Seated Statuette of Sekhemka

This diorite statue was possibly a reused royal statue, which was provided with a limestone base painted to imitate the more expensive diorite. It also combines the base with an offering table.

The statue was repaired in antiquity, a fact deduced from the round hole (visible in the break), which was made with an ancient drill. Since this type of stone and this seated pose were nearly always limited to royal statues in the Fifth Dynasty, it is likely that Sekhemka repaired a broken and discarded royal statue. The beautifully carved limestone base illustrates the offerings, such as bread, beer, cattle, and fowl, that Sekhemka hoped for in the afterlife.