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Relief of Mourners Before a Tomb

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

On View: Funerary Gallery 2, Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Gallery, 3rd Floor
Members of the wealthier ranks hired professional mourners for their funeral rituals. These could include both women and men. In addition to performing stylized motions, they may have also sung or made other sounds during the funeral. The mourners in this relief are in the courtyard in front of a tomb entrance, represented on the right. This relief comes from a tomb, where it guaranteed perpetual mourning for the deceased.
MEDIUM Limestone
  • Reportedly From: Saqqara, Egypt
  • DATES ca. 1295-1190 B.C.E.
    DYNASTY Dynasty 19
    PERIOD New Kingdom
    DIMENSIONS 16 9/16 x 12 3/16 x 2 3/8 in. (42 x 31 x 6 cm)  (show scale)
    ACCESSION NUMBER 37.1504E
    CREDIT LINE Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Limestone slab, rectangular in shape, decorated with a sunk relief representation of three women mourning before a tomb. Only one of the women is completely preserved. Condition: Left hand edge and upper right edge much chipped; other small chips. Paint missing; surface rubbed.
    CAPTION Relief of Mourners Before a Tomb, ca. 1295-1190 B.C.E. Limestone, 16 9/16 x 12 3/16 x 2 3/8 in. (42 x 31 x 6 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.1504E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.1504E_PS2.jpg)
    IMAGE overall, 37.1504E_PS2.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2006
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    RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY
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