhnoum.” See Germond, “En Marge du Bestiaire: Un Drôle de Canard,” 91-93. 956 Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 17-18, 42. 957 Fischer, “A Chair of the Early New Kingdom,” 146. 958 Fischer, “A Chair of the Early New Kingdom,” 146. 959 Houlihan, The Animal World of the Pharaohs, 12. 960 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, figs. 83-85, 132-140. 961 Houlihan, The Animal World of the Pharaohs, 94. 962 That is why portraying the king as a sphinx trampling his enemies became an essential feature on the sides of royal thrones (occasionally 950

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom are also “seen as a powerful guardian figure with apotropaic qualities and strong solar associations.” 963 Thus, it seems that all these qualities of fierceness, might, protection, all of which are related to the king, are the main reasons for the precedence of this motif in reliefs and paintings. More symbolism is attached to the folding stool through its seat that imitates the animal‟s skin, which had a cultic ceremonial connotation because the leopard skin was an important priest‟s garment.964 Regarding the shape of the folding stool with lion legs in two-dimensional scenes, Wanscher states that the lion motif, when combined with this type, loses some of its naturalism.965 In scenes, they do not exhibit the same naturalism as those with ducks‟ heads. The intersection of the foot-bars and the legs recall “the Chippendale ball and claw foot”966 but in truth this ball designates the edges of the footbars.

Nefertiti are shown on it when receiving tributes or civil servants in the palace.972 Nefertiti is the first queen to sit enthroned on such a stool.973 Both the king and queen can be shown using the stool,974 or Nefertiti can be seated on it and the king is showing using a chair. 975 Later on, it was adopted by Ramses II and Ramses III.976 Bruwier suggests that women mainly used this type after the fashion of Nefertiti, which is plausible especially since this is the main stool associated with women during the Ramesside period.977 The best proof from our corpus (private sphere) can be seen in the two flared-legged stools from the Sennedjem tomb which are both inscribed with the name of his wife, Iyneferti (Figs. 136-137).978 In two-dimensional scenes, when a husband and wife are figured seated next to each other, usually the woman is seated on a flared-legged stool,979 and the man perched on a chair,980 a lattice-work stool,981 or rarely on a folding stool.982 In the environment of workmen, Bruwier asserts that there are only two occasions in which it was used: one by a tanner in the tomb of Rekhmire, and the second by a maker of arcs and arrows.983 It is true that it is not a well-depicted type in the sphere of workmen, but we do have more than two examples, and we can add a third example of a craftsman achieving woodworking activities from the tomb of Ipuy.984 In more affluent classes, the flared-legged stool is used by guests in banquet scenes,985 or held by a servant,986 or depicted with a woman seated in front of her husband playing a Senet game,987 or with a couple (or sometimes the woman only)988 receiving offerings.989

The flared-legged stool is used by all categories of the society from the king at the top down to the lower class of artisans and craftsmen.967 The first representation of its use among men is on the tomb of Benia, called Paheqamen (No. 343) and Amenemhet (No. 354).968 The earliest evidence of women depicted sitting in this type date to the reign of Amenhotep III.969 According to Manuelian, the addition of the lattice bracing appears in this category during the reigns of Amenhotep III and Akhenaten.970 From the royal sphere, the earliest indication comes from the tomb of Tjunena (Reign of Thutmose IV) in which the stool is part of New Year‟s gifts.971 During the Amarna Period, both Akhenaten and Tiye and then Nefertiti). The same idea resides on a royal footstool depicting foreign captives on which the king treads and crushes them (humiliation). See Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, fig. 35; Constant de Wit. l tl d d ’ gy t . 2ème éd. Luxor: Gaber Aly Hussein, Gezirat el Bairat, 1952. 16-70. 963 Houlihan, The Animal World of the Pharaohs, 94. 964 Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 20, 29. Such as the folding chair with ducks‟ heads of Tutankhamun, the ducks in this context may have a negative connotation as the image of an enemy (i.e., disorder) that must be perpetually repelled, similar to the nine prisoners that are represented below the feet of the king. All these elements focus on the same theme of showing the king victorious over his enemies. 965 Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 18. 966 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, figs. 217-218; Sweeney, “The Man on the Folding Chair,” 46. 967 Manuelian, Egy t’ G ld g cat. no. 40. For a discussion of the flared-legged stool origin, see Bruwier, “Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,” 34-35: she suggests a Near-Eastern origin based on the presence of a similar shaped stool on some seals from the Akkadian Period, along with a fragment of a stool from a tomb at Jericho; in addition to a scene depicting a Syrian man seated on such a stool (see S ve-S derbergh, Four Eighteenth Dynasty Tombs, pl. XXIII (tomb of Nebamun). Manuelian on the other hand proposes the similarity between the Kerma stool type and that of the flared-legged stool (see Manuelian,“Notes on the So-called Turned Stools of the New Kingdom,” 126). I think that the shape of those from Kerma can be compared with the stools with Sa shape sign more than the flaredlegged ones. 968 Manuelian, “Notes on the So-called Turned Stools of the New Kingdom,” 127, fns. 21-22. 969 Eaton-krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 121. For this example from the tomb of Menna (recently dated to the reign of Amenhotep III), see Arpag Mekhitarian. Egyptian Painting. Geneva: Skira, 1978. 79. 970 Manuelian, “Notes on the So-called Turned Stools of the New Kingdom,” 127. 971 Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 121; S ve-S derbergh, Four Eighteenth Dynasty Tombs, 50-51, pl. LXXII (upper register).

972

Bruwier, “Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,” 36, fn. 66. Bruwier, “Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,” 37. 974 Manuelian, “Notes on the So-called Turned Stools of the New Kingdom,” 127, fn. 34: “Akhenaten‟s reign provides the only example of a scene with a seated couple in which the husband as well as the wife set on flared leg stools.” 975 Bruwier, “Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,” 36. 976 Bruwier, “Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,” 37. 977 Bruwier, “Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,” 45. 978 See chapter II, 39-40 (VII. 5 and VII. 6). 979 Eva Hofmann. Das Grab des Neferrenpet gen. Kenro (TT 178). Theben Bd. 9. Mainz am Rhein : P. Von Zabern, 1995. Pl. V(b). 980 George Foucart. . Mémoires Publiés par les Membres de L‟IFAO 57. Cairo: IFAO, 1932. 23, 25, figs.15-16; Davies, Seven Private Tombs at Kurnah, pls. V, XXVIII-XXIX. 981 Bruwier, “Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,” 42. 982 Eaton-Krauss, “Three Stools from the Tomb of Sennedjem,” 186. 983 Bruwier, “Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,” 42. For these two scenes, see Davies, d Another, pl. XI; Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire II, pl. LIV. 984 Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/2, pl. 369. 985 Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/2, pl. 258. 986 Norman G. Davies. t . Metropolitan Museum of Art Egyptian Expedition Vol. V. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1930. Pl. XXIV. 987 Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/1, pl. 49 a. 988 Daniel Polz, Stefan Klug, and Harald Kürschner. Das Grab des Hui und Des Kel Theben Nr. 54. Archäologische Veröffentlichungen 74. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 1997. pl. VI; Davies, The Tomb of Two Sculptors, pl. XVIII; Foucart, , figs. 15-16; Jeanne Vandier d'Abbadie. Deux Tombes Ramessid G t. Mémoires Publiés par les Membres de L‟IFAO 87. Cairo: IFAO, 1954. Pl. VIII. 989 For more examples, see Bruwier, “Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,” 42-43; Manuelian, Egy t’ G ld g cat. no. 40. 973

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Two-dimensional Scenes while involved in different activities: leather tanners, 1004 metal workers,1005 clients in a barber shop,1006 jewelers,1007 carpenters,1008 manufacturers of bows and arrows,1009 and others. Further categories alternate (even in the same row) with the three-legged type, mainly the stools with runners.1010 This type is mainly used by workmen involved in various tasks such as leather and sandal manufacture,1011 wood and metal working,1012 and cleaning fowl.1013 It is portrayed in different heights. The four-legged stool is also used by workmen, but it is not well-documented in scenes. 1014

The animal legged stool is used occasionally in the New Kingdom as the chairs of different heights were favored in representations. The few examples that we can discern were associated with women, but there are examples from the previous periods indicating its implementation by men.990 In a scene from the tomb of Ramose, he is shown seated, in front of an offering table, on a high chair and with a woman perched on a cushioned, animal-legged stool.991 There is another example from a banquet scene in the tomb of Thotnofer in which the upper register depicts men seated on lattice stools, along with flaredlegged ones, but in the lower register the seat used by women alternate between lion chairs with low backs, or animal-legged stools.992 A third depiction comes from the tomb of Amenenheb in which the first woman (to the left) in the row is seated on such stool.993

The P stool type can be seen in a few tombs used by men performing their tasks such as curing fish, 1015 or cleaving papyrus reeds.1016 It is also employed by guests in banquet scenes,1017 or in an offering context in which a naked girl is presenting a wine cup to an old man seated on such a stool and holding a staff indicating his position as overseer.1018 The stools with various leg shapes, with either rush or paneled seats, are not well-depicted, probably because the implementation of the lattice stool type occurs more frequently. The lattice stool differs from these other types only in its struts. It has been suggested by some scholars that those made of solid wood are used in workshops and the rush type is for household use. 1019 The shape that can be suggested from representations is like a rectangle with straight legs, sometimes with stretchers.1020 The few occasions in which we can discern it is in the context of workmen achieving tasks such as the sandal maker 1021 or potter.1022 Occasionally, women sit on a similarly shaped stool as in the tomb of Amenemhat.1023 The use of this type by the deceased daughters seems unusual, as it looks like those of the workmen. Their stools are smaller in size, compared to

The lattice stool is clearly the most widely implemented type during the New Kingdom.994 It is usually used by the owner of the tomb when receiving offerings, 995 by guests in banquets scenes and “social gatherings,”996 by a superintendant supervising a royal workshop of artisans and craftsmen,997 or by workmen such as leather tanners and vase makers.998 It is the genre that is associated with many different social strata of the society from the highest class personified by the king, 999 his entourage, to the lower class embodied by its craftsmen and artisans.1000 In the scenes that I have examined, it is associated with men.1001 The three-legged stool is the most functional type associated with workmen and artisans in the New Kingdom “but there are no depictions of noblemen or officials, still less of the ruler, sitting on a three-legged stool.”1002 It is in this period that we are accustomed to seeing craftsmen seated on different kinds and heights of this type to achieve their task. Still, they can be shown seated on the floor, or even on the objects, depending on the work itself.1003 Several two-dimensional scenes show craftsmen and artisans using this type in various contexts

1004

Davies, Scenes from Some Theban Tombs, pl.VIII; Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire II, pl. LIII. 1005 Davies, The Tomb of Two Sculptors, pl. XIV. 1006 Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, fig. 43. 1007 Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire II, pl. LIV. 1008 Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire II, pls. LIII, LV. 1009 Davies, d t pl. XI. 1010 Davies, d t pl. XII; Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire II, pls. LII, LIV. 1011 Davies, Scenes from Some Theban Tombs, pl. VIII. 1012 Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire II, pl. LV; Wilkinson and Hill, Egyptian Wall Paintings, 36-37. 1013 Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, 40, fig. 16. 1014 Vandier, l D’ rchéologie Égyptienne IV, 234, fig. 101; Cabrol, Amenhotep III: Le Magnifique, 229, fig. 59. 1015 Davies, The Tomb of Puyemre, pls. XV, XVII; Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/1, pl. 121. 1016 Davies, The Tomb of Puyemre, pl. XIX. 1017 Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/2, pl. 268, 392. 1018 For the tomb of Antef, see S ve-S derbergh, Four Eighteenth Dynasty Tombs, 18, pl. XV. See also plate X from the same tomb in which a man sits on such a stool and carries a staff in his hand. 1019 Manuelian, Egy t’ G ld g , cat. no. 44. 1020 For an example, see Davies, The Tomb of Puyemre, pl. XXIII. 1021 Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire II, pl. LIII. 1022 Davies, The Tomb of Puyemre, pl. XXIII. 1023 Nadine Cherpion, Jean-Marie Kruchten, and Laïla Ménassa. Deux Tombes de La XVIIIe Dynastie à Deir El-Medina: Nos 340 (Amenemhat) et 354 (anonyme). Mémoires de L‟IFAO 114. Cairo: IFAO, 1999. 16-17, pls. 1-2. See also Davies, Scenes from Some Theban Tombs, pl. XV in which a woman is seated on a low stool.

990

For the Old Kingdom, see Cherpion, t t y g pl. 17. For an example from the Middle Kingdom, see Wilkinson and Hill, Egyptian Wall Paintings, 70. 991 Vandier, l D’ éologie Égyptienne IV, 256, fig. 115; Cabrol, Amenhotep III: Le Magnifique, 304, fig. 83. 992 Sheikh Abd El Qurna No. 80; Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/2, pl. 258. For another example, see Fischer, “A Chair of the Early New Kingdom,” pl. 33. 993 Sheikh Abd El Qurna No. 85. Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/2, pl. 272 (It is difficult to discern from the scene). 994 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 46. 995 Davies, Scenes from Some Theban Tombs, pl. II. 996 Manuelian, Egy t’ G ld g cat. no. 42; Davies, The Tombs of Menkhepe d t pl. XXXVIII; Wilkinson and Hill, Egyptian Wall Paintings, 36-37. 997 Davies, The Tomb of Two Sculptors, pl. XI; Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire II, pl. LI (Rekhmire overseeing the magazines). 998 Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/2, pl. 242. 999 Such as the stela of Akhenaten and Nefertiti, see D‟Auria, Pharaohs of the Sun, cat. no. 53. 1000 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 46. 1001 Eaton-krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 108. 1002 Eaton-krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 124. 1003 Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire II, pl. LIII.

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom those of their brothers in the register above, but they nonetheless indicate a higher social position than sitting on a mat would.

representative example of this period as it shows the use of the stretchers to connect all lion legs together. The elbow braces are also painted black as usually seen in real pieces to imitate ebony. The headrail is curved at its top, and the triangle formed when seen in profile is faithfully represented. The cylindrical stretchers recall the refined pieces especially in the use of the ferrules on each corner reminiscent of the expensive “papyriform terminals” 1036 of the Tutankhamun armchair, a feature more common in stools than chairs. The back of the chair has the shape of a T.

Chairs are frequently depicted in scenes disproportionally to their presence as actual objects. Not all the preserved types are figured in tombs, as Egyptian artists seem to have a specific preference of some categories. The main classic type, well-known in the New Kingdom, is the one most portrayed in paintings and reliefs.1024 It is employed mainly by the tomb owner and his wife 1025 (if the bench is not used), and by guests and members of his family in banquet scenes.1026 Smaller renditions of the same classic chair could be used by members of the family, usually children under those of their parents.1027 Rarely, straightback lion-legged chairs are shown, such as in the tomb of Ramose, carried among furniture in funeral procession.1028 Occasionally one can find lattice chairs with straight legs and low backrest, evidence of which cannot be identified as real specimens.1029

Another statue depicts a seated nurse, and on her lap are four royal children (three standing and one seated princess on a thick cushion). The statue was found at Kafr el Nahhal near Bubastis (Zagazig) and is now also in the Cairo Museum (Figs. 104-105).1037 The nurse is seated on a lion-legged chair, with clear differentiation between the front and back legs reposing on striated drums. Parts of the statue are not preserved but it is evident that it bears vestiges of gilding, and that it was originally painted with different colors. Some important elements are worth stressing in this piece: first is its distinctive seat of which both edges are skillfully carved and painted red with a relief design reminiscent of webbing; even the lines imitate the strands.1038 The two back legs are attached together with knee braces; while the two front legs bear some traces of another brace but the rendering of the nurse‟s legs prevent us from seeing it clearly. More important is the representation of two monkeys, one on each side of the chair. On the left side it holds a mirror, and on the right a kohl tube and stick. This association of the monkey with the feminine domain is expressive and reminiscent of its depiction on two-dimensional scenes. The princess seated on her knee is in a bad state of preservation, but she is holding a menat necklace in her left hand, which is an attribute of the goddess Hathor.

