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Artist's Gridded Sketch of Senenmut

New Kingdom
ca. 1479–1458 B.C.
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 116
This gridded sketch of a man wearing a short wig undoubtedly depicts Senenmut, one of Hatshepsut's most valued officials. His appointment to a large number of important offices, such as steward of the god Amun at Karnak, enabled him to afford the excavation of an elaborate funerary complex consisting of an offering chapel (TT 71) and a tomb (TT 353) not far from Hatshepsut's temple at Deir el-Bahri in western Thebes. He also created a tomb for his mother, Hatnefer (36.3.1), and other family members on the hillside below.

This limestone chip, called an ostracon, was found in debris on the hillside just below Senenmut's offering chapel on Sheikh abd el-Qurna hill. The profile is quite similar to a drawing in Senenmut's tomb at Deir el-Bahri (fig. 1). It also resembles drawings on another ostracon in the Museum's collection (31.4.2).

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Artist's Gridded Sketch of Senenmut
  • Period: New Kingdom
  • Dynasty: Dynasty 18
  • Reign: Joint reign of Hatshepsut and Thutmose III
  • Date: ca. 1479–1458 B.C.
  • Geography: From Egypt, Upper Egypt, Thebes, Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, Radim below entrance,Tomb of Senenmut (TT 71), MMA excavations, 1935–36
  • Medium: Limestone, ink
  • Dimensions: h. 22.5 cm (8 7/8 in); w. 18 cm (7 1/16 in); th. 3.3 cm (1 3/8 in)
  • Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1936
  • Object Number: 36.3.252
  • Curatorial Department: Egyptian Art

More Artwork

More Artwork
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Relief Fragment Depicting a Kneeling Woman, Limestone, paint
Relief Fragment Depicting a Kneeling Woman
ca. 1479–1458 B.C.
Statue of Senenmut Holding a Sistrum, Porphyritic diorite
Statue of Senenmut Holding a Sistrum
ca. 1479–1458 B.C.
Artist's Sketches of Senenmut, Sketch of Small Rodent on Opposite Side, Limestone, ink
Artist's Sketches of Senenmut, Sketch of Small Rodent on Opposite Side
ca. 1479–1458 B.C.
Ostracon with Pharaoh Spearing a Lion and a Royal Hymn on its Back, Limestone, ink
Ostracon with Pharaoh Spearing a Lion and a Royal Hymn on its Back
ca. 1186–1070 B.C.
Shabti box and shabtis of members of the Sennedjem family, Painted wood, limestone, and ink
Shabti box and shabtis of members of the Sennedjem family
ca. 1279–1213 B.C.

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