Narmer Palette. The tablet is thought by some to depict the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the king Narmer. The Narmer Palette, also known as the Great Hierakonpolis Palette or the Palette of Narmer, is a significant Egyptian archeological find, dating from about the 31st century BC, belonging, at least nominally, to the category of cosmetic palettes. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. Some authors suggest that the images represent the vigor of the king as a pair of bulls. Each side is surmounted by Hathor-heads flanking a serekh containing the royal name. date of the original: c. 3rd millennium BC. Designed by the French architect Marcel Dourgnon, the building is one of the largest museums in the region. The beautifully carved palette, 63.5 cm (more than 2 feet) in height and made of smooth grayish-green siltstone, is decorated o… The Egyptian Antiquities Museum, popularly known as the Egyptian Museum or the Cairo Museum, is the second most visited attraction in Cairo, after the Pyramids.. And it is not for less since it houses the world’s most important collection of historical artifacts from Egypt. They also are the same heads as those that adorn the top of each side of the palette. Statue of Mentuhotep. Smith, W. Stevenson, and Simpson, William Kelly. It is believed that the iconography has more to do with the king as a visual metaphor of the conquering hunter delivering a mortal blow to his enemies. The Egyptian Museum Find out the ... Sarcophagus of Kawit. The side of the Narmer Palette with the two serpopards, c. 3100 BCE. [9] It has the Journal d'Entrée number JE32169 and the Catalogue Général number CG14716. Khufu Statue. One view is that the Palette is a record of real events and another belief that it is an object designed to establish the mythology of united rule over Upper and Lower Egypt by the king. The Narmer Palette, also known as the Great Hierakonpolis Palette or the Palette of Narmer, is a significant Egyptian archeological find, dating from about the 31st century BC, belonging, at least nominally, to the category of cosmetic palettes. Narmer Palette Narmer Palette. Some experts believe: “the chief purpose of the piece ………. The circle formed by their curving necks is the central part of the Palette, which is the area where the cosmetics would have been ground. Neither of these pieces, though, show the details of the well-preserved “Narmer Palette,” which is now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. Discovered among a group of sacred implements ritually buried in a deposit within an early temple of the falcon god Horus at the site of Hierakonpolis (the capital of Egypt during the pre-dynastic period), this large ceremonial object is one of the most important artifacts from the dawn of Egyptian civilization. Before this man are four standard bearers, holding aloft an animal skin, a dog, and two falcons. Immediately in front of the pharaoh is a long-haired man, accompanied by a pair of hieroglyphs that have been interpreted as his name: Tshet (this assumes that these symbols had the same phonetic value used in later hieroglyphic writing). It contains some of the earliest hieroglyphic inscriptions ever found. The most famous examples were excavated at the site of Hierakonpolis in southern Egypt and include the Narmer Palette (now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo) and this example, the Two Dog Palette. [15] Both conventions remained in use until at least the conquest by Alexander the Great some 3,000 years later. The Narmer Palette is part of the permanent collection of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. The Narmer Palette is a significant Egyptian archaeological find, dating from about the 31st century BC. At the top of both sides are the central serekhs bearing the rebus symbols n'r (catfish) and mr (chisel) inside, being the phonetic representation of Narmer's name. The Museum of Egyptian antiquities in Cairo Egypt. The first palettes were usually plain and rectangular, without decoration. [9] [7] It has the Journal d'Entrée number JE32169 and the Catalogue Général number CG14716. Plaster replica (two-thirds original size); schist original. The decoration commemorates the victories of Narmer. The exact place and circumstances of these finds were not recorded very clearly by Quibell and Green. [7] Nekhen, or Hierakonpolis, was one of four power centers in Upper Egypt that preceded the consolidation of Upper Egypt at the end of the Naqada III period. On the left of the king is a man bearing the king's sandals, flanked by a rosette symbol. The serpopard is a mythological creature whose name is a portmanteau of the words "serpent" and "leopard" (although the spotless beast with tufted tail more closely resembles a lioness). [2], The Palette, which has survived five millennia in almost perfect condition, was discovered by British archeologists James E. Quibell and Frederick W. Green, in what they called the Main Deposit in the Temple of Horus at Nekhen, during the dig season of 1897–98. [9] It is one of the initial exhibits which visitors have been able to see when entering the museum. Visitor Tips. Palette of King Narmer. ... 