Model Paddling Boat

Middle Kingdom
ca. 1981–1975 B.C.
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 105
The green color of the hull of this boat, its vertical prow, backward-curving stern and double steering oars imitate elements of vessels made from papyrus stalks. Even the lashings of the leather sheaths that covered prow and stern of such boats are rendered. Boats of this particular type appear in representations of the "pilgrimage to Abydos" that was part of the Egyptian funerary ritual from the Middle Kingdom onwards. The ritual character of this boat trip is clearly demonstrated by the fact that not the living Meketre but a statue sits under the baldaquin accompanied by a companion (possibly his son) and a large libation vessel. The basic idea of a trip to the major cult center of the god Osiris at Abydos, where the god's death and resurrection were celebrated, is however maintained by the presence of two boats: this one that is being paddled northward from Thebes to Abydos against the prevailing wind by sixteen men whose varied sizes and arm positions create an impression of movement along the line, and another that is just setting out on the return trip under sail.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Model Paddling Boat
  • Period: Middle Kingdom
  • Dynasty: Dynasty 12
  • Reign: reign of Amenemhat I, early
  • Date: ca. 1981–1975 B.C.
  • Geography: From Egypt, Upper Egypt, Thebes, Southern Asasif, Tomb of Meketre (TT 280, MMA 1101), MMA excavations, 1920
  • Medium: Wood, paint, plaster, linen twine, linen fabric
  • Dimensions: L. 132.5 cm (52 3/16 in.), with rudder 138.5 (54 1/2 in.); H. 53 cm (20 7/8 in.); W. 38 cm (14 15/16 in.)
  • Credit Line: Rogers Fund and Edward S. Harkness Gift, 1920
  • Object Number: 20.3.5
  • Curatorial Department: Egyptian Art

Audio

Cover Image for 3295. Funerary Boat being Rowed, Part 1

3295. Funerary Boat being Rowed, Part 1

Gallery 105

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In addition to carving scenes in reliefs on the walls of important tombs, Egyptians of the late Old Kingdom and early Middle Kingdom began to leave groups of miniature sculptures, or models, with the deceased. Such groups usually included one or more boats. The models in this gallery, all from the tomb of Meketre at Thebes, are by far the most artistic of any ever found.

The two green-hulled boats you see here imitate ancient funerary boats, made from papyrus stalks, with two rudders for steering. It’s possible that these boats carry Meketre on the ritual voyage to Abydos, a city sacred to the god Osiris, lord of the afterworld. Or he could be on his way to the next world. The makers of these funerary objects often left deliberately vague the distinction between this world and the next. Look at the boat on the right. That’s Meketre seated under the canopy. But here, it’s a statue of Meketre who’s depicted, not the living man. A group of priests huddle in front of him, performing a ritual called the "Opening of the Mouth," allowing his spirit, residing in the statue, to speak and breathe.

Meketre would have had a variety of needs in the afterlife, and the other boats in this case provided for some of them. To the right, there’s a kitchen boat, where servants bake bread. In the boat at the far right, you can see Meketre relaxing as he listens to a singer and harper. At the far left of the case is a sporting boat designed for spearing fish and netting wildfowl in the marshes. An enormous fish lying on the deck has the point of a harpoon still fixed in its side.

All of the models in this room were found in 1920 by Herbert E. Winlock, leader of the Museum’s Egyptian Expedition. When the finds from the tomb were divided, half of the models went to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, and half came to New York. To hear what Winlock wrote about the discovery, press the green play button.

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