Relief with Crocodile and Fish

This object is not part of The Met collection. It was in the Museum for a special exhibition and has been returned to the lender.

Crocodiles, abundant in ancient Egypt, were depicted in a variety of guises: as deities combining human and animal aspects and as magical, protective creatures whose threatening nature was controlled. The crocodile on this relief fragment, probably from the decoration of an elite tomb, represents a potentially dangerous animal in its native, marshy environment. Lurking beneath a papyrus boat, it has just caught a walking catfish between its sharp, protruding teeth. The main scene above likely depicted an elite family hunting fish or fowl, leisure activities that were also symbolically connected to fertility and the maintenance of order.