Based on the scenes that we have examined, it is important to evaluate the position of the woman versus the man. Whale, in her study of the Eighteenth Dynasty family, concludes that in the majority of the cases both husband and wife are portrayed in an equal size, an interpretation that I consider plausible.1030 Naturally, one can argue that in some tombs, women are illustrated smaller in size (small figure), along with a small chair comparing to her husband,1031 but this is not the norm. Sometimes men are sitting on stools, while women sit on a low chair,1032 or a mat.1033 A few exceptions can be detected in which the woman (such as a mother) is shown on a chair, and a man (son) is depicted on a stool such as a folding stool.1034 Based on our examination of certain tomb scenes during the New Kingdom, it is essential to look at some evidence from sculpture (one single or two persons depicted) in order to see if they correlate with the gender association with specific types. A depiction of the classic chair type is rendered in a painted limestone statue of a seated man from El Amarna period (Fig. 103).1035 It is currently displayed in the Cairo Museum and it is a

Let us look now at how couples are shown: a unique wooden example is the one preserved in the Berlin Museum.1039 It is distinguished by its meticulous details expressed not only in the depiction of the seats but also in the persons, their coiffure and clothes. It shows Imenemipet and his wife Hathor (Fig. 106).1040 His position seems to allow him to own such a unique piece exhibiting high level craftsmanship. He is represented seated on a chair with lion legs, bracing and stretchers. 1041 What is striking is the flared-legged stool of his wife,

1024

Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, figs. 10, 17, 39, pls. 4, 6. Hofmann, Das Grab des Neferrenpet, pl. IV; Davies, Scenes from Some Theban Tombs, pl. III; Foucart, , pls. XIX-XX, XXVII; Vandier d‟Abbadie, Deux Tombes Ramessides à G t, pls. XXXII-XXXIII. 1026 Davies, The Tomb of Two Sculptors, pl. VII. 1027 Davies, The Tomb of Two Sculptors, pl. V. 1028 Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, 52, fig. 26. 1029 Davies, Seven Private Tombs at Kurnah, pl. XVII. 1030 Whale, The Family in the Eighteenth Dynasty, 240-241. 1031 Whale, The Family in the Eighteenth Dynasty, 244. 1032 Davies, Scenes from Some Theban Tombs, pl. VI; Fischer, “A Chair of the Early New Kingdom,” pl. 34. 1033 Hartwig, Tomb Painting and Identity, pl. 5; Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/1, pl. 115. 1034 For an example in which the deceased is using a folding stool and his mother next to him seated on a chair, see Wreszinski, Atlas zur Altaegyptischen Kulturgeschichte I/1, pl. 39 a. 1035 For this piece (JE 53249), see Freed, Markowitz, and D‟Auria, Pharaohs of the Sun, cat. no. 172. 1025

1036

Eaton-krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 94, pls. XXXI-XXXII. For the publication of this piece (JE 98831), see Mohamed Saleh. “Varia from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.” Stationen: Beiträge zur Kulturgeschichte Ägyptens. Eds. Heike Guksch and Daniel Polz. Mainz am Rhein: P. Von Zabern, 1998. 353-361, especially 358-361, figs. 810. According to Saleh, the piece dates to the first half of Dynasty 18. 1038 For another example showing the webbing of the seat of a Middle Kingdom chair model (Meketre), see Fischer, “A Chair of the Early New Kingdom,” pl. 37. 1039 ÄM 6910, See Guillemette, les Artistes de Pharaon, cat. no. 65 : He was “a royal scribe and superintendent of the workmen in the place of truth” under the reign of Seti I and Ramses II. 1040 Vandier, l D’ éologie Égyptienne III, 531-532, pl. CXLIV (2). 1041 It is difficult to judge the details of his chair or its side from the figure. 1037

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Two-dimensional Scenes which is lower than the chair, but the presence of a thick embroidered cushion makes the couple in the same height. By comparing her stool decoration with the example currently preserved in the British Museum which is considered the finest specimen of this type,1042 one will find that they are replicas with only one exception: on the statue there are two cylindrical stretchers, a feature that, to the best of my knowledge, is not preserved in any real stool or chair but is welldepicted in tomb paintings, especially in the Ramesside period.1043 Apart from that, the concave design of the seat, the imitation of “lotus petals and drop shapes” 1044 on the top of the leg, the tapering of the lower leg and band decoration, the number of vertical and diagonal struts, all conform with the real surviving piece. Complying with the paintings and reliefs, a monkey is depicted on the side of the stool eating fruits with great appetite. The two seats of the couple are attached to a back pillar and reposing on a large rectangular pedestal inscribed with a hymn to Amun-Re.

decoration can occasionally match with real pieces, but the presence of a pair of stretchers, sometimes along with the animals on the sides of the seats, is well retained in paintings and reliefs. The majority of the types portrayed in scenes correspond to real pieces in museums. There might be some exceptions, particularly the bench type along with the lattice bracing chair with straight legs. The absence of one or two types is better understood for now as a convention used by the artists rather than a type missing because of its not being preserved. Relying on objects is safer at this level, especially since there are some types that are present in reality, and not in twodimensional scenes.1050 I assume that the absence of a specific type should be interpreted from the other perspective, and that one should try to understand the underlying meaning of its usage preference. What can be said based on our discussion is that gender preference is well-connected with mode of usage for stools and chairs such as the use of the lattice and folding stools by men, the prevalent use of the low chairs by women, and the association of a specific type with workmen.

Another pair statuette from the MMA depicts a man and his wife seated next to each other (Fig. 107).1045 There are no inscriptions which reveal their identity but the elaborate pleat of the clothes indicates the Ramesside Period. The man is seated on a lattice stool, his wife on a flared-legged stool. The similar arrangement can be detected in various settings such as the limestone group showing a couple seated in front of an offering table (Fig. 108).1046 The two stools are attached together to a back pillar that does not continue until the end of the seats. On the side of the woman‟s stool a monkey plays with a piece of food. Wanscher points to one unique example depicting a man seated on a folding stool, and his wife on a flared-legged one.1047 In other cases, the husband and the wife are seated each on a separate high back chairs.1048 Chairs with high back are used by both men and women, but in sculpture (even though we have few examples); it is not always easy to discern if the intention is to represent two separate chairs or bench.1049 On the basis of the statues we have looked at, it is clear that they correlate more with two-dimensional scenes than with the actual preserved material. It is true that 1042

No. 2472, see Manuelian, Egypt’ G ld g cat. no. 40. Such as the tomb of Inher-Ka, see Hodel-Hoenes, Life and Death in Ancient Egypt, figs. 202-203, 205, 212-214. 1044 Strudwick, Masterpieces of Ancient Egypt, 196. 1045 Hayes, The Scepter of Egypt II, 380-381, fig. 238 1046 C.G. 622, see Vandier, l D’ éologie Égyptienne III, 522, pl. CXLVI (3). 1047 Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 28, 30, fn. 34. 1048 Strudwick, Masterpieces of Ancient Egypt, 192-193. Low lattice stools are also used in squatting statues. For such examples, see Regine Schulz. Die Entwicklung und Bedeutung des kuboiden Statuentypus: E U t g z d g t “Wü l .” 2 Vols. Hildesheimer Ägyptologische Beiträge 33-34. Hildesheim: Gerstenberg, 1992. 220, 238, pls. 52-53. 1049 The only difference between them is the presence of lion legs between the two seated persons. Bruwier proposes that the intention of the Egyptian artist was not to depict a double seat in sculpture in the round. I believe that even a few examples may indicate the possibility of a bench, but they are not always clear. See Bruwier, “Du Caractère Individuel du Siège Mobile en Égypte Pharaonique,”106-107. 1043

1050

This phenomenon will be also discussed in the typology part in chapter IV.

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to the generality of the determinative used (usually wood), the fact that there are only a few primary words further complicates the matter. Moreover, few non-royal stools and chairs have inscriptions.1054 I have identified three terms that are present in royal, along with non-royal textual materials: isbt, qniw, hdmw. Two are occasionally used in non-royal language (kHs, pHDw), and one, Htmt, that is used only twice in royal context.

Chapter IV Lexicography and Typology I A Lexicographical Discussion of Chairs, Stools and Footstools in the New Kingdom This section is devoted to a philological analysis of the terms used by the Ancient Egyptians to designate different types of chairs, stools and footstools. The majority of the corpus that we have examined in chapter two is non-royal pieces, with the exception of some pedestals, one model, some leg fragments, as well as the two armchairs of Sitamun. Our material does not include any thrones, and, in any case, Kuhlmann has studied in detail the words used to denote ―throne‖ through different periods.1051 Terminology designating royal pieces is wellestablished; their determinatives are clear and more expressive compared to non-royal terms. For this reason I just mention some of them briefly if they are related to our purpose, which is understanding the vocabulary of the workmen.

During the Old kingdom, ―the word st ‗seat‘ or ‗place,‘ referred to any piece of furniture on which one rested, whether seated or reclined,‖1055 including a bed. Still in the New Kingdom, it was not associated with a specific type of seat but in some contexts it meant throne of the gods1056 or the kings. This general term possesses various entries; it appears in different compounds, as well as titles. It also occurs in some abstract nouns.1057 Proof of its generality exists in a compound such as st-(n) xt ―bed in sloping position;‖1058 st Hms ―living room;‖1059 st qrs ―burial place.‖1060 Another generic word to designate seat is nst. It denotes the throne of the king, as well as that of the gods.1061 In the New Kingdom, several terms designate thrones such as isbt, wTst,1062 bHdw,1063 srx.1064

Before beginning our discussion, it is important to emphasize that flexibility plays a significant role here, whether in the term usage through different periods, or in the same term that can denote different meanings according to the context (royal versus non-royal), or according to the determinative which leads to different translations. Even though we have found some evidence of the association of a particular term with a specific type of chair or stool. This still does not mean that the same term may not encompass other types. In the language of the necropolis workmen, our two main terms qniw and isbt possess a range of implications, including various types of chairs and stools.

1054

These inscriptions mainly focus on the name and titles of its owner or sometimes outline the standard offering addressed to the deceased person. Even though inscriptions appear in non-royal instances only occasionally, they are useful in informing us about titles of their owners such as in the case of Hekanefer, a contemporary of Tutankhamun, who held the title ―bearer of the folding stool of the lord of the two lands.‖ See John Harris. ―The Folding Stool of a Famous Soldier.‖ AcOr 37 (1976): 21-25. 1055 Fischer, ―Stuhl,‖ 92. 1056 Such as the great dedicatory inscription of Ramesses II for the temple of Seti I, Abydos: KRI II, 334 (105) ―upon the Horus-throne of the living.‖ 1057 WB IV, 1-7. 1058 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 703 ―Ruhebett‖ (in Schräglage).‖ 1059 Leonard H. Lesko and Barbara Switalski Lesko. A Dictionary of Late Egyptian. 2nd ed. Vol. II. Providence, R.I.:B.C. Scribe Publications, 2002. 2; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 572; Kuhlmann, , 22 st Hmsi ―Sitz zum sitzen.‖ 1060 L. M. J. Zonhoven. ―The Inspection of a Tomb at Deir El Medina (O. Wien Aeg.1).‖ JEA 65 (1979): 89-98, especially 92. 1061 Such as in ―imn Ra nb nswt tAwy.‖ Urk IV, 1298. 1062 The older form wTs was used in the Old Kingdom, originating as mentioned by Wilson (A Ptolemaic Lexikon 273) from the verb wTs, indicating the relationship between the action itself of lifting up the person seated. According to the WB, wTst is attested since Dynasty 19 and then often in the Greco-Roman Period. It means ―Tragsessel, Thron des Königs‖ as seen in the example from Medinet Habu (sea people campaign): an snDm Hr wTst mi Itm,―beautiful when he sits on the throne like Atum‖ (KRI V, 38 (11)). For wTs and wTst, see WB I, 384 (510); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 240; Kuhlmann, 10-11. For the use of the term in the Old Kingdom, see Brovarski, ―An Inventory list from Covington‘s Tomb,‖ 134-135. 1063 This was used during Dynasty 19 and more often during the GrecoRoman Period as a throne of a king or of a god. For an example, see Wolja Erichsen. Papyrus Harris I: Hieroglyphische Transkription. Bibliotheca Aegyptiaca V. ruxelles: dition de la Fondation gyptologique Reine lisabeth, 1933. 56 b (5). ―Hr bHdt.k m nswt tAwy,‖ ―upon the throne as a king of the two lands.‖ For bHdw meaning and discussion, see WB I, 470 (3-5); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 275; Wilson, A Ptolemaic Lexikon, 325-326; Köpstein, ―Altägyptische ezeichnungen f r Tische, Sitz- und Liegemöbel,‖ 19; Kuhlmann, 8, 15; Wolfhart Westendorf. ―Zur Etymologie des bHd Thrones.‖ GM 90 (1986): 85-86.

Janssen in Commodity prices from the Ramessid period 1052 has discussed the three main words qniw, isbt, hdmw that we will deal with shortly. He concludes that isbt is exclusively used for folding stool and that qniw encompasses all other categories whether of chairs or stools. In his recent book Furniture at Deir el-Medina 1053 he brings up again the same terms, translating qniw as ―chair;‖ isbt as ―folding stool/folding chair,‖ without leaving the same allowance for the possibility of other categories under qniw or isbt. My aim is to investigate if the lexicon aligns with objects. In other words, is it possible to establish a connection between a specific term and a precise type of chair or stool? What is the evidence that we possess to make such a link? This is not as easy a task as it might appear because the terms are broad in their meaning. In addition 1051

Kuhlmann, Janssen, Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period, 185-194. 1053 Jac J. Janssen. Furniture at Deir El-Medina, Including Wooden Containers of the New Kingdom and Ostracon Varille 19. Egyptology 9. London: Golden House Publications, 2009. 6-9, 14-15, 20-21, 65-66, 85. 1052

80

Lexicography and Typology I

have

also

encountered

one

term

otAit

in the Amarna Period; occasionally ispt is used instead of isbt. As cited in the Wörterbuch, it can also mean ―mat‖ for statue or stelae.1072 In other instances, it can mean ―hut; shelter; residence.‖1073 Isbt can be written with different determinatives: wood, throne, house, and once with a ―Hockerthron oder Podest mit Palastfassadendekoration,‖1074 in addition to a single instance of ―stool with sematawy motif.‖1075

(oAyt)

( ) which appears during the Amarna Period (in the tomb of Huya) accompanying, as far as I know, one scene in which Akhenaten and Nefertiti are sitting in their palanquin of electrum (Fig. 109).1065 Hannig and the Wörterbuch translate it as ―Tragsessel,‖ ―Thronsessel‖1066 or ―carrying armchair.‖ The line in which it is mentioned can be read as Hr otAit aAt n Damw 1067 ―on the great carrying throne /palanquin of electrum.‖ The word that I came across for ―chair‖ in royal contexts

With regard to the folding stool meaning: we have two explicit references on which to base our conclusion. The first is from O.Vienna H.1:1076 hbny isbwt m Hrw n Apdw 1077 an.ti1078 krkr1079 2 hdmw n Dma,1080 ―one ebony folding stool with ducks‘ heads, repaired, two couches, one footstool of papyrus.‖ ased on the archaeological evidence, as well as the two-dimensional scenes, the ducks heads are exclusively associated with folding stools, thus there is no doubt that this is the type in question here. The second indication comes from the tomb of Ay at El-Amarna (Fig. 110) 1081 in which there is a depiction of two comrades, one telling his friend: nw1082 r tA isbt Hna tA Tnfyt,1083 ―Look at the isbt folding stool and the Tnfyt bag.‖1084 On this same scene a series of four

is Htmt ( )1068 which Hannig translates as ―Stuhl.‖ It is mentioned in Harris papyrus (Dynasty 19).1069 Let us now turn to a more careful examination of our main terms: Isbt ( 1070

