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Funerary Stela of Intef and Senettekh

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

On View: Old Kingdom to 18th Dynasty, Egyptian Galleries, 3rd Floor
In this stela from their tomb, Intef and his wife Senettekh are shown with an image of their pet dog under their chair. Including such an image was a more common way of memorializing the family pet than mummification.

The two of them sit before an offering table. It is piled high with (from bottom to top) beer jars, round loaves of bread, and animal products. A beef foreleg covers the bread. A bull’s head and a whole duck form the next layer. Green onions and another beef cut lie above that. A dorcas gazelle head, a lettuce leaf, another animal head, and a beef roast with a bone form the top layer. In reality, these offerings would have been mummified and placed in the tomb.
MEDIUM Limestone
  • Possible Place Collected: Qurnah, Egypt
  • DATES ca. 2065–2000 B.C.E.
    DYNASTY Dynasty 11
    PERIOD First Intermediate Period to Middle Kingdom
    DIMENSIONS 11 3/4 x 13 15/16 x 15/16 in. (29.8 x 35.4 x 2.4 cm)  (show scale)
    ACCESSION NUMBER 54.66
    CREDIT LINE Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Limestone stela of Intef, son of Senbet and his wife Senet-Tek, erected by their son Intef. The steward Imy stands opposite. Intef and his wife seated at left before table of offerings; a dog seated under the woman. Imy stands at right with long staff grasped in right hand. At top, three lines of offering formula. Names incised over each person. Raised relief. Condition: Edges chipped. Surface slightly worn in area of offerings. No trace of color.
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in Old Kingdom to 18th Dynasty, Egyptian Galleries, 3rd Floor
    CAPTION Funerary Stela of Intef and Senettekh, ca. 2065–2000 B.C.E. Limestone, 11 3/4 x 13 15/16 x 15/16 in. (29.8 x 35.4 x 2.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 54.66. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum (Gavin Ashworth,er), 54.66_Gavin_Ashworth_photograph.jpg)
    IMAGE overall, 54.66_Gavin_Ashworth_photograph.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph (Gavin Ashworth, photographer), 2012
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