Fragment of Stela depicting a figure labeled 'excellent spirit of Re' facing Ramesses I and Ahmose-Nefertari beneath the barque of Re
Although sadly worn, this stela represents an important aspect of private religion, the worship of ancestors entitled 'excellent spirit of Re"' best known from the site of Deir-el-Medina.
In the gabled top of the stela appears the crouching god Re in his solar barque, a baboon in front of him raising its arms in adoration. Directly below in the main field of the stela stands a deceased king in nemes and elaborate feather/horns/disk crown labled with the prenomen of Ramesses I; behind the king stood the figure of the deified queen Ahmose-Nefertari. Across from this deified royalty may be seen the upraised adoring hand of another figure who is labeled 'excellent spirit of Re.'
The excellent spirits of Re were apparently recently deceased ancestors to whom individuals might appeal for assistance or benefits. In this case the donor of the stela has represented the excellent spirit as intermediary to the deified King Ramesses I and Queen Ahmose-Nefertari. The latter was one of the great queens of the very earliest 18th dynasty; the former was one of the earliest kings of the Ramesside dynasty. In general, it is thought that the donors of such stela chose to represent and appeal to past royalty whom they 'knew' in some way. Ahmose-Nefertari had established cults in several areas in Thebes, particularly in Deir el Medina and was frequently pictured; other kings might be known and felt potentially accessible because their statues were carried in the Festival of the Valley, because the donors had worked on or served at the temples or chapels to these kings on the West Bank at Thebes, or in some cases because the donor had some sense of their historical importance.
In the gabled top of the stela appears the crouching god Re in his solar barque, a baboon in front of him raising its arms in adoration. Directly below in the main field of the stela stands a deceased king in nemes and elaborate feather/horns/disk crown labled with the prenomen of Ramesses I; behind the king stood the figure of the deified queen Ahmose-Nefertari. Across from this deified royalty may be seen the upraised adoring hand of another figure who is labeled 'excellent spirit of Re.'
The excellent spirits of Re were apparently recently deceased ancestors to whom individuals might appeal for assistance or benefits. In this case the donor of the stela has represented the excellent spirit as intermediary to the deified King Ramesses I and Queen Ahmose-Nefertari. The latter was one of the great queens of the very earliest 18th dynasty; the former was one of the earliest kings of the Ramesside dynasty. In general, it is thought that the donors of such stela chose to represent and appeal to past royalty whom they 'knew' in some way. Ahmose-Nefertari had established cults in several areas in Thebes, particularly in Deir el Medina and was frequently pictured; other kings might be known and felt potentially accessible because their statues were carried in the Festival of the Valley, because the donors had worked on or served at the temples or chapels to these kings on the West Bank at Thebes, or in some cases because the donor had some sense of their historical importance.
Artwork Details
- Title: Fragment of Stela depicting a figure labeled 'excellent spirit of Re' facing Ramesses I and Ahmose-Nefertari beneath the barque of Re
- Period: New Kingdom, Ramesside
- Dynasty: Dynasty 19–20
- Date: ca. 1295–1070 B.C.
- Geography: From Egypt
- Medium: limestone
- Dimensions: H. 30.5cm (12 in.); W. 15.2 cm (6 in.)
- Credit Line: Museum Accession
- Object Number: X.637
- Curatorial Department: Egyptian Art
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