Fragment of a Stela of Neferhotep
New Kingdom, mid-Dynasty 19, about 1240-1195 BCE
Medium
Limestone and pigment
Dimensions
38.5 × 23.8 × 5.8 cm (15 × 9 3/8 × 2 3/8 in.)
Classification
Stelae
Department
Arts of Africa
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
12985
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
The hieroglyphs at the top of this stela (commemorative stone) fragment help identify the man depicted as Neferhotep, a foreman of the workers who built and decorated the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings at Thebes. Neferhotep, who is finely dressed in pleated white garments, raises his hands before him in a gesture of adoration toward the deity, who would have been depicted in the upper portion of the stone. Stelae such as this one allowed nonroyal Egyptians to demonstrate their devotion t...
About the Artist
Ancient Egyptian
Ancient Egyptian artists, a collective of highly skilled artisans spanning over three millennia from the Predynastic period (c. 6000–3150 BC) to the Roman era (30 BC–4th century AD), produced some of humanity's most enduring masterpieces. These anonymous craftsmen, often organized in state-sponsored workshops, lived in dedicated communities like Deir el-Medina near Luxor during the New Kingdom (c....