; also written

;

)

This is one of the most essential words to designate throne, folding stool or folding chair, or other type of stools. It is a feminine term, despite the fact that the t is dropped off in several cases.1071 It is a flexible word that has wide application, under which different types could be placed, depending on the context (royal versus nonroyal) as well as the determinative used. It is first attested

1072

WB I, 132 (2-8). For examples, see James E. Hoch. Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts of the New Kingdom and Third Intermediate Period. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press, 1994. 39-40; Dimitri Meeks. ―Les Emprunts Égyptiens aux Langues Sémitiques durant le Nouvel Empire et la Troisième Période Intermédiaire. Les Aléas Compararatisme.‖BiOr LIV No ½ (1997): 32-61, especially 35-36, nos. 30 and 31. 1074 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 1407. For ispt with this determinative, see Urk IV, 1837 (14). 1075 KRI II, 109 (Battle of Qadesh). 1073

1064

WB IV, 200 (4-5); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch ÄgyptischDeutsch, 790; Kuhlmann, , 60-61. Kuhlmann points out that the use of the word as ―throne‖ is attested in Dynasty 18 (since Amenhotep III) ―where thrones of kings are shown as square block thrones with palace façade decoration on their sides‖ (Cited in Wilson, A Ptolemaic Lexikon, 886). 1065 Norman G. Davies. The Rock Tombs of El-Amarna. Part III- The Tombs of Huya and Ahmes. Archaeological Survey of Egypt 15th Memoir. London: Egypt Exploration Fund, 1905. Pl. 13 This scene contains two main words otAit (in column 2) and isbt (in column 4). The latter reads Hr tA isbt aAt n Ax[t]-Itn, ―upon the great throne of Akhetaten (Amarna).‖ Some scholars, such as Wanscher, (Sella Curulis 22) state that isbt ― is applied to a large palanquin, a kind of portable throne in the form of a litter containing a double seat, in which are seated Akhenaten and Nefertiti.‖ ased on the presence, along with the meaning of otAit, I would prefer ―palanquin/portable throne,‖ and isbt here simply denotes the king‘s throne as a symbol of showing royal authority and power, especially since this fits well with the isbt meaning in other contexts. 1066 WB V, 72 (4); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 915, 936. 1067 For the transcription, see Maj Sandman. Texts from the Time of Akhenaten. Bibliotheca Aegyptiaca 8. ruxelles: dition de la Fondation gyptologique Reine lisabeth, 1938. 36-37, no. XLI. 1068 In the Wörterbuch it is cited as ― alken,‖ which is why Köpstein omits it, considering it not a furniture article. WB III, 199 (4); Köpstein, ―Altägyptische ezeichnungen f r Tische, Sitz- und Liegemöbel,‖ 21, no. 10; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 614. 1069 Erichsen, Papyrus Harris I, 65 a, 15, 71 a, 10; Pierre Grandet. Le Papyrus Harris I, (BM 9999). Bibliothèque d‘ tude CIX/I. Cairo: IFAO, 1994. 317, 328. For another example, see Hermann Grapow.

1076

The ostracon dates to Dynasty 20, Reign of Ramesses III. See Zonhoven, ―The Inspection of a Tomb at Deir El Medina,‖ 91, 93-94, fig. 1 (line 4); A. G. McDowell. Village Life in Ancient Egypt: Laundry Lists and Love Songs. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. 69-71. 1077 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 7. Janssen (Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period 192) states that ―this does not mean that every folding-stool has duck‘s heads; in point of fact, most do not. But the meaning of isbwt is certain.‖ He bases his arguments on ruyère‘s excavations at Deir El-Medina where there is one stool with ducks‘ heads and one without. I do not agree with Janssen: based on the archaeological evidence and judging by the number of stools and fragments housed in the museums, as well as Wanscher‘s work, it is clear that we have few folding stools without ducks‘ heads and the norm is to possess either four or eight heads. I also see that the isbwt meaning is not consistently certain but it is a term that has a broad application and in some contexts it could be translated as ―folding stool.‖ 1078 For an as ―reparieren, ausbessern,‖ see Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 155. For a second ostracon in which isbt is described as an.ti, see KRI VI, 140 (7). 1079 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 957. For the ―couch‖ translation, see Hoch, Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts, 333335; Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 22. 1080 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 1081. 1081 Norman De G. Davies. The Rock Tombs of El-Amarna. Part VITombs of Parennefer, Tutu, and Aÿ. Archaeological Survey of Egypt 18th Memoir. London: Egypt Exploration Fund, 1908. pl. XXX. 1082 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 420. 1083 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 95; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 1030. 1084 For a discussion of the Tnfyt meaning as well as a comment on the same scene from the tomb of Ay, see Betsy M. Bryan and Edmund S. Meltzer. ―A Note on an Obscure Title, TAy Tnfyt pd(t) n nb tAwy.‖ JSSEA 8 (1977-1978): 60-65, especially 62 in which the authors state ―The Amarna caption beside a stool and a bag reveals these common objects to be worthy of note; they are pointed to as examples of what the

―Der Name der Göttin Isis und der Lautwert des Zeichens ‖ ZÄS 46 (1909): 107-108, especially 107. 1070 For other variants, see Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 8-9; Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch,115. 1071 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 6.

81

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom folding stools is illustrated.1085 Scholars interpret the scene differently; especially Kruchten has a unique interpretation.1086 Whatever the scholarly explanation of the scene, we can be sure that in this row four folding stools are depicted, and on the final scene on the right, a folding stool is surmounted by a bag. In both examples from the Ay tomb, along with the ostracon, the wood determinative is the one used. The folding stool meaning is not only restricted to the non-royal context, it is also used to designate the folding stool (or maybe folding chair) of a king judging by the title held by Hekanefer, ―the chief of Miam, contemporary with Tutankhamun, [who] was ‗bearer of the folding stool of the lord of the two lands‘ (TAy1087 isbt n nb tAwy).‖1088 As noted by Simpson, what is important is that, following the third title is a figure representing a man seated on a folding stool that is probably used as a determinative for the name of the man.1089 O. DeM. 5531090 enhances our knowledge about the isbt stool based on its contents which refers to ―an isbt stool of a woman.‖ As described by Cooney, this is a receipt listing two transactions. The second of these is important for our purpose as it indicates the following line: rdyt n.f 1091 r isbt n st 1 iri n sniw ―What was given to him for a isbt stool of a woman making 1 sniw‖ (about 5 dbn). Allam translates ―Frauen-Sessel.‖1092 Janssen consistently argues that isbt should be translated as a ―folding stool,‖ 1093 but both translations are not appropriate in this context. This ostracon is convincing evidence that it is difficult to make a philological study without taking into consideration the archaeological evidence and twopharaoh did for Ay. We must conclude that they represent symbols of office and that the bag, like the soldier‘s humbler sack, contained important elements for Ay‘s use. (No doubt the stool accompanied him in his work to provide comfort).‖ 1085 This scene has been discussed by several scholars such as Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 22; Vandier, IV, 655-656. Vandier interprets the scene as one of the two comrades ―confie la garde du poste et du sac à son compagnon, car il veut aller voir en personne ce qui est arrivé a Ai‖ (656). 1086 According to Kruchten ―Associé a isbt ‗trône‘, la Tnfyt, objet de tissue, comme l‘indiquent ses déterminatifs, pourraient être ici la loggia royale, version fixe du pavillon de toile démontable accompagnant le roi dans ses déplacements,‖ see Jean-Marie Kruchten. d'Horemheb: Tra Institutionnel. Université Libre de Bruxelles. Faculté de Philosophie et Lettres LXXXII. Bruxelles: Editions de l‘Université de ruxelles, 1981. 33-37, especially 37, fn. 63. 1087 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 1017. 1088 Harris, ―The Folding Stool of a Famous Soldier,‖ 24. 1089 William Kelly Simpson and N. B. Millet. Heka-Nefer and the Dynastic Material from Toshka and Arminna. Yale Expedition to Egypt 1. New Haven: Peabody Museum of Natural History of Yale University, 1963. 25-26 (graffito 3). 1090 Dynasty 20, early in the reign of Ramses III. For the date, see Cooney, The Cost of Death, 54, 96. For the transcription, KRI V, 658659 (8-9). 1091 For the translation of the relative form rdyt n.f, see Donker Van Heel and B. J. J. Haring. Writing in a Workmen's Village: Scribal Practice in Ramesside Deir El-Medina. Egyptologische Uitgaven 16. Leiden: Nederlands Instituut Voor het Nabije Oosten, 2003. 155. 1092 Schafik Allam. Hieratische Ostraka und Papyri aus der Ramessidenzeit. Vol. I. Urkunden zum Rechtsleben im Alten Ägypten Bd. 1. T bingen: Selbstverl, 1973. 127-128, no.116. For a discussion of this ostracon, see Cooney, The Cost of Death, 149, 330-331. 1093 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 27, 65.

82

dimensional scenes. To the best of my knowledge, folding stools are not a female prerogative in ancient Egypt, and in fact they are restricted to male use. We do not possess a scene depicting a woman seated on such a type.1094 I agree with ruwier‘s suggestion that the flaredlegged stool is likely the one in question here as it was used by women during this period and even before. 1095 Janssen, when recently discussing isbwt, states that ―in the texts from Deir El-Medina isbwt means mostly ‗folding chair‘ … the value could vary largely, from 1 to 30 deben. This presents a problem that I am still unable to solve.‖1096 I am not sure why Janssen translates isbt as both ―folding chair‖ and ―folding stool‖ in his recent book even though in Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period, he generally translated ―folding stool.‖ I have the impression that he considers them synonyms or interchangeable. A folding stool could be transformed into a folding chair by the addition of a back. The reasons I prefer to distinguish between them are threefold: First, the only real folding chair that we possess is that of Tutankhamun. Second, ―representations of folding chairs are far rarer than those of folding stools.‖1097 Third, a folding stool is a highly prized status symbol that is used by different categories of society from the king to the ordinary men (even the Tutankhamun collection contains two folding stools, one imitation of a folding stool and only one rigid folding chair), but ―folding chairs, by contrast, are invariably used by men of high prestige.‖ 1098 Thus, ―folding stool‖ includes different hierarchical sectors of the society, and is more suitable with our milieu. Based on all these reasons, I prefer to translate isbt as ―folding stool‖ when dealing with the workmen‘s language. This does not deny that it might mean ―folding chair‖ in high elite or royal contexts. According to the table offered by Janssen the isbt usually varies between 1 and 8 dbn, but O. Cairo 25800 contains the highest value of an isbt which is 30 dbn.1099 Commenting on this variation on price, Janssen states ―such a wide range seems suspicious, since there would appear to be not much scope for variety in the quality of the object.‖1100 Based on my study of stools in the Cairo Museum, I am convinced that a folding stool with eight ducks‘ heads is a sophisticated item of furniture, requiring a high level craftsmanship in order to construct and inlay the piece. We have folding stools with no ducks‘ heads (few in number in real objects), some with four heads and others with eight heads. Materials (ebony, ivory, or other cheaper alternatives), inlay, joints symmetry, decoration, inscription, workmanship, reputation of the craftsmen, are all factors in determining 1094

Sweeney, ―The Man on the Folding Chair,‖ 51 ―I know of no examples where folding stools are used by gods or women;‖ EatonKrauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 115. 1095 ruwier, ―Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,‖ 33. 1096 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 65. 1097 Sweeney,― The Man on the Folding Chair,‖ 40. 1098 Sweeney, ―The Man on the Folding Chair,‖ 51. 1099 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 8-9; Janssen, Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period, 193. 1100 Janssen, Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period, 194.

Lexicography and Typology the cost of a specific piece. Still the ostraca that mention ebony and inlay, or those stating ducks‘ heads, do not mention prices. The big gap between the prices, as well as the difficulty that a folding or a flared-legged stool cost 1 dbn, leads us to suggest that the low price is for another type of stool that is simple, crude, lacking inlay, or otherwise not requiring sophisticated workmanship. All these could be a description of a three-legged stool. The simplest of these is made of one block of wood, which would seem to fit well with our price. However, we have other types of stools such as four-legged, rush stools, as well as lattice stools, evidence of which we do not encounter in the ostraca. I would suggest that the word isbt is the main term to designate ―stool‖ in the New Kingdom and under which we can classify all the categories, despite the fact that we have only found evidence for two types.

ebony and inlay lets us safely suggest that the isbt in question is a folding stool, as this is a genre of decoration associated with this elegant type, which is usually inlaid with ivory or with a material simulating it. 1106 In O. BM 65941,1107 it is said that ―a (is)bwt (?)1108 stool of isy wood making 8 dbn.‖ Janssen, as well as Cooney, take isy to be isr wood which seems likely, and they both argue that this is the reason behind the high price of the piece.1109 Returning back to the royal milieu in order to see how isbt could be translated: The best example is from the Kadesh battle inscription. The isbt determinative is written with a stool having cylindrical legs and decorated on the sides (in two of the versions) with the sematawy motif. The two other versions have only two lines which are barely visible.1110 The sentence reads as: snDm Hm.f Hr isbt nt Damw, ―his majesty was seated upon a throne of electrum.‖1111 This is the only occurrence, as far as I know, when isbt possesses a stool determinative, even though the meaning is a ―throne.‖ I assume that this is an indication that isbt is used for the type of stool with flared legs, whether in royal or non-royal contexts. The existence of a stool determinative lets us assume that it means ―stool‖ in other settings, but why is the throne determinative not used here? As discussed by Bruwier, the royal iconography during the Amarna period shows Akhenaten, and more frequently Nefertiti, seated on such a stool decorated with sematawy design.1112

O. Cairo 25670, which is a house inventory, contains ―two isbwt‖ then ―two isbwt of wood.‖ Wente translates all of them as ―folding stools‖1101 but the question that poses itself is why it does not list four folding stools if we are dealing with the same type and material. The specialization of two of them as being made of wood leads me to think about the first two isbwt. As far as I know, folding stools are usually made of wood, as I have not seen examples of stone or other material. This brings us to the possibility that the first two isbwt are from a different category of stools1102 than the following wooden folding stools, or that they are made of another material such as stone. Even though the word is written with a wood determinative, which is appropriate to the majority of our material, still this does not eliminate the possibility of the workers finding a more cost-effective alternative. In a house inventory such as our example here I presume that we are supposed to find objects made of both wood and stone, especially since we have archaeological evidence of stone stools used by the workmen.

