Stela

Museum number:
6-19825
Permalink:
ark:/21549/hm21060019825
Alternate number:
TM No C 1201 (original number)
Accession number:
Acc.195 and Acc.54/56/63/107
Description:
Slab stela of Prince Wepemnofret. Limestone, pigment: Giza, Western Cemetery, tomb G1201; Old Kingdom, Dynasty 4 (ca. 2589-2566 BCE) This carved stone relief depicts the King's son Wep-em-nofret seated at an offering table.
Donor:
George Andrew Reisner and Phoebe Apperson Hearst
Collection place:
Tomb 1201 (201), Cemetery 1200, Giza Necropolis
Verbatim coll. place:
[Giza, G 1201 set into the E face of mastaba, then walled over]
Culture or time period:
4th Dynasty of Egypt (2613–2494 BC)
Collector:
George Andrew Reisner
Collection date:
1903-1904
Materials:
Limestone, Paint (coating), and Pigment
Person depicted:
Wepemnofret
Object type:
archaeology
Object class:
Stelae
Accession date:
1906
Department:
Ancient Egypt
Dimensions:
width 7.5 centimeters, height 45.5 centimeters, and length 66 centimeters
Comment:
Stele of Prince Wepemnofret (aka Wepi, Wepe, Wepy). His elite status is demonstrated by his extensive titularly, dress (valanced wig, "noble" beard, and leopard-skin wrap), and use of a stool made of costly wood. The text on the stela contains his numerous titles, a list of the provisions thought essential for his afterlife existence (including incense, eye paint oils, wine, and foodstuffs), and a list of the linen that may have been included in his burial. Slab stela some exclusively from Giza, where they were installed in the western facades of mastaba tombs located in elite cemeteries immediately west of the Great Pyramid. Their markedly uniform style and decorative scheme suggest they were products of (at most) two generations of artists. The high quality of their executions indicates that they were royal gifts to a select group of royal relatives and officers. Of the only fifteen examples (four in the Hearst Museum) known to have survived, that of Wep-em-nofret stands out as one the largest, the best preserved, most complex, and earliest examples. A mortuary chapel was built against the eastern facade of Wep-em-nofret's mastaba, protecting the stela in antiquity and resulting in its exceptional preservation. Since excavation, soluble salts have posed the greatest risk to the continued preservation of the paint When the humidity around they sculpture dropsm salt migrate to the surface of the stone and crystalize, right at the interface between paint and stone. The physical action of salt crystalization forces the paint off the surface. In 1940 the stela was placed in a special climate-controlled case to control salt activity. This remains the primary means of protection, although the case design has changed at least three times. Long-term storage in a special case also resulted in minimal handling of the stela, a secondary protective measure. The first documented treatment to secure the paint to the stone was undertaken in 1962 by a conservator at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, who applied a very dilute resin that is still in use today. That treatment has not had to be undone, and has only been supplemented over the years by additional localized paint consolidation. Slab stela of Wepemnofret, painted low relief. Wepemnofret sits on a stool with bovine legs in front of an offering table with bread loaves. He wears a shoulder length wig, mustache, squared beard, long leopard pelt and bracelets. The two right-most columns and topmost row of hieroglyphs face the same way as him and contain his titles. The signs directly above him spell out his name (wpmnfrt). The rows of hieroglyphs under the three falcons on standards are his linen list. The remaining columns of hieroglyphs which face him list his other offerings.
Loans:
S1969-1970 #102: University Art Museum (UC Berkeley)/Peter Selz (March 30, 1970–April 2, 1970), S1970-1971 #21: University Art Museum (UC Berkeley) (October 12, 1970–January 20, 1971), S1975-1976 #1: M. H. de Young Memorial Museum (July 8, 1975–November 11, 1975), S1975-1976 #56: University Art Museum (UC Berkeley) (February 17, 1976–February 9, 1979), and S1998-1999 #8: Reunion des Musees Nationaux (March 22, 1999–May 26, 2000)
Images:
Hearst Museum object 1 of 5 titled Stela, accession number 6-19825, described as Slab stela of Prince Wepemnofret. Limestone, pigment: Giza, Western Cemetery, tomb G1201; Old Kingdom, Dynasty 4 (ca. 2589-2566 BCE) This carved stone relief depicts the King's son Wep-em-nofret seated at an offering table.Hearst Museum object 2 of 5 titled Stela, accession number 6-19825, described as Slab stela of Prince Wepemnofret. Limestone, pigment: Giza, Western Cemetery, tomb G1201; Old Kingdom, Dynasty 4 (ca. 2589-2566 BCE) This carved stone relief depicts the King's son Wep-em-nofret seated at an offering table.Hearst Museum object 3 of 5 titled Stela, accession number 6-19825, described as Slab stela of Prince Wepemnofret. Limestone, pigment: Giza, Western Cemetery, tomb G1201; Old Kingdom, Dynasty 4 (ca. 2589-2566 BCE) This carved stone relief depicts the King's son Wep-em-nofret seated at an offering table.Hearst Museum object 4 of 5 titled Stela, accession number 6-19825, described as Slab stela of Prince Wepemnofret. Limestone, pigment: Giza, Western Cemetery, tomb G1201; Old Kingdom, Dynasty 4 (ca. 2589-2566 BCE) This carved stone relief depicts the King's son Wep-em-nofret seated at an offering table.Hearst Museum object 5 of 5 titled Stela, accession number 6-19825, described as Slab stela of Prince Wepemnofret. Limestone, pigment: Giza, Western Cemetery, tomb G1201; Old Kingdom, Dynasty 4 (ca. 2589-2566 BCE) This carved stone relief depicts the King's son Wep-em-nofret seated at an offering table.
Legacy documentation:
Documentation associated with Hearst Museum object titled Stela, accession number 6-19825, described as Slab stela of Prince Wepemnofret. Limestone, pigment: Giza, Western Cemetery, tomb G1201; Old Kingdom, Dynasty 4 (ca. 2589-2566 BCE) This carved stone relief depicts the King's son Wep-em-nofret seated at an offering table.

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