Scene of Metal Workers, Tomb of Rekhmire

Art Historical Context

Step into the bustling workshops of ancient Egypt with *Scene of Metal Workers* from the Tomb of Rekhmire, a vivid facsimile capturing the artistry of the New Kingdom's 18th Dynasty (ca. 1504–1425 B.C.). This detailed scene, originally painted on the walls of Theban Tomb 100, depicts skilled artisans hammering, casting, and polishing metal—likely bronze tools and vessels—highlighting the sophisticated craftsmanship that powered Egypt's golden age under pharaohs like Thutmose III. Rekhmire, the tomb's owner and a powerful vizier, showcased such everyday labors to affirm his role in overseeing the state's workshops, blending propaganda with a celebration of labor. Rendered in tempera on paper at a precise 1:1 scale (57.5 x 54 cm), this facsimile was meticulously copied by Nina de Garis Davies, a pioneering 20th-century artist renowned for her faithful reproductions of fragile Egyptian tomb paintings. Acquired by The Metropolitan Museum of Art through the Rogers Fund in 1931, it preserves the original's vibrant colors and dynamic compositions, which used a distinctive "continuous frieze" style to narrate activities in rhythmic rows. These tomb scenes offer a rare window into ancient Egyptian society, revealing not just technical prowess but cultural values like hierarchy and divine order. Marvel at how metalworking fueled monumental architecture, from temple doors to royal weapons, echoing the ingenuity of a civilization that equated skilled hands with cosmic harmony.

About the Artist

Nina de Garis Davies · 1881–1965

Nina de Garis Davies, born Anna Macpherson Cummings on January 6, 1881, in Salonika, Greece, to English-Scottish parents Cecil J. Cummings and Sarah Macintosh Tannoch, showed early artistic talent as the eldest of three daughters. After her father's death in 1894, the family relocated to Scotland and then London, where she trained at the Slade School of Art. In 1906, at age 25, a holiday trip to E...