Another example of isbt use comes from the decree or blessing of Ptah upon Ramesses II and III:1113 mk isbt tA nb ―look, the throne of every land.‖ In one version we have a wood determinative; in the other we have a house determinative.1114 In the Harris Papyrus we read iw.f (Hr) swab tA isbwt aAt n kmt,1115 ―and he purified the great throne of Egypt.‖ Sometimes, the ―throne‖1116 determinative is used with isbt such as in an inscription at Medinet Habu, which reads isbt n 6A–mri, ―the throne of

As Janssen points out, the material of the isbt was mentioned in two ostraca: O. Vienna 11103 (discussed above), and in O. Gardiner 64 1104 which reads isbt hbny HTA1105.ti , ―an ebony isbt folding stool inlaid.‖ The use of the verb HtA is significant here as the association of

1105

Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 616. Still, flared-legged stools could be made of ebony and inlaid with ivory but this is not as common as folding stools featuring inlay. 1107 For this ostracon, along with its dating (Probably Dynasty XX), see Cooney, The Cost of Death, 55, 57, 92, 312-313; Robert Johannes Demarée. Ramesside Ostraca. London: The British Museum Press, 2002. 42-43, pl. 191 (line 6). 1108 Only bwt is clear and we are missing (is), but it is likely that isbwt is the intended term here. 1109 Cooney, The Cost of Death, 313; Janssen, Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period, 193. 1110 Charles Kuentz. La Bataille de Qadech: Les Textes (" Pentaour " et "Bulletin de Qadech") et Les Bas-Reliefs. Mémoires de l' IFAO 55. Cairo: IFAO, 1928. 157 (fn. 4), 338, pl. XIV (9). 1111 Benedict G. Davies. Egyptian Historical Inscriptions of the Nineteenth Dynasty. Documenta Mundi. Aegyptiaca 2. Jonsered, Sweden: Paul Åströms Förlag, 1997. 88-89. 1112 ruwier, ―Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,‖ 36-37. 1113 Kenneth Anderson Kitchen. Ramesside Inscriptions: Translated and Annotated. Translations. Vol. II: Ramesses II, Royal Inscriptions. Oxford, UK: Blackwell, 1993. 106. 1114 KRI II, 272. 1115 Erichsen, Papyrus Harris I, 75 (9). 1116 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 1442 (Q 12). 1106

1101

Wente and Meskell date the Ostracon to Dynasty 19. For this ostracon, see Edward F. Wente and Edmund S. Meltzer. Letters from Ancient Egypt. Writings from the Ancient World 1. Atlanta, Ga: Scholars Press, 1990. 138; Allam, Hieratische Ostraka und Papyri, 6768, no. 34 (Allam translates ―Sessel‖ which is not appropriate to our context); Edward Russel Ayrton et al. Abydos: Part III. The Egypt Exploration Society Excavation Memoirs. London: Egypt Exploration Fund, 1902. 38, pl. LV (recto, lines 5 and 9); McDowell, Village Life in Ancient Egypt, 66-67; Lynn Meskell. ―Archaeology of Social Relations in an Egyptian Village.‖ Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory 5.3 (1998): 209-243, especially 237. 1102 Maybe a stool with runners or three-legged ones that we are accustomed to see in workmen‘s houses either at Deir El-Medina or at El-Amarna. 1103 Zonhoven, ―The Inspection of a Tomb at Deir El Medina,‖ 91, 9394, fig. 1. 1104 Jaroslav ern and Alan H. Gardiner. Hieratic Ostraca. Vol. I. Oxford: Printed for the Griffith Institute at the University Press by Charles Batey, 1957. 15, pl. XLIX (line 5); Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 8.

83

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom Egypt.‖1117 It is clear that in royal inscriptions there is a range of determinatives used, from wood, house, throne, flared-legged stool, but the intended meaning is the same, which is ―the throne of the king.‖ 1118 As emphasized by Meeks,1119 isbt is also used with the inscriptions related to foreign rulers. Isbt is the term used in the treaty of Ramesses II with Hatusilli III; the great ruler of Hatti: Hr Hmsi m wr aA n xtA Hr tA isb[t]1120 n pAy.f it, and Hatusilli III ―sitting as great ruler of Hatti upon the throne of his father.‖1121 Occasionally, another variant ispt is used with a distinctive determinative that appears once in the inscription from the third chapel of the funerary temple of Amenhotep, son of Hapu (Reign of Amenhotep III).1122 Hannig describes the determinative as ―Hockerthron oder Podest mit Palastfassadendecoration.‖1123 The term ispt was mentioned in few other instances but with wood 1124 or house1125 determinative. Qniw ( ;

; also written ;

)

Qniw is usually written with only the wood determinative; in a few instances it has the ―embrace‖ arm determinative depicted before the wood.1126 Qniw is a masculine word judging by the use of the article pA.1127 It is attested since the Middle Kingdom and though it is better documented than isbt, together they constitute the two main terms used to designate chairs and stools in the New Kingdom, mainly in the language of the necropolis workmen. The Wörterbuch translates it first as ―Tragsessel,‖ ―Sessel,‖ and then as ―Thron‖of the kings

in the Greco-Roman Period.1128 To these entries, Hannig adds ―Stuhl‖ which is more appropriate for our non-royal pieces.1129 In the Westcar Papyrus1130 qniw means a ―palanquin.‖ The sentence reads snDm.f m qniw n hbny nbAw1131 m ssnDm gnX1132 rf m nbw, ―he sat in a palanquin of ebony, the poles made of ssnDm-wood, covered with gold.‖ This is an example in which the description fits well with one of the term meanings. From the New Kingdom, our term is mentioned in the Annals of Thutmose III; in his first campaign, we read: Abw hbny ssnDm bAk m nbw qniw n xrw pf 6 hdmw n.sn im 6,1133 ―qniw chairs of that enemy of ivory, ebony, ssnDm wood worked with gold: 6. Footstools belonging to them: 6.‖ Lichtheim translates qniw here as ―carrying chairs;‖1134 Redford as ―chairs.‖ 1135 I think that both ―chair‖ and ―armchair‖ can work in this context, but not ―carrying chair‖ as we do not have explicit reference to carrying apparatus as in the Westcar papyrus. In papyrus Turin No. Cat. 1907/8, Janssen translates ―mDrt aAt n qniw nswt‖; ―by the great one of the throne of the king.‖ I agree with Janssen that probably ―here the reference is to the ceremonial seat of the king, ‗his throne‘, a very likely object to be surrounded by an aura of holiness.‖1136 He points to a unique example from the tomb of Neferronpet (time of Ramesses II) in which we have a chair depicted with two diagonal and one vertical struts between the seat and the stretcher.1137 Though the sentence is damaged, we can read ―iri.n aAt n qniw nswt 1138 bity,‖ ―which the great one made to the throne of the king of Upper and Lower Egypt.‖ 1139 Qniw clearly possesses a range of significance: although a chair is here depicted, the implication is that we are dealing with the king‘s throne with its particular status as ceremonial object.

1117

KRI V, 84 (line 20). See also KRI V, 52 (line 4) in which isbt is written with both wood and house determinatives. 1118 For more examples, see Hoch, Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts, 3639, as well as a discussion of the possibility that isbt is a loan-word. 1119 Dimitri Meeks. . Tome 3. Paris : Impr. de la Margeride, 1982. 35 (79.0341). 1120 isb[t] here does not have any determinative. 1121 KRI II, 227 (10); Kitchen, Ramesside Inscriptions: Translated and Annotated Translations II, 81. For another example in which ―isbt‖ is written with a house determinative, see KRI II, 244. 1122 Alexandre Varille. Inscriptions Concernant L'Architecte Amenhotep, Fils de Hapou. ibliothèque d‘ tude XLIV. Cairo: IFAO, 1968. 94-95. According to Varille the term ispt ―ne désigne pas un fauteuil ou un trône, mais un petit siège sans pied, sans bras et sans dossier. Le déterminatif est en effet un signe rectangulaire, a fond rose et rayures rouges, présentant l‘aspect d‘un tabouret, ou plus exactement d‘une sorte de coussin-carreau.‖ (94) See also ruwier, ―Du Caractère individual du Siège Mobile en Egypte Pharaonique,‖ 95; ruwier, ―Origine et Usage du Tabouret ISBET,‖ 33-34. 1123 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 1407. 1124 According to Hoch, both ispt and isbt mean ―chair, throne.‖ Hoch, Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts, 40. For the translation, see William Kelly Simpson. The Literature of Ancient Egypt: An Anthology of Stories, Instructions, Stelae, Autobiographies, and Poetry. 3rd ed. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2003. 109 ―his throne of ruler.‖ 1125 KRI IV, 16 (1). 1126 Gardiner, Egyptian Grammar, Sign–list, D 32 ―arms enclosing or embracing.‖ 1127 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 20-21, fn.1.

84

1128

WB V, 51 (13-15); Wilson, A Ptolemaic Lexikon, 1063 ― y the GR period it had become a standard variant word for throne.‖ 1129 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 928. 1130 Aylward M. Blackman and W. V. Davies. The Story of King Kheops and the Magicians: Transcribed from Papyrus Westcar (Berlin Papyrus 3033). Reading: J.V. Books, 1988. 7, 12-7, 13; Simpson, The Literature of Ancient Egypt, 19; Compare our example with the one of Hetepheres. See Köpstein for another example from the Middle Kingdom (Köpstein, ―Altägyptische ezeichnungen f r Tische, Sitz- und Liegemöbel,‖ 2425). 1131 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 428 ―Tragestange.‖ 1132 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 972. 1133 Urk IV, 666 (16). 1134 Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Literature II, 34. 1135 Donald B. Redford. The Wars in Syria and Palestine of Thutmose III. Culture and History of the Ancient Near East Vol. 16. Leiden: Brill, 2003. 38. 1136 Jac J. Janssen. ―A Twentieth–Dynasty Account Papyrus (Pap.Turin No. Cat. 1907/8).‖ JEA 52 (1968): 81-94, especially 91(f), pl. XIX A (VS.Col.III, line 8). 1137 Norman G. Davies. Seven Private Tombs at Kurnah. Mond Excavations at Thebes II. London: Egypt Exploration Society, 1948. 51. 1138 Compare our line with the previous example. 1139 Davies restores the beginning of the sentence ―[an offering] which the great one made to the chair of the kings of the south and the north.‖ Davies, Seven Private Tombs at Kurnah, 51.

Lexicography and Typology Now let us look at the non-royal context which constitutes our corpus. Qniw is well-documented as an item owned by the workmen. As stated by Janssen, it ―occurs about forty times in our Deir El-Medina texts.‖ 1140 In the language of workmen at Deir El-Medina, the translation ―palanquin‖ or ―armchair‖ is not appropriate as the possession of such pieces in the New Kingdom is a royal privilege.1141 I would suggest that the best translation of the term is ―chair,‖ though in the case of a low price of a qniw, I prefer to translate it as ―seat‖ in order to leave room for the possibility of different types, but we do not have clear evidence.

slanting. To narrow our options: at is not the backrest or the arms as we have said before (no armchairs in our ostraca). Thus, it might be the seat or the legs. However, Janssen adds further examples in which at are employed: ―the word at is also used in an obscure entry about an afdt 1151 … as well as with reference to a Htp basket.‖1152 He proceeds that ―probably at (or awt ) may be synonyms with Haw.‖1153 Taking all this into consideration, I presume that the common feature between a chair, box, and basket is the frame itself, which can mean the seat only, or the seat and legs together to designate the whole body of a chair.1154 Janssen alludes to a second ostracon, O. Cairo 25800,1155 along with the previous one, as evidence for enhancing our knowledge about qniw. The context of this ostracon points to some objects offered to the administrators in order to promote a workman or son. In line 1:4 we read xt qniw iri n 11, ―a wooden qniw chair making 11 (dbn).‖ In Line 2.4, we read xt qniw Sri1156 at.f 1 iri n dbn 30, ―a small wooden qniw chair as regards its at (body) making 30 dbn.‖1157 The question is why the qniw is small and yet has this high price: This is perhaps a small chair in its size, but one which possesses specific decoration or expensive wood that causes the price elevation? It is difficult to come to a convincing explanation of this fluctuation of price, especially since the first line points to a chair costing 11 dbn.

One of the significant ostraca for our purpose is O. Ashmolean Museum HO 44/O. Gardiner 44,1142 which states the following xt qniw iw tAy.f mryt1143 Hr at.s pAy.f hdy rdwy iri n 15, ―one wooden qniw chair with its mryt backrest on its at part, and its hdy footstool making 15 (dbn).‖1144 The description implies that the qniw has a backrest, thus the critical differentiation is made between a chair and a stool. The association of the qniw with hdy indicates that it is supposed to be a high chair of some sort.1145 The original meaning of mrt as cited by Hannig is ―plank, board,‖ but in our example here it designates the backrest of a chair.1146 It is the same word used in some ostraca related to beds to mean footboard.1147 Still the problematic term is the at whose main entry is ―limb or member.‖1148 Hannig translates at as ―e [in] Teil (des Stuhles)‖1149 which seems correct but still does not resolve the question of what part of the chair it is. Janssen in Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period suggests that ―the at of the mryt may be the upright supporting stiles of the back, in which case we have a description here of the chair with the slanting back-rest.‖1150 Although it would be convenient to know the exact meaning of at, Janssen‘s suggestion seems unlikely to me as the three stiles on the back of a New Kingdom chair are not on its backrest, but rather attached to the legs and the seat. It is also difficult to assume from this line that we are dealing with this type of chair; all we can deduce is that it has a backrest which could be straight or

Janssen points to some instances in which qniw can mean shrine, such as in O. Gardiner 134/O. Ashmolean Museum HO 134,1158 in which two qniw are listed: the first on the recto with a house determinative, and the second on the verso with a wood determinative. In the recto, we read the ―wab of the qniw shrine (?) making 5.‖ On the verso qniw is written among other wooden commodities: ―1 qniw seat, 1 gAwt box making 10 (dbn).‖ The price here is very low comparing to the cost of other qniw; this may mean here a small chair or a stool, especially since the normal price varies ―between 12 and 30 deben, 20 deben being most common.‖1159 O. DeM 1461160 mentions ―2 qniw chairs making 30 (dbn).‖ O. 1151

afdt means ―box, chest.‖ See Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 151. 1152 Janssen, Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period, 189 (fn. 41). 1153 Haw means body. Janssen, Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period, 189 (fn. 40). See also Claude Vandersleyen. ―Une Tempête sous le Règne d'Ahmosis.‖ RdE 19 (1967): 123-159, pls. 8-10, especially 131 ―Nous avons traduit Haw et awt par deux mots différents, bien qu‘ils puissent être parfaitement synonymes (cf. P. Anast.V, 23,5 et P. Lansing 5,3). ‖ 1154 Recently, Janssen translates the sentence ―There being its mryt on its body.‖(Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 21.) 1155 Dynasty 20. KRI VI, 257; Janssen, Furniture at Deir el-Medina, 21; McDowell, Village Life in Ancient Egypt, 230, no.181. 1156 Sri is describing qniw because adjectives follow nouns. 1157 I am curious how McDowell translates this sentence as ―wooden chair with a low seat.‖ See McDowell, Village Life in Ancient Egypt, 230, no.181 1158 Mid Dynasty XX. For the description, as well as the date, see Cooney, The Cost of Death, 47, 49, 292-293. For other examples in which qniw means shrine, see Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 20. For the transcription, see KRI VII, 345 (Recto line 3; verso line 2). 1159 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 20. 1160 Late Dynasty XX. KRI VI, 664 (line 3); Cooney, The Cost of Death, 47, 50, 145, 323-324; McDowell, Village Life in Ancient Egypt, 80, no.

1140

Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 20. 1141 Rößler-Köhler, ―Sänfte,‖ LÄ V: 334-339. 1142 Dynasty XX, Ramesses III. KRI V, 585 (3&4); Allam, Hieratische Ostraka und Papyri, 157, no. 153 ―Tragsessel (aus) Holz: 1 – sein Brett ist an seiner Seite,(ferner) sein Schemel- macht 15;‖ Cooney, The Cost of Death, 52, 287-288, especially 52 ―1 qniw carrying chair as well as its mryt foot board itself (?) and its hdy footstool making 15(dbn).‖ 1143 Chairs do not possess a footboard but rather a backrest. That is why it is better to translate mryt as ―backrest‖ when dealing with our material, reserving the meaning of footboard for beds. 1144 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 21; Alan H. Gardiner. Ancient Egyptian Onomastica. London: Oxford University Press, 1947. 67-68. 1145 But footstools could also be used with stools. 1146 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 367-368 (mrt as ―R ckenlehne (am Stuhl).‖ Hannig translates the whole sentence as ―hölzerner Qeniu-Stuhl, dessen R ckenlehne ist (?)‖ The main meaning of the word is ― rett;‖ see WB II, 108 (2). 1147 Janssen, Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period, 184, 189, 388. 1148 WB I, 160 (14-23); Lesko, A Dictionary of Late Egyptian I, 58 1149 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 137. 1150 Janssen, Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period,189.

