Relief fragment with a khekher frieze

Middle Kingdom

ca. 2010–2000 B.C. or ca. 2000–1981 B.C.

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 107

The top border of relief and painting scenes in Egyptian tombs (and temples) was customarily delineated with a design known as a khekher frieze. This consists, as illustrated here, of a horizontal band of colored squares and rectangles topped by stylized representations of knotted fringes, which echo textile hangings or reed mats that might have adorned the walls of houses. (See also 12.180.248.)

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

References

Title: Relief fragment with a khekher frieze
Period: Middle Kingdom
Dynasty: Dynasty 11
Reign: late reign of Mentuhotep II or later
Date: ca. 2010–2000 B.C. or ca. 2000–1981 B.C.
Geography: From Egypt, Upper Egypt, Thebes, Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, Tomb of Dagi (TT 103, MMA 807), MMA excavations, 1911–12
Medium: Limestone, paint
Dimensions: L. 52 × H. 30 cm (20 1/2 × 11 13/16 in.)
Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1912
Object Number: 12.180.247
Curatorial Department: Egyptian Art

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