Lady Tjepu

About this Brooklyn Icon

The Brooklyn Museum is commemorating its 200th anniversary by spotlighting 200 standout objects in its encyclopedic collection.

This brightly painted woman is named Tjepu. Capturing her as an idealized youth, the well-preserved and colorful fragment exemplifies the artist’s exquisite skills.

Tjepu, who held the title of Lady of the House, was the mother of a man called Nebamun. Nebamun was a sculptor, and he and another sculptor named Ipuky owned the famous tomb that once held this relief. Tjepu’s image was painted on white plaster that was applied to the tomb’s limestone walls.

Tjepu wears the typical fashion of elite women during the mid-Eighteenth Dynasty, including a sheer white dress, bracelets, armlets, necklaces, and a headpiece, crowned with a perfumed cone. She holds up one hand in adoration. In her other hand, she grasps a yellow menat, an amulet necklace that includes a counterpoise, a counterweight used to balance heavy collars. Menats were related to the goddess Hathor and were shaken to please the deity.

The full scene originally depicted Tjepu standing with Nebamun, who poured oil over food offerings for the gods. The pattern of stars above Tjepu’s hand was part of an inscription that praised many deities. With all these elements, the fragment reflects the height of artistic expression during this period.