85

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom UCL 319221161 reads qniw 1 Htp 1 hdmw 1 ispt 1, ―one qniw chair, one Htp offering table, one hdmw footstool and one ispt stool.‖ This is a clear sentence containing our three main terms used in the corpus of workmen which underscores the fact that qniw indicates a chair and isbt a stool despite any broader meanings that each of these words hold in other contexts. 0dmw ( written

; also )

This term is attested since Dynasty 18. It is the main word to designate a footstool, whether written by itself or accompanied by rdwy. Later in the Greco-Roman period, it denotes a ―throne.‖1162 According to Janssen, hdmw ―occurs more than thirty times in [the] Deir el-Medina material.‖1163 In most of the cases, it is written with the wood determinative. Even though hdmw is masculine, we sometimes encounter hdmt.1164 Hoch cites an example (Turin Necropolis Journal) in which no determinative exists, but the word is followed by rdwy which points to an obvious reading.1165 In the Will of Naunakhte, we find the compound hr-rdwy, which, according to ern , has not otherwise been used.1166 He makes the connection between hdm(w) rdwy, the common compound for footrest and gAwt rdwy, and considers hr-rdwy as being a third alternative for ―footrest.‖ ern ‘s interpretation makes sense, taking into consideration that the original entry for gAwt is ―box,‖1167 but we have to remember the shape of a footstool, which could be like an upside-down drawer, rectangular in shape, or a box. For our purpose, hdm(w) or hdm(w) rdwy are the most common terms used to designate footstools in the New Kingdom. I concur with Janssen that ―we are accustomed

50; Allam, Hieratische Ostraka und Papyri,101-102, no. 72 (Allam translates as ―Tragsessel‖). 1161 Kitchen dates the ostracon to Dynasty XIX, Reign of Merenptah. See, KRI VII, 224-225; Vivien Raisman. ―UC 31922.‖ Wepwawet 1 (1985): 1-3. Raisman translates this line as ―chair 1 (offering?) table 1 stool 1 folding stool 1.‖ So it seems that she is translating hdmw as stool (?). 1162 WB II, 505 (17-19); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch ÄgyptischDeutsch, 532 ―Schemel.‖ In Arabic, ―footstool‖ is a compound noun consisting of ‫( مسند‬rest) and ‫( للقدم‬legs); without the addition of legs, the meaning is incomplete and does not designate ―footstool.‖ Another example of such a compound is the word ―headrest‖ consisting of ‫( مسند‬rest) and ‫( للرأس‬head). For a similar discussion of the word connection with the Hebrew, see Kuhlmann, 14-15; Hoch, Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts, 221-222. 1163 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 14. 1164 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 14. For examples of hdmt, see KRI VI, 257 (2:8), 564 (1:12); KRI V, 593 (3). 1165 Hoch, Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts, 221. 1166 Dynasty 20. Jaroslav ern . ―The Will of Naunakhte and the Related Document.‖ JEA 31 (1945): 29-53, especially 37, 39, fn.1 (document 3 concerning the division of the property), pl. XI a (verso, lines 14-17). 1167 WB V, 153 (9-10); Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch ÄgyptischDeutsch, 528 (hr-rdwy); 964 (gAwt rdwy).

86

to translate hdm with ‗footstool‘ (German Schemel).‖ 1168 That will mostly be correct, even without the addition rdwy‖1169 We have previously seen a royal example, in the Annals of Thutmose III: ―qniw xrw pf 6 hdmw n.sn im 6.‖1170 In this line, hdmw is not accompanied by rdwy, but it should be translated as ―footstool‖ based on the context as well as the existence of qniw. Turning to some ostraca: one of the significant examples is O. Louvre E 171691171 including a short list of objects, among which are ispt qniw hdmw ― a ispt stool, a qniw chair, a hdmw footstool.‖ Again we see the constellation of these three terms. hdmw can be used with kniw such as on the recto of O. Berlin P.11260:1172 ―1 qniw chair and 1 hdmw rdwy footstool making 13 dbn.‖ O. erlin 14214 1173 explicitly indicates that the two form a set pA qniw Hna pAy.f hdmw rdwy, ―the qniw chair together with its hdmw rdwy footstool.‖ hdmw can also be associated with isbwt, such as in O. Cairo C.G. 25800:1174 xt isbwt 1175 aA 1 iri.n dbn 30 Xry hdmt rdwy, ―a large wooden isbwt folding stool making 30 dbn, with1176 a hdmt rdwy footstool.‖ Janssen translates ―under (Xry) a hdmt-rdwy footstool.‖1177 Even though the main entry of Xry is 1168

Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 14. The cases noted by Janssen of a wooden hdmt ―tied up,‖ or ―filled with yarn‖ are exceptional. As he points out, ―If […] a form with and one without rdwy comes after each other, it is most likely that hdm alone was a box,‖ Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 14. 1170 Urk IV, 666 (17); Pierre Montet. Les Reliques de L'Art Syrien dans L'Égypte du Nouvel Empire. Publications de la Faculté des Lettres de l‘Université de Strasbourg 76. Paris, Société d'Édition: Les Belles Lettres, 1937. 71-72. 1171 Dynasty 19. Yvan Koenig. ―Les Ostraca Hiératiques du Musée du Louvre.‖ RdE 42 (1991): 95-116, especially 106-107; Jean-Paul oulanger. ―Ostracon Portant une Liste D‘Objets.‖ Naissance de Écritur : [E . Eds. Jean-Paul Boulanger et al. 4e éd. Paris: Editions de la Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1982. 283, no. 236; Grandet, Les Artistes de Pharaon, 75, no. 3. 1172 Mid Dynasty XX. For this ostracon, see Kathlyn M. Cooney. ―An Informal Workshop: Textual Evidence for Private Funerary Art Production in the Ramessid Period.‖ Living and Writing in Deir ElMedine: Socio-historical Embodiment of Deir El-Medine Texts. Eds. Andreas Dorn and Tobias Hofmann. Aegyptiaca Helvetica Bd. 19. Basel: Schwabe, 2006. 43-55, especially 52; Cooney, The Cost of Death, 46-47. 1173 Schafik Allam and Jaroslav ern . Hieratische Ostraka und Papyri aus der Ramessidenzeit: Transkriptionen aus dem Nachlaß 1169

. Vol. II. Urkunden zum Rechtsleben im Alten Ägypten Bd. 1. T bingen: Selbstverl, 1973. Pl. 17 (4-5); Vol. I. 38-39, no. 16; Hoch, Semitic words in Egyptian Texts, 222. Hoch, as well as Allam, translate qniw as ―arm-chair,‖ ―Sessel,‖ which I find inappropriate in our context, along with Janssen (Furniture at Deir El-Medina 20). 1174 KRI VI, 257; Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 65-66, 14; McDowell, Village Life in Ancient Egypt, 230, no.181. 1175 We could assume that the isbwt here is likely a folding stool (as pointed out by some scholars e.g., Janssen, Commodity Prices from the Ramessid Period, 193), based on the very high price. 1176 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 689 ―mit, enthaltend;‖ WB III, 388-390; Lesko, A Dictionary of Late Egyptian I, 386. 1177 Janssen, Furniture at Deir El-Medina, 66, fn.7. Janssen questions ―whether this [footstool] was included in the abnormally high price is unclear, but even the chair was an exception. The value of a footstool was mostly 1 or 2 deben although there were more expensive ones.‖ It seems that the confusion arises because Xry hdmt rdwy is mentioned after the price (30 dbn).

Lexicography and Typology used. O. DeM. 316,1188 which is not well preserved, is a letter from PA–Hry–pDt to the scribe 1y concerning a kHs. O. Berlin P 12636 specifies a kHsw n st–Hmt or ―woman‘s chair.‖1189 One might suggest that the kHs meant here is the low chair, a well-documented type, usually associated with women either as real piece or in two-dimensional scenes. However, it is certainly possible that the chair is of normal height.

―under,‖ but it has another meaning ―and, with,‖ I would prefer to translate Xry as ―with, including, possessing‖ as this fits better with the context. PHDw 1178(

)))))) )) )

The tomb of Rekhmire includes the only appearance of pHDw in the text of the installation of the vizier.1179 In the section describing the duties of the vizier it is said: Hms1180.f Hr pHDw “he shall sit upon a chair with a backrest.‖ Other variations in the writing were used in the Ptolemaic Period,1181 leading some scholars to make the connection between the New Kingdom writing and that of later periods,1182 the examples illustrate kings using the pHDw throne. PHDw is a telling case in which the determinative of the word can be associated with a specific type of chair that has a backrest. The determinative in the scene, is a chair with a curved backrest—the type known in the New Kingdom. 1183 This suggests that the type was the one the vizier used to perform his office. 1184 KHs (

Finally, we have to reiterate that during the New Kingdom the language of the workmen contained two essential terms: qniw (chair) and isbt (stool). 1dmw is the main word for footstool. 2ndw in the Old Kingdom, denoting a chair,1190 is replaced in the New Kingdom by qniw. As we have emphasized at the beginning of our discussion, a great deal of flexibility should be assumed when translating and dealing with these terms. As shown, it is difficult to link every type of chair and stool with a specific term because of the generality of the determinative along with the context. It is rare to find texts that describe the terms. Based on our discussion, we can deduce that qniw is the term for ―chair‖ par excellence though there might be the possibility of it indicating ―stool.‖ We are certain that the meaning of isbt includes the ―folding stool,‖ and I would argue the ―flared-legged stool‖ as well. The inclusion of other cheaper stools is highly likely based on the price fluctuation. KHs simply means ―chair.‖ PHDw designates a chair with a slanted backrest, the well-known type in the New Kingdom. PHDw appears once, as we have seen, in an official context, which is why I assume that the same type of chair is supposed to be included under qniw for the commoners.

)

Hannig translates kHs as ―Sänfte.‖1185 This term is attested since the Middle Kingdom in the Kahun Papyri, as an item among a list of other articles of furniture such as wrs, ―headrest.‖ While discussing this passage of the papyrus, Meeks points out that both kHsy and kHss likely refer to the same word.1186 I think his interpretation is plausible, especially since kHs could have a ―wood‖ or ―bevel bed‖1187 determinative. ―Sänfte‖ cannot be the intended meaning in translating texts from Deir El-Medina. When dealing with this corpus, ―chair‖ is the word to use. KHs is not frequently

II Typology of Chairs and Stools in the New Kingdom Based on our detailed study of the collection housed in the Cairo Museum, along with pieces preserved in other museums, I was able to identify nine types of stools and four categories of chairs used by private persons during the New Kingdom.

1178

WB I, 542 (5) ―Stuhl mit Lehne;‖ Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 308, 1443 (determinative Q 16); Köpstein, ―Altägyptische ezeichnungen f r Tische, Sitz- und Liegemöbel,‖ 21, no.7; Urk IV, 1103 (17). 1179 Davies, The Tomb of Rekh-Mi-Re, 2 Vols, 31, pl. XXVI. 1180 G. P. F. Van Den Boorn. The Duties of the Vizier: Civil Administration in the Early New Kingdom. Studies in Egyptology. London: Kegan Paul International, 1988. 25-26. oorn points out ―The elaborate determinative of the verb [Hms]: an official with stick seated on a block-throne with back. This type of throne reminds one of the Hwt-thrones used by kings and gods‖ (25). 1181 Wilson, A Ptolemaic Lexikon, 363. 1182 Boorn, The Duties of the Vizier, 26; Dimitri, I, 136 (77.1465). 1183 Davies, The Tomb of Rekh-Mi-Re II, pl. XXVI (column 1). 1184 According to Boom (The Duties of the Vizier 26) ―The Ptolemaic contexts clearly show the pHDw- throne being used by kings. This would suggest that the pHDw–chair in the Duties is not the only known official seat, but in this special case has simply been adopted by the vizier (or granted by the king?) from the royal court.‖ And he concludes that ―The one thing we can safely say at present is that pHDw (as represented in its determinative) is a rare name of a chair with four legs and a high back, probably of royal origin.‖ See also Kuhlmann, , 37, fn.8 ―Kuhlmann suggests that it derives from pi-wD ―seat of judgment‖ (Cited in Wilson, A Ptolemaic Lexikon, 363). 1185 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 959 ―Sänfte.‖ 1186 Meeks, ―Notes de Lexicographie,‖ 86-87. 1187 Hannig, Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch, 1443 ―ein Schräges ett.‖

Stools: (1) Folding stool This type includes three sub-categories:

1188

Dynasty XIX. KRI III, 544 (2). Dynasty XX. KRI VII, 288 (7); Schafik Allam. ― Einige Hieratische Ostraka der Papyrussammlung der Staatlichen Museem Zu erlin.‖ Forschungen und Berichte 22 (1982): 51-61, pls. 1-8 especially 56-57, pl. 5. Hoch (Semitic Words in Egyptian Texts 337) discusses another ostracon O. DeM. 319 (3) 1189

in which is mentioned. He translates ―‗door posts, his chair (with) woven (seat), mats‘ or perhaps ‗his chair (with) woven matting.‘‖ See also Hoch for the Semitic origin of the word. 1190 For a discussion of xndw, see rovarski, ―An Inventory List from ‗Covington‘s Tomb,‘‖ 138-141; Köpstein,―Altägyptische ezeichnungen f r Tische, Sitz- und Liegemöbel,‖ 21-23, 26.

87

Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom   

Simple unadorned folding stool (X.16, X.17).1191 Folding stool with ducks‘ heads whether four or eight 1192 (IX.12). The majority of the surviving specimens are from this type. Folding stool with lion legs: the only example that I know of is the one currently preserved in the British Museum.1193 This type is more often depicted in pictorial representations than preserved in actual pieces.



The only non-royal example of a stool with animal legs preserved in the Cairo Museum is the one with bulls‘ legs that likely dates to Dynasty 17.1197 Evidence of the non-royal pieces is documented in other collections. It is clear from representations that the use of classic chairs surpasses and replaces that genre of stool. Animal-legged stools were well-depicted in the Old Kingdom representations but possessed ―rounded papyrus flower terminals serving as side rails.‖1198 The classic chair illustrates the development of this type of stool. As Manuelian points out ―by the Nineteenth Dynasty, the frame of the animal stool was reduced to a simple square form.‖1199 In this type, stretchers could be used either to connect the two front and two back legs;1200 or they could join all four legs. Differentiation between the front and back legs is well made, easily indicating the direction of the seated person. The majority of the seats of these stools are woven,1201 but evidence of paneling is also present (such as Tutankhamun). A nice ebony example of this type, dating to Dynasty 18, with holes for the unpreserved webbing, is currently displayed at the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in San Jose, California (RC 1715).1202



A unique stool with animal legs and heads is preserved in the Musées Royaux d‘Art at Brussels.1203 Its technique of manufacture is very distinctive, especially the thickness of its rails, and the lion heads that stretch along the two side rails recalling the three beds of Tutankhamun that evoke a cow, lion and hippopotamus. 1204

In all types, leather is the main material of the seat; however, we occasionally find a woven seat (Fig. 39). An example of a folding stool with eight ducks‘ heads and possessing holes for a woven seat is currently preserved in the Luxor Museum. The imitation of the folding stool from the tomb of Sennedjem is an alternative reminiscent of the expensive seat of precious stools (VII.4). (2) Flared-legged stool  This type could be with or without lattice bracing (IX.13, X.24, X.22). When lattice is present, it usually consists of two straight struts centered between two diagonal ones. Stretchers and struts could be either rectangular or cylindrical in shape, but the latter gives a nice appearance alternating with the legs‘ design. The British Museum possesses the finest stool with bracing. It likely belonged to a high elite person judging by the lavish use of ivory and ebony.1194 In most of the cases the seat is made of leather. There is evidence for two other alternatives in the technique of manufacturing. A woven seat could be used occasionally based on two cases: the first is the Tutankhamun stool,1195 the second is the fragment of a stool seat rail (VIII.4). We argue that the latter fragment might have three straight and two diagonal struts. The two stools of Iyneferti from the tomb of Sennedjem recall the leather seat of precious pieces (VII.5, VII.6).1196

(4) Latticework stool 

(3) Animal-legged stool 1191

I am referring here only to the number of stools or chairs previously studied in chapter II. For a unique unadorned folding stool with eight legs instead of four, clearly manufactured in such a design for more stability, see Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 40, no. 9, pl. 56. It is preserved in the Royal Ontario Museum, Canada cat. no. 910. 37. 17. 1192 For more non-royal examples preserved in other museums, see Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 21 (Kha folding stool), 23, 55, 59. Most significant for our purpose are the fragments of folding stool legs preserved in the Cairo Museum, especially those belonging to Amenhotep II (II.2 and II.3), which are considered ―The earliest evidence for a king owning a folding stool,‖ see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 115. http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/search_the_collection_databas e/search_object_details.aspx?objectid=118996&partid=1&IdNum=247 7&orig=%2fresearch%2fsearch_the_collection_database%2fmuseum_ no__provenance_search.aspx 1193 Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 17, 42. 1194 http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/a es/w/wooden_stool-1.aspx 1195 Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools,121-122, pls. LVI-LVIII. 1196 For a third example from the Eighteenth Dynasty exhibiting the same technique of manufacture, see Leospo, ―Woodworking: Furniture and Cabinetry,‖ 155-157, fig. 211.

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1197

Two of this type are used: the first with curved panels running parallel to the side rails. The only example of this kind housed in the Cairo

For a discussion of this stool, see chapter II, XII. 35 (66, fn. 809). As for the royal examples, the Cairo Museum contains the two lionlegged stools of Tutankhamun (but they are both paneled). See Eaton Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 102-106. According to EatonKrauss ―the two lion-legged stools from Tutankhamun‘s tomb seem to be the only seats preserved from Egypt that incorporate a cavetto cornice into their design‖ (104). 1198 Manuelian, , cat. no. 39; Cherpion, Mastabas et Hypogées, pls. 14, 17-19, 30 (elongated stool). 1199 Manuelian, , cat. no. 39, especially 68. 1200 For an example from the tomb of Kha (Dynasty 18), see Schiaparelli, La Tomba Intatta Dell'architetto Kha Nella Necropoli Di Tebe, fig. 96. 1201 For examples of this type, see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 118, 137, figs. 158, 201-202; Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, figs. 49-50. The first looks to be from the New Kingdom based on the presence of stretchers between the four legs and not Middle Kingdom as mentioned by Killen. 1202 I Thank Juanita Ortiz, the Museum Supervisor, for providing me with this information. 1203 For more discussion of this stool, see chapter II, 60 (X. 26). 1204 Bongioanni, Croce, and Accomazzo, The Illustrated Guide to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, 294-297.

Lexicography and Typology



Museum is that of Tutankhamun,1205 but it is documented in other museums.1206 The second genre differs in the woven seat. In both categories, the four straight legs all have stretchers. The space between the seat and the stretchers could be filled with either one or two vertical struts flanked by two diagonal struts on the longer sides. In this case the shorter sides could be occupied either by one vertical and two diagonal, or two vertical and two diagonal (but the latter should be the same on the longer sides) (VII.1).



 (5) Three-legged stool There are three sub-categories of this stool:  Three-legged stool consisting of one rough block with a slight dished seat (IX.17, IX.18).  Three-legged stool consisting of four pieces: a dished (I.4) or (rarely) a flat seat (I.2), and three legs, usually splayed, are joined to the seat. 1207 Variation in height can be seen both in real pieces and in two-dimensional scenes (see figs. 72-73). This type, along with the previous one, is the most popular. Another permutation has the seat cut in one piece together with the top of the straight legs, creating four pieces in total (IX.15).1208 Another version is composed of two pieces, the seat being hewn from one block with one additional leg attached (IX.16).  A three-legged stool that consists of a seat (made of two pieces) and three straight legs, along with knee braces. The only example preserved in the Cairo Museum is the one of Sennedjem which is a skillfully built piece exhibiting high level craftsmanship compared to the other utilitarian types (VII.7).

This type is not well-documented either as artifactual object or on pictorial representations. The Cairo Museum contains two examples similar in their shape; one of them is rectangular with raised edges (IX.19, IX.20). It is difficult to identify in tomb paintings based on their rarity. This type should also be associated with workmen, but the three-legged type is by far the main one used. Based on the Egyptian methods of rendering chairs and stools, usually from side-view, one might conclude a similarity between the four-legged stool and table (in which only two legs are clearly visible to us).1209 Evidence for this interpretation can be seen in the tomb of Menkheperrasonb (No.112),1210 in which both the stool with splayed legs and the table are rendered in the same style.

(7) ―P‖ stool  There is only one example of this type in the Cairo Museum (IX.11). It is depicted in tomb paintings such as the tombs of Pehsucher, Amenemhet,1211 and Pymere.1212 (8) Low work stool with runners  Usually this category is carved in one piece, hollowed underneath, creating two runners which can be thick (IX.10) or thin (IX.9). The seat can be flat or with slight curve so as to be more ergonomic.  Under this category, a unique example (X.13) should be listed even though it does not conform to the norm, but it shares the same feature of possessing runners instead of four legs. (9) Stools with various leg shapes  This category is prevalent in the Cairo Museum, as well as other museums, especially the Louvre.1213 Under this genre, we can place stools with different heights and leg designs. The eight examples in the Cairo Museum vary in height between 7.8 - 41 cm but 12 - 17 cm is the most common. The majority of these examples have a woven seat, sometimes they have curved slats (panels) such as the one preserved in Nardowe

(6) Four-legged stool 1205

Eaton Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 106-109. For non-royal examples, see Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, figs. 74-76; Manuelian, cat. no. 42. For the Kha stool which has a seat made of wide wooden slats, see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 115, fig. 154 c. http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/search_the_collection_databas e/search_object_details.aspx?objectid=119029&partid=1&searchText =2476&numpages=10&orig=%2fresearch%2fsearch_the_collection_d atabase.aspx¤tPage=2 1207 For an example in the British Museum, see http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/aes/ w/wooden_stool.aspx 1208 Scenes occasionally show three-legged stools with straight legs, such as Davies, The Tomb of Puyemre at Thebes I, pls. XXIII and XXVII. A fine royal version made with the same technique (of having the seat cut with the top of the legs) is the one of Tutankhamun but it differs in its elegant openwork on the seat, use of stretcher, canine splayed legs, as well as the grille symbolizing the sematawy motif to indicate it as ―royal possession.‖ For a discussion of the Tutankhamun three-legged stool, see Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 122125. Two dimensional scenes occasionally show craftsmen using threelegged stools with stretchers (see fig. 57) but we do not find any real example of this type. Its use in Tutankhamun‘s stool might leads us to assume that it is possible but not the norm. In our discussion of the legs in chapter two, we found a group of splayed legs with ducks‘ webbed feet which likely were intended to be used for a three-legged stool type of an elite person (XII.1-XII.4). 1206

1209

Heinrich Schäfer and Emma runner-Traut. Principles of Egyptian Art. Trans. John Baines. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1974. 104-105. As stated by Schäfer ―Pictures of chairs and beds where all four legs are visible occur very rarely indeed in Egypt, more frequently in drawings by children of a certain age…‖ Four-legged stools should also be added to this same group. Page 105 indicates the three methods of depicting the three-legged stools in tomb paintings. 1210 Davies, and Another, pl. XXVII (Lower register). 1211 See chapter II, 48-49 (IX.11). Davies, The Tomb of Rekhmire at Thebes II, pls. CIX, CXII. Other variation is figured in the tomb of Rekhmire but its existence as real object is questionable. To my knowledge there is no example of this shape and it is also difficult to figure out how it would look like from the scene. 1212 Davies, The Tomb of Puyemre at Thebes I, pls. XV-XVII, XIX. 1213 Bridonneau, Les Artistes de Pharaon, 77, nos. 6 b-c.

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom Muzeum, Warsaw.1214 Stools of this type could be without stretchers, two stretchers (front and back), or with four stretchers joining all the legs together. Different kinds of legs are used: straight; Sa sign shape; two triangles mirroring each other; rounded or squared legs at their tops which end with various shaped bases.



Chairs: I have identified four types of chairs from the New Kingdom: (1) The classic chair  This is the main type, whether in real objects or in paintings, reliefs and sculpture. It is characterized by a sloping back, and supported from behind by three vertical stiles, creating a triangle from the side. It possesses lion legs reposing on drums. Differentiation is retained between the front and back legs. The majority of examples in our corpus are from this type (IX.2, X.1), in addition to those of Tutankhamun. 1215 As Fischer correctly points out the earliest examples showing stretchers between the front and back animal legs are not before the time of Thutmosis IV. Later, in the reign of Akhenaton, stretchers begin to be used on all sides, occasionally connected by ―diagonal braces.‖1216 Two painted examples of this classic chair are known: the first is that of Kha (Dynasty 18) 1217 and the second of Sennedjem (VII.8). (2) Low chair with straight back Under this category, two types can be placed, varying in whether they have lion or straight legs:  The first has lion legs, straight back, together with a broad seat. An elegant example is the chair of Hatnofer (see fig. 40). Several other examples are housed in collections. 1218 Their back differs in being made of simple slats, partly openwork, or having simple decoration of ivory. One well-carved chair in our corpus can be categorized under this type (IX.1).

1214

Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, 46, pl. 73. For more examples of woven stools, see pls. 54, 65-67, 72. 1215 For more pieces, see Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, figs. 173-176. For an example from the Louvre (N. 2950), see http://cartelfr.louvre.fr/cartelfr/visite?srv=car_not_frame&idNotice=39 99 For an example from the Brooklyn Museum (37.40), made of wood and bone, see http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/3948/Chair/im age/51180/detail For another one from the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (Leiden), see http://www.rmo.nl/collectie/zoeken?object=AU+52 1216 Fischer, ―A chair of the Early New Kingdom,‖ 147, 148, especially fns. 28-29, for the earliest real examples. See the third chapter discussion about an expressive limestone statue from the Amarna period (Fig. 103) 1217 Leospo, ―Woodworking: Furniture and Cabinetry,‖ 140-141, fig. 186. 1218 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, figs. 183-184.

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As far as I know, four chairs could be grouped under this type. They differ in appearance, but have in common the low height of the seat compared to the chair‘s overall height. They all share plain, straight legs. Different techniques of filling the backrest are adopted: simple vertical slats (X.4), square with dividers perpendicular to each other (X.5), and simple wooden backs (such as the Tutankhamun chair).1219 A fourth painted low chair is housed in the Louvre Museum, but it is difficult to discern the overall height of its back (E 27126).1220

(3) Open back chair with straight legs1221  This type usually has straight legs rounded off at their top, and protruding higher than the seat rails. The side view shows the curve of the headrail, along with the steep triangle, a feature identical to the classic chair. This type is distinguished from the classic chair in that the two back legs are formed from a single piece with the upright stile. Usually two square stretchers connect the front and back legs. The chair from Naga Ed-Deir1222 should be categorized under this type, as it deviates only in that the two legs on the back do not form one piece with the upright stile. The number of slats forming the back of this type of chair varies from three to seven 1223 (IX.3). (4) Simple chair  This category includes chairs that could be described as practical household pieces. There are few preserved specimens, some of which possess straight legs and others with molded shape (X.2). From Deir El-Medina, there are three chairs. Two of them are from tomb 1389: the complete one is housed in the Louvre Museum.1224 The third low chair with low back (tomb 1379) and shaped legs is currently preserved in the Luxor Museum. 1225 To this list, we can add one simple high chair in the Berlin Museum (called by aker ―kitchen chair‖).1226 To sum up, it is important to emphasize that this typological study has only relied on surviving objects, whether those preserved in the Cairo Museum or those which, as far as I know, are housed in other collections. 1219

Eaton Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, 100-102, pl. XL. It measures 27.5 x 42.5 x 40.5. http://cartelfr.louvre.fr/cartelfr/visite?srv=car_not_frame&idNotice=10 223 1221 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 132-133, figs. 186-189 (called ―posture‖ chair by aker). 1222 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, pl. 85. 1223 For the Naga Ed-Deir Chair, along with other pieces, see Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I, pls. 85-86. 1224 http://cartelfr.louvre.fr/cartelfr/visite?srv=car_not_frame&idNotice =3989 1225 James F. Romano. Catalogue: The Luxor Museum of Ancient Egyptian Art. Cairo: American Research Center in Egypt, 1979. 139, no. 209 C (JE 63785). 1226 Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, 132, fig. 185. 1220

Lexicography and Typology The reason for concentrating on artifactual pieces resides in the period of focus, the New Kingdom. I agree with scholars that, when studying chairs and stools from the Old and Middle Kingdoms, we have to rely on twodimensional scenes, along with other evidence such as stelae and sculpture in order to fill the gap of nonpreserved or non-existent pieces. The New Kingdom is different, however, as the majority of actual surviving examples date to this period. This of course does not deny the fact that we are missing furniture in the New Kingdom, but the likelihood is lower compared to the previous eras. In addition, there is no basis upon which to argue that the types depicted in reliefs and paintings, and not present as real objects, originally existed. Most likely they did not. Furthermore, in view of the lavish decoration exemplified in the number of struts, as well as stretchers, especially in the Ramesside Period, we should be wary of which image to take at face value. That is why it is sometimes difficult to analyze each image individually, or to decipher some types from scenes to imagine their real shape. It is very important to emphasize that there is no preserved stool or chair that has two stretchers; this feature only exists on depictions. The typology of seats offered by Vandier in Manuel éologie Égyptienne,1227 in which he basically relies on two-dimensional scenes, is clear evidence of what we are arguing for (Fig. 111). The majority of them do exist as real objects, however, some types are missing, such as the four-legged stools, the rush woven stools with various- shaped legs and Sa sign, the stool with animal legs (rarely recorded in scenes), some sub-categories of the three-legged stools, low chairs with straight legs, and chairs for domestic use. Others likely do not appear in reality, especially the elongated chair that we have discussed in the previous chapter. To the best of my knowledge, there is no latticework stool with a low back, a type frequently illustrated in scenes. For all these reasons, building our typology on real pieces is the safest way, leaving the issue open for any piece or fragment that might be published in the future, enhancing our knowledge by adding more types to our classification.

1227

Vandier,

éologie Égyptienne IV, 88, fig. 25.

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom finds its equivalent in the non-royal sphere. Paint can also be used in some royal pieces to cover any imperfection.

Conclusions Before addressing some essential questions related to this study, it is important to remember that, as Manuelian points out, “In a culture where sitting, reclining, or squatting on the ground was commonplace, chairs and stools did not represent the bare necessities they might to modern Western peoples, but were rather additional items, perhaps even luxuries.”1228 Chairs and stools did not constitute an essential need for the ancient Egyptians, and thus their possession indicated the social position of their owners as those who could afford it and who had access to materials and craftsmanship. The use of a chair or any kind of seat became a sign of dignity. 1229 The higher status of chairs also aligns with the belief that “…the height of the stool is related to the status of the man of the house; his wife may have sat lower than he, possibly on a floor mat.”1230 This belief, if applied to tomb scenes, reveals how the owner of the tomb usually occupies the higher position, shown seated with offerings being presented to him. Or alternatively, he can be shown seated on a stool supervising his estates or workshop. In the banquet scenes, guests are depicted in various ways depending on their gender: on chairs, stools and mats. The same indication of the tomb owner’s status can be applied to his guests; he needs them to be shown on different types of seating to emphasize their social status. This superior rank of the seated person can also be traced in depictions of the king versus his subordinates, and how he is shown seated on the throne. This value or degree of social elevation can be seen in the word Spss, meaning “to be noble or respected,” which is normally written in hieroglyphs as a man seated on a chair or just as a chair by itself.1231

Although in all periods there is a marked difference between the furniture produced in a royal workshop and that produced for common use, the basic form of construction is similar. My analysis has revealed that the differences are only in the quality of materials, finishing, workmanship, ornamentation and symbolism, and not that there are distinct techniques of production that vary. Royal pieces exhibit generous use of gilding, inlay (ivory and ebony), as well as iconography shedding light on the underlying symbolism of the elements depicted. We have seen such examples in the two armchairs of Sitamun (with their lavish use of gilding together with the deities and animals depicted). Commoners’ pieces are left in most cases without decoration and some are painted monochrome (likely white). The good finishing of the whole piece compensates for the low quality of the wood in the elite. Their access to high level craftsmen can lead to the creation of fine pieces such as the folding stool with eight ducks’ heads and the flared-legged one.1234 Another question is whether groups of objects with unknown provenance but with similar material, techniques, and finishing derive from the same workshop. The pieces in our study suggest this conclusion. The best example can be seen in the group of legs that we have examined at the end of chapter two. The degree to which we were able to classify and divide them into front and back, and in some instances to right and left legs based on the dimensions, as well as the placement of knee braces, demonstrates that, even with the absence of provenance, the shape and form imply that they are the work of the same craftsmen. That is why we suggest that a large number of these legs could originate from Deir ElMedina, because of their similarity with those of complete pieces found at the site. Another example was seen in the frame of a flared-legged stool and its seat.1235 Despite the fact that they are not indicated as belonging to each other in the Cairo Museum database, we suggest that they are parts of the same piece based on the color, dimensions, and finishing of both the underside of the seat as well as the top of the legs.

Let us now turn to the results of our study. Close examination of the objects led me to consider the following questions. First, are expensive and inexpensive furniture pieces constructed using similar methods? Based on my analysis of both royal (Tutankhamun as well as Sitamun’s chairs)1232 and non-royal counterparts, they do exhibit the same mode of construction. The joints, as well as the technique of manufacturing the pieces, are the same. The paint and gilding of the majority of the Tutankhamun pieces prevent us from clearly discerning their joints, but in one of his chairs, the double open mortise and tenon was employed, just as in the common pieces in our corpus. Moreover, the lattice stools of Tutankhamun do not differ very much from elite ones, on the contrary: one might find private stools of this category that are better executed. Furthermore, economy of wood (as we have seen in chapter one) is applied also in royal pieces.1233 The final appearance of some pieces

Whether these objects were made for tombs or always originated in houses is another issue of interest to our topic. What can be said for sure is that models are created to be deposited in tombs. The fact that they do not serve a useful purpose in daily life explains the low quality of the materials of some of them, such as the folding stool model or the chair model. 1236 However, the chair model of Amenhotep II exhibits high quality wood (maybe cedar), as it is a royal piece. 1237 All the pieces with known provenance were found in tombs; we cannot be sure of the other examples but assume the same origin. The majority of them exhibit signs of use, whether through

1228

Peter Der.Manuelian. “Furniture in Ancient Egypt.” Civilizations of the Ancient Near East. Eds. Jack M. Sasson et al. Vol. III. New York: Scribner, Macmillan Library Reference, 1995. 1623-1634, especially 1623. 1229 Wanscher, Sella Curulis, 12. 1230 Cited in Manuelian, Egypt’s Golden Age, cat. no. 44. 1231 Kuhlmann, Der Thron im Alten Ägypten, 7. 1232 For the chairs of Sitamun, see chapter II, 35-36 (IV.1, IV. 2). 1233 See chapter I, 13, fig. 36.

1234

See chapter II, 49 (IX.12), 58-59 (X.22). See chapter II, 58-59 (X. 22, X. 23). 1236 See chapter II, 47 (IX.5), 58 (X.20, X.21). 1237 See chapter II, 32-33 (II.1). 1235

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Conclusions some webbing strands missing on the seat, or through stains. As we have discussed in the chair of Sennedjem, it is hard to know when exactly repainting, along with inscriptions, were applied to a specific chair or stool. 1238 The hypothesis that, with the exception of models, there is no difference between pieces used in daily life and those deposited in the tombs is plausible considering our pieces. The best example of this double use has been seen in the chair of Sitamun (of which the seat was altered), and we furthermore argue for the double use of the majority of our pieces. As we have seen, however, the material of the chair (linen-gesso-paint) along with the three painted stools of Sennedjem leads us to believe that in their current state, they are intended to be placed in the tomb because of the fragile material of their seats, and not because of the inscriptions or painting, but this constitutes an exception.

Whether or not women are involved in the weaving of some pieces is hard to ascertain, but the possibility cannot be ruled out. Evidence of their roles in the previous periods is present, whether in both scenes and models (such as Meketre).1242 This study in which I have focused is multi-disciplinary one, focusing not only on the examination of the objects, but considered historical, artistic, lexicographical and social aspects. I hope that my study of the collections in the Cairo Museum will encourage other scholars to publish all the objects, and especially the fragments preserved in other museums. Our picture is still incomplete and we only know about the famous chairs and stools that are usually discussed in entries about furniture in general. However, fragments are usually very informative about construction technique, especially in determining the number of stretchers and struts. The best example of this is the inscribed fragment of a stool seat rail1243 that most likely has three vertical struts despite the absence of a complete piece with this number. Fragments are the best way of establishing the possibility of a new type. Complete pieces are useful in iconography and symbolism, in the case of royal specimens, but for technical information, we need the fragments. It would also be valuable for a scholar to study the depictions of chairs and stools in tomb scenes alongside all the elements and animals associated with them, as well as the titles of the women. Furniture in general needs further work and should be regarded as equally important as other artifacts. I particularly hope that we will soon have a study on beds and tables in ancient Egypt. Even though several scholars prefer to examine these objects from scenes, I see no contradiction in combining this with the analysis of physical examples. In other words, one should examine pieces preserved in a specific museum in conjunction with scenes, and not treat them as two separate areas. I am convinced that any typological study of an article of furniture should rely on real objects and not on scenes. Killen in his book provides a list with the numbers of furniture articles exhibited in museums around the world,1244 but there is no further information or illustrations. I hope that one day this list provides a basis for further study.

Based on our discussion of some ostraca from the Ramesside Period, and more specifically Cooney’s study of this material, we see an interesting arrangement of the work environment from which our pieces stem: “The “informal workshop” does not represent any actual place where artisans of different specializations and skill levels came together to craft funerary art. The formal workshop-with its strict organization into two sides of the crew, each side with draftsmen, a scribe of the tomb, and a foreman-was the setting of art production for the king and his family. Private sector work, however, functioned within different, less controlled, and therefore more complex, variable, and looser organizational structures.” 1239

I agree with Cooney that the “informal workshop” is the type used in which the craftsmen of Deir El-Medina produced domestic furniture (especially chairs and stools) for their “fellow villagers or other Theban inhabitants.”1240 The majority of our pieces are simple in their form, lack decoration, and could have easily been constructed at home by a single craftsman. In the case of a painted or inlaid piece, one craftsman most likely did the carpentry, and then another one added any inlay or painting. The possibility that a craftsman does both carpentry and painting is also present. By making furniture, craftsmen at Deir El-Medina “earn additional income” beyond their salary from the state as workers in royal tombs.1241 Their work in the royal workshops provides them with experience, along with knowledge of hieroglyphs, iconography, and moreover, a good reputation. The overall lack of documentation and texts regarding the manufacture of furniture is striking in the Eighteenth Dynasty, in contrast to the Ramesside Period. This lack of textual evidence does not disprove the informal workshop model during this period of time. I suspect it did exist, but it is similarly difficult to prove. 1238

See chapter II, 40-41 (VII. 8). Cooney, The Cost of Death, 149. Cooney, The Cost of Death, 133. 1241 Cooney, The Cost of Death, 131. 1239

1242

1240

1243

Robins, Women in Ancient Egypt, 103-104. See chapter II, 43 (VIII. 4). 1244 Killen, Ancient Egyptian Furniture I.

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Chairs, Stools, and Footstools in the New Kingdom List of Abbreviations AcOr: ActaOrientalia. ASAE: Annales du Service des Antiquités de l'Égypte, Le Caire. BES: Bulletin of the Egyptological Seminar. BIFAO: Bulletin de l'Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale, Le Caire. BiOr: Bibliotheca Orientalis. BMMA: Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. BSEG: Bulletin de la Société d'Égyptologie de Genève, Genève. CdE: Chronique d'Égypte. C.G.: Catalogue Général des Antiquités Égyptiennes du Musée du Caire. DE: Discussions in Egyptology. GM: Göttinger Miszellen. IFAO: Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale, Le Caire. JARCE: Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt. JE: Journal d’Entrée, Egyptian Museum Cairo. JEA: Journal of Egyptian Archaeology. JSSEA: Journal of the Society of the Study of Egyptian Antiquities KRI: Kitchen, Kenneth Anderson. Ramesside Inscriptions: Historical and Biographical. 8 Vols. Oxford: Blackwell, 1975-1990. LÄ: Helck, Wolfgang, Eberhard Otto, and Wolfhart Westendorf.

. 7 Vols. Wiesbaden: O.

Harrassowitz, 1975-1992. MDAIK: Mitteilungen des Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts Kairo. MMA: Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. O.: Ostracon. PM: Porter, Bertha, and Rosalind L. B. Moss. Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Reliefs, and Paintings.8 Vols. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1960RdE: Revue d'Égyptologie, Paris SAK: Studien zur Altägyptischen Kultur. SR: Special Register Number, Egyptian Museum Cairo. TT: Theban Tomb. TR: Temporary Number, Egyptian Museum Cairo. Urk. IV: Sethe, Kurt. Urkunden Der 18. Dynastie. Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, 1961. WB: Erman, Adolf, and Hermann Grapow.

Sprache. 5 Vols. Berlin: Akademie-Verlag,

1926-1963 (reprinted 1971-1982). ZÄS: Zeitschrift für gyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde, Leipzig.

94

List of Abbreviations General Abbreviations Cat. No. (S): Catalogue Number (s) Cf. : Compare Cm. : Centimeter (s) Col (s): Column(s) D.: Depth Dia.: Diameter E.g.: For example Et al.: And others Fig (s). : Figure (s) Fn (s).: Footnote (s) H.: Height i.e. : That is L.: Length Max.: Maximum Min: Minimum No (s): Number (s) Para.: Paragraph Pl (s): Plate (s) T.: Tome Vol (s): Volume(s) W.: Width

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116

Fig. 1: Scenes from the tomb of Ti, Dynasty V (after Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, fig. 459)  IFAO

Fig. 2: Scenes from the tomb of Rekhmire, TT 100 (after Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, fig. 460) “Courtesy of the Connoisseur Magazine”

117

Fig. 3: Carpenters‟ tools as depicted on the sarcophagi (after Lacau, N I, pl. XL)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum

118

Fig. 4: Model of Meketre‟s carpenters‟ workshop (after Laurent-Tackholm, Faraos blomster, 76 as cited in Makkonen, Ancient Forestry: an Historical Study, part II, fig. 6)

Fig. 5: Model tool chest and tools of Ankhef, Dynasty XII, Metropolitan Museum of Art (17. 9. 31), Gift of Edward S. Harkness, 1917. Image © The Metropolitan Museum of Art

119

(after Jéquier, L

F

Fig. 6: Carpenters‟ tools D’Obj d s Sarcophages du Moyen Empire, fig. 715)  IFAO

Fig. 7: Model carpenters‟ tools from the Middle Kingdom, Metropolitan Museum of Art (20. 3. 90 - 20. 3. 98), Rogers Fund and Edward S. Harkness Gift, 1920. Image © The Metropolitan Museum of Art

120

Fig. 8: Carpentry set from the New Kingdom, British Museum (EA 6037, 6040, 6042, 6043, 6044, 6046, 6055, 6061, 22834, 30083, 30245, 36728) © Trustees of the British Museum

Fig. 9: Blades of axes (after Śliwa, Woodworking, fig. 1) “Courtesy of Joachim Śliwa”

121

Fig. 10: Adze from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6061. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

Fig. 11: Adze from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 26279. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

Fig. 12: Adze from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 22834. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

122

Fig. 13: Plain adze blades (after Petrie, Tools and Weapons, pl. XVI)

123

Fig. 14: Necked adze blades (after Petrie, Tools and Weapons, pl. XVII)

124

Fig. 15: Saw knife from the Badarian period (British Museum, London EA 62274. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

Fig. 16: Saw from the First Dynasty (British Museum, London EA 66064. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

Fig. 17: Hand saw from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6046. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

Fig. 18: Pull saw from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 30245. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

Fig. 19: Mortise chisel from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6053. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

125

Fig. 20: Firmer chisel from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6045. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

Fig. 21: Wooden mallet from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 41679. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

126

Fig. 22: Wooden carpenters‟ mallets, Ägyptisches Museum Berlin (ÄM 11115, ÄM 13659, ÄM 16626; © Ägyptisches Museum und Papyrussammlung, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin – SPK)

Fig. 23: Awl from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6055. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

127

Fig. 24: Bow drill from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6040, 6042. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

Fig. 25: Marking knife from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 15742. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

after J quier, L

F

Fig. 26: Rubbers D’Obj d  IFAO

128

d M y

, fig. 753)

Fig. 27: Measuring tools (after Śliwa, Woodworking, fig. 10) “Courtesy of Joachim Śliwa”

Fig. 28: A square, a plumb, and a square level of Sennedjem (after Arnold, Building in Egypt, 1991, fig. 6.4) “By permission of Oxford University Press”

129

Fig. 29: Sharpening hone from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 36728. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

Fig. 30: Oil flask from the New Kingdom (British Museum, London EA 6037. Photographic Credit: - G. Killen, Courtesy the British Museum)

130

Fig. 31: Rests for adzes (after Śliwa, Woodworking, fig. 11) “Courtesy of Joachim Śliwa”

Fig. 32: Scene of a lathe from the tomb of Petosiris at Tuna El-Gebel (after Lefebvre, Le Tombeau de Petosiris Troisième Partie: Vocabulaire et Planches, pl. X)  IFAO

131

Fig. 33: Scenes from the tomb of Ipuy, TT 217 (after Davies, Two Ramesside Tombs at Thebes, pl. XXXVII) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

Fig. 34: Scenes from the tomb of Puyemre, TT 39 (after Davies, The Tomb of Puyemre at Thebes I, pl. XXIII) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

132

Fig. 35: Economy in using wood: A lid of a coffin. (after Aldred, “Fine Wood-Work,” 1957, fig. 485 a) “By permission of Oxford University Press”

Fig. 36: Economy in using wood: A footstool of Tutankhamun (after Aldred, “Fine Wood-Work,” 1957, fig. 485 b) “By permission of Oxford University Press”

Fig. 37 Scarf joint (after Aldred, “Fine Wood-Work,” 1957, fig. 492) “By permission of Oxford University Press”

133

Fig. 38: The chair of Renyseneb, Metropolitan Museum of Art (68. 58) The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Purchase, Patricia R. Lassalle Gift, 1968 Image © The Metropolitan Museum of Art

134

Fig. 39: A folding stool, Metropolitan Museum of Art (12. 182. 49) Rogers Fund, 1912. Image © The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Fig. 40: The chair of Hatnofer, Metropolitan Museum of Art (36. 3. 152) Rogers Fund, 1936. Image © The Metropolitan Museum of Art

135

Fig. 41: Ivory legs (after Baker, Furniture in the Ancient World, fig. 1) “Courtesy of the Connoisseur Magazine”

Fig. 42: Scenes from the temple of Beit El Wali (after Ricke, Hughes and Wente, The Beit el-Wali Temple of Ramesses II, pl. 7) “Courtesy of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago”

136

Fig. 43: Scene of weaving a bed from the tomb of Menkheperrasonb, TT 112 (after Davies and Davies, The Tombs of Menkheperrasonb, Amenmose, and Another, pl. XXX) “Image Courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

Gaston,

Fig. 44: A group of stools and a chair from Deir El-Medina after Bruy re and d D M d -1935), Deuxième Partie, la Nécropole de L’Est, 48, fig. 21)  IFAO

137

Fig. 45: Structure of New Kingdom chairs; a-back, b-right side (after Eaton-Krauss, The Thrones, Chairs, Stools, fig. 1) © Marianne Eaton-Krauss and the Griffith Institute, University of Oxford

Fig. 46: Scenes of woodcutters from the tomb of Sekhemkara, Dynasty IV (after Hassan, Excavations at Giza IV, fig. 60)

138

Fig. 47: Scene of woodcutters from the tomb of Khnumhotep III, Dynasty XII (after Klebs, Die Reliefs und Malereien des Mittleren Reiches, fig. 100, Heidelberg: 1922, Reprint: Georg Olms, Hildesheim 1990)

Fig. 48: Scenes from the tomb of Khunes, Dynasty VI (after Varille, La Tombe de Ni- Ankh-Pepi à Zaouyet El-Mayetin, 15, fig. 5)  IFAO

139

Fig. 49: Scenes from the tomb of Nefer and Kahay, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, The Tomb of Nefer and Ka-hay, pl. 19) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

Fig. 50: Scenes of woodcutters from the tomb of Nefer and Kahay, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, The Tomb of Nefer and Ka-hay, pl. 21) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

140

Fig. 51: Scenes of woodcutters from the tomb of Nefer and Kahay, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, The Tomb of Nefer and Ka-hay, pl. 20) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

Fig. 52: Scenes from the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, Das Grab des Nianchchnum und Chnumhotep, fig. 8) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

141

Fig. 53: Scenes of woodcutters from the tomb of Niankhpepi, Dynasty VI (after Varille, La Tombe de Ni- Ankh-Pepi à Zaouyet El-Mayetin, pl. XVI)  IFAO

Fig. 54: Scenes from the tomb of Kyky, TT 409 (after Negm, The Tomb of Simut Called Kyky : Theban Tomb 409 at Qurnah, pl. VIII) “Courtesy of Maged Negm”

142

Fig. 55: Scenes from the tomb of Nakht, TT 52 (after Shedid and Seidel, The Tomb of Nakht, 34) “Courtesy of Abdel Ghaffar Shedid”

Fig. 56: Scenes from the tomb of Ipuy, TT 217 (after Davies, Two Ramesside Tombs at Thebes, pl. XXX) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

Fig. 57: Scenes from the tomb of Ipuy, TT 217 (after Davies, Two Ramesside Tombs at Thebes, pl. XXXVI) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

143

Fig. 58: Scene from the tomb of Hepusonb, TT 67 (after Davies, “A fragment of a Punt Scene,” pl. IV) “Image courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

Fig. 59: Scene of wood transport (after Naville, The Temple of Deir El Bahari III, pl. LXXIV) “Image courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

144

Fig. 60: Scenes from the tomb of Ibi at Deir El-Gebrawi, Dynasty VI (after Kanawati, Deir El-Gebrawi II, pl. 72) “Courtesy of Naguib Kanawati”

Fig. 61: Scenes from the tomb of Hemre I at Deir El-Gebrawi, Dynasty VI (after Kanawati, Deir El-Gebrawi I, pl. 48) “Courtesy of Naguib Kanawati”

145

Fig. 62: Scenes from the tomb of Zau at Deir El-Gebrawi, Dynasty VI (after Davies, The Rock Tombs of Deir el Gebrawi II, pl. X) “Images courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

Fig. 63: Scenes from the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, Das Grab des Nianchchnum und Chnumhotep, fig. 62) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

146

Fig. 64: Scenes from the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep, Dynasty V (after Moussa and Altenmüller, Das Grab des Nianchchnum und Chnumhotep, fig. 63) “Courtesy of Hartwig Altenmüller”

Fig. 65: Scenes from the tomb of Ti, Dynasty V (after Wild, Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule III, pl. CLXXIV)  IFAO

147

Fig. 66: Scenes from the tomb of Ti, Dynasty V (after Wild, Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule III, pl. CLXXIV)  IFAO

Fig. 67: Scenes from the mastaba of Mereruka, Dynasty VI (after Duell, The Mastaba of Mereruka I, pl. 30) “Courtesy of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago”

148

Fig. 68: Scenes from the tomb of Pepiankh at Meir, Dynasty VI (after Blackman, The Rock tombs of Meir V, pl. XVIII) “Images courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

Fig. 69: Scenes from the mastaba of Iymery at Giza (G. 6020) (after Lepsius, Denkmäler aus Ägypten und Äthiopien, Bl. 49)

149

Fig. 70: Scenes from the tomb of Khety at Beni Hasan (No 17), Dynasty XI (after Newberry, Beni Hassan II, pl. XIII, as cited in Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, fig. 11)

Fig. 71: Scenes from the tomb of Amenemhat at Beni Hassan, Dynasty XII (after Pritchard, The Ancient Near East in Pictures, fig. 122)  Princeton University Press

Fig. 72: Workshop scenes from the tomb of Apuki and Nebamun at Thebes, TT 181 (after Davies, The Tomb of Two Sculptors, pl. XI) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

150

Fig. 73: Scenes from the tomb of Rekhmire, TT 100 (after Virey, Le Tombeau de Rekhmara, pl. XIV)  IFAO

Fig. 74: Scenes from the tomb of Rekhmire, TT 100 (after Virey, Le Tombeau de Rekhmara, pl. XV).  IFAO

151

Fig. 75: Scenes from the tomb of Neferhotep, TT 49 (after Davies, The Tomb of Nefer-hotep at Thebes, Vol. I, pl. XXVII) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

\

Fig. 76: Scenes from the tomb of Neferhotep, TT 49 (after Davies, The Tomb of Nefer-hotep at Thebes, Vol. I, pl. XLIX) “Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art”

152

Fig. 77: Scene from the tomb of Ti: two workers cutting mortises (after Wild, Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule II, pl. CXXIX)  IFAO

Fig. 78: Scene from the tomb of Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep (after Rogers, An Analysis of Tomb Reliefs Depicting Boat Construction, fig. 31) “Courtesy of Edward Rogers”

153

Fig. 79: Scenes from the tomb of Shedu at Deshasha, Dynasty VI (after Kanawati and McFarlane, Deshasha, pl. 49) “Courtesy of Naguib Kanawati”

Fig. 80: Scenes from the tomb of Shedu at Deshasha, Dynasty VI (after Petrie, Deshasheh, pl. XXI, as cited in Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, fig. 8)

154

Fig. 81: Scene from the tomb of Ti, Dynasty V (after Wild, Le Tombeau de Ti Fascicule III, pl. CLXXIV)  IFAO

Fig. 82: Scene from the mastaba of Mereruka, Dynasty VI (after Duell, The Mastaba of Mereruka I, pl. 31) “Courtesy of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago”

155

Fig. 83: Scenes from the tomb of Shepsi-Pu-Min/Kheni at Akhmim, Dynasty VI (after Kanawati, The Rock Tombs of EL Hawawish II, fig. 19) “Courtesy of Naguib Kanawati”

Fig. 84: Scenes from the tomb of Ptahshepses at Abusir, Dynasty V (after Verner, The Mastaba of Ptahshepses, pl. 28) “Courtesy of Miroslav Verner”

Fig. 85: Scenes from the tomb of Serfka at Sheikh Said, Dynasty V (after Davies, The Rock Tombs of Sheikh Saïd, pl. IV, as cited in Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, fig. 7) “Images Courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

156

Fig. 86: Scenes from the tomb of Baqet III at Beni Hasan (No 15), Dynasty XI ( after Newberry, Beni Hasan II, pl. VII, as cited in Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, fig. 10)

Fig. 87: Scenes from the tomb of Khety at Beni Hasan (No 17), Dynasty XI (after Newberry, Beni Hasan II, pl. XIII, as cited in Hassan, Stöcke und Stäbe im Pharaonischen Ägypten, fig. 12)

Fig. 88: Mortise and Tenon (after Killen, Egyptian Woodworking and Furniture, fig. 14) “Courtesy of Geoffrey Killen”

157

Fig. 89: Stub mortise and tenon. Made by Medhat Abdallah

Fig. 90: Through mortise and tenon. Made by Medhat Abdallah

158

Fig. 91: Through mortise and loose tongue. Made by Medhat Abdallah

Fig. 92: Double open mortise and tenon. Made by Medhat Abdallah

159

Fig. 93: Pinned barefaced mortise and tenon. Made by Medhat Abdallah

Fig. 94: Through mortise and tenon with shoulders. Made by Medhat Abdallah

160

Fig. 95: Through mortise and tenon with shoulders. Made by Medhat Abdallah

Fig. 96: Mortise and dowels. Made by Medhat Abdallah

161

Fig. 97: Butt Joint. Made by Medhat Abdallah

Fig. 98: Scenes from the tomb of Kaemankh at Giza after Brovarski, “An Inventory List from „Covington‟s Tomb,‟” fig. 8) “Courtesy of Edward Brovarski”

162

Fig. 99: Scenes from the mastaba of Werirenptah at Saqqara, British Museum (EA 718)  Trustees of the British Museum

Fig. 100: Scene from the tomb of Ptahshepses at Abu-Sir (after Verner, The Mastaba of Ptahshepses, photo 19, pl. 9) “Courtesy of Miroslav Verner”

163

Fig. 101: Scene from the tomb of Sebeknakhte at El Kab (after Derchain, “La Perruque et le Cristal,” fig. 3)  Helmut Buske Verlag GmbH

Fig. 102: Scene from the tomb of Sebeknakhte at El Kab (after Derchain, “La Perruque et le Cristal,” fig. 4)  Helmut Buske Verlag GmbH

164

Fig. 103: A statue from El-Amarna (JE 53249)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 104: Statue of a seated nurse (JE 98831)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 105: Side view of the nurse statue (JE 98831)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

. Fig. 106: Statue of Imenemipet and his wife Hathor. (ÄM 6910,  Ägyptisches Museum und Papyrussammlung, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin – SPK )

166

Fig. 107: Statue of a seated couple, Metropolitan Museum of Art (07. 228. 94), Rogers Fund, 1907. Image © The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Fig. 108: A couple seated in front of an offering table (CG. 622)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

167

Fig. 109: Scenes from the tomb of Huya (after Davies, The Rock Tombs of El-Amarna Part III, pl. 13) “Images Courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

Fig. 110: Scenes from the tomb of Ay (after Davies, The Rock Tombs of El-Amarna Part VI, pl. XXX) “Images Courtesy of the Egypt Exploration Society”

168

Fig. 111: After Vandier, M

d’

éologie Égyptienne IV, fig. 25

Fig. 112: Stool model from the tomb of Madja  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

169

Fig. 113: Three legged-stool from the tomb of Satnem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 114: High stool from the tomb of Satnem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 115: Three-legged stool from the tomb of Setau  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 116: Chair model from the tomb of Amenhotep II  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 117: Fragment of a leg from a folding stool (tomb of Amenhotep II)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 118: Fragment of a leg from a folding stool (tomb of Amenhotep II)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 119: Reconstruction of the two fragments from legs of a folding stool (tomb of Amenhotep II) Made by Eberhard Froehlich

Fig. 120: Pedestal for the foot of a chair (tomb of Amenhotep II)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 121: Pedestal for the foot of a chair (tomb of Thutmose IV)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 122: Pedestals for the feet of a chair (tomb of Thutmose IV)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

174

Fig. 123: The armchair of Sitamun  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

175

Fig. 124: The side of the armchair of Sitamun (JE 95343 a)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 125: The side of the armchair of Sitamun (JE 95344)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 126: The armchair of Sitamun  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

177

Fig. 127: Flared leg of a stool from Tell El-Amarna  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 128: Fragment of a stool leg from Tell El-Amarna  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 129: Fragment of a stool leg from Tell El-Amarna  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 130: Two pedestals for the feet of a chair (tomb of Horemheb)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 131: Leg from a folding stool (tomb of Horemheb)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 132: Latticework stool from the tomb of Sennedjem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

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Fig. 133: Latticework stool from the tomb of Sennedjem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

Fig. 134: Low stool from the tomb of Sennedjem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

181

Fig. 135: Imitation of a folding stool from the tomb of Sennedjem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

Fig. 136: Flared-legged stool from the tomb of Sennedjem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

182

Fig. 137: Flared-legged stool from the tomb of Sennedjem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

Fig. 138: Three-legged stool from the tomb of Sennedjem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

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Fig. 139: Chair of Sennedjem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

184

Fig. 140: Back of the chair of Sennedjem  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Ahmed Amin

185

Fig. 141: Model of a leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

186

Fig. 142: Model of a leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 143: Three fragments, probably of a chair  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 144: The three fragments JE 94397 (after Budka, Bestattungsbrauchtum und Friedhofsstruktur im Asasif, fig. 216)  Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften

188

Fig. 145: Reconstruction of the fragments JE 94397 Made by Eberhard Froehlich

189

Fig. 146: Fragment of a stool seat rail  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 147: Ten Fragments probably from the back of a chair  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

190

Fig. 148: Chair with straight back  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 149: Side view of the chair  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

191

Fig. 150: Chair with slanted backrest  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

192

Fig. 151: Chair with straight legs  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

193

Fig. 152: Fragment of a chair with marquetry inlay  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 153: Model chair with high back  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

194

Fig. 154: Stool with shaped legs  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 155: Low stool with plain legs  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

195

Fig. 156: Square stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 157: Low stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

196

Fig. 158: Low stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 159: Stool painted white  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 160: Folding stool with eight ducks’ heads  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 161: Flared- legged stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

198

Fig. 162: Stool with shaped legs  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 163: Three-legged stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 164: Three-legged stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 165: Three-legged stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

200

Fig. 166: Three-legged stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 167: Four- legged stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

201

Fig. 168: Four-legged stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 169: Rectangular footstool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

202

Fig. 170: Chair with slanted backrest  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

203

Fig. 171: Chair with straight back  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

204

Fig. 172: Chair with straight back  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

205

Fig. 173: Low chair  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 174: Low chair  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

206

Fig. 175: Frame of a chair  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 176: Fragment of a chair  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

207

Fig. 177: Fragment of a chair  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 178: Square stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

208

Fig. 179: Low stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 180: Fragment of a low stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

209

Fig. 181: Fragment of a low stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 182: Fragment of a stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

210

Fig. 183: Three-legged stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 184: Low three-legged stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

211

Fig. 185: Folding stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 186: Fragment of a folding stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

212

Fig. 187: Fragment of a folding stool leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 188: Fragment of a folding stool leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

213

Fig. 189: Fragment of a model of folding stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 190: Fragment of a model of folding stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

214

Fig. 191: Square stool with flared legs  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 192: Frame of a stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

215

Fig. 193: Side of a flared-legged stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 194: Fragment of a stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

216

Fig. 195: Cylindrical fragment of the rail (of a stool or bed)  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 196: Pedestal of a canopy  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

217

Fig. 197: Two elbow braces  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 198: Elbow brace  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

218

Fig. 199: Elbow brace  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 200: Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

219

Fig. 201: Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 202: Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

220

Fig. 203: Leg in the form of a duck/goose webbed foot  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 204: Flared leg of a stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

221

Fig. 205: Flared leg of a stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 206: Flared leg of a stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

222

Fig. 207: Flared leg of a stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 208: Flared leg of a stool  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

223

Fig. 209: Fragment of a cylindrical leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 210: Model of three flared legs  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

224

Fig. 211: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 212: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

225

Fig. 213: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 214: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 215: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 216: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

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Fig. 217: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 218: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

228

Fig. 219: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 220: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

229

Fig. 221: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 222: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

230

Fig. 223: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 224: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

231

Fig. 225: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 226: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

232

Fig. 227: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 228: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

233

Fig. 229: Lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 230: Fragment of a lion leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

234

Fig. 231: Stylized leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 232: Stylized leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

235

Fig. 233: Canine leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 234: Bull leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

236

Fig. 235: Shaped leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 236: Shaped leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

237

Fig. 237: Shaped leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 238: Shaped leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

238

Fig. 239: Shaped leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 240: Shaped leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

239

Fig. 241: Shaped leg  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 242: Leg in the shape of Sa sign  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

240

Fig. 243: Leg in the shape of Sa sign  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 244: Leg in the shape of Sa sign  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

241

Fig. 245: Leg in the shape of Sa sign  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

Fig. 246: Leg in the shape of Sa sign  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

242

Fig. 247: Leg in the shape of Sa sign  The Cairo Egyptian Museum. Photo by Sameh Abdel Mohsen

243