1 Meret Basha - Tahrir Square - Cairo … Download this stock image: Egypt, Cairo, Egypt of the Pharaohs, Egyptian Museum, Narmer Palette commemorates victories - A7X7GR from Alamy's library of millions of high resolution stock photos, illustrations and vectors. [22] John Baines has suggested that the events portrayed are "tokens of royal achievement" from the past and that "the chief purpose of the piece is not to record an event but to assert that the king dominates the ordered world in the name of the gods and has defeated internal, and especially external, forces of disorder".[23]. The Palette has raised considerable debate, with two camps of view. On both sides of the Palette, the scenes are different in detail but they agree to commemorate the victory of the king over his enemies. The Palette shows many of the classic conventions of Ancient Egyptian art, which must already have been formalized by the time of the Palette's creation. Museum Floor Maps. The Palette shows many of the ancient conventions of Ancient Egyptian art, which means that this art form must already have been formalized by the time of the Palette’s creation. It was found in a deposit in Hierakonpolis, a Predynastic capital located in the South of Egypt, during the excavation season of 1897/98. It contains some of the earliest hieroglyphic inscriptions ever found. The Palette, which has survived five millennia in remarkably good condition, was discovered by British archaeologists during 1897–98. To Narmer is attributed a slate palette of green schist, displayed at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. [18] This posture of a bovine has the meaning of "force" in later hieroglyphics. King Narmer had his tomb at Abydos. Palette of King Narmer, from Hierakonpolis, Egypt, Predynastic, c. 3000-2920 B.C.E., slate, 2′ 1″ high (Egyptian Museum, Cairo) Vitally important, but difficult to interpret Some artifacts are of such vital importance to our understanding of ancient cultures that they are truly unique and utterly irreplaceable. [11] It has the Journal d'Entrée number JE32169 and the Catalogue Général number CG14716. One theory is that it was used to grind cosmetics to adorn the statues of the deities.[10]. ROOM 48 – EARLY DYNASTIC PERIOD. Reverse: Narmer, wearing the white-crown, followed by a sandal-bearer, … The Narmer Palette was a votive object, made explicitly for ritual used in a temple. El Cairo. The Egyptian Museum is the oldest archaeological museum in the Middle East, and houses the largest collection of Pharaonic antiquities in the world. National Museum of African American History and Culture, J.F.Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, National Roman Legion Museum & Caerleon Fortress & Baths, Musée National du Moyen Age – National Museum of the Middle Ages, Akrotiri Archaeological Site – Santorini – Thera, Museum of the History of the Olympic Games, Alte Nationalgalerie – National Gallery, Berlin, Deutsches Historisches Museum – German Historical Museum, Österreichische Galerie Belvedere – Virtual Tour, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía- Virtual Tour, Nationalmuseum – National Museum of Fine Arts, Stockholm, National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Jewish Museum of Australia – Virtual Tour, National Portrait Gallery, Canberra, Australia, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes (Buenos Aires), Most Popular Museums, Art and Historical Sites, Museum Masterpieces and Historical Objects, Popular Museums, Art and Historical Sites, A house altar showing Akhenaten and Nefertiti with their children, Quartzite Head of the Egyptian Pharaoh Amenhotep III, Pillar of Ramsesemperre, Royal Cupbearer and Fanbearer, Relief of Hormin with a Weighing of the Heart, Stela of Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and Family, Book of the Dead – Papyrus of Ani and Hunefe, Title:                          Narmer Palette or Great Hierakonpolis Palette, Year:                          31st century BC (circa), Dimensions:              c. 64 cm x 42 cm. Both are unlike the finely grained, hard, flake-resistant siltstone, whose source is from a well-attested quarry that has been used since pre-dynastic times at Wadi Hammamat. They are either running or are meant to be seen as sprawling dead upon the ground. Statue of Hetepdief. One theory is that it was used to grind cosmetics to adorn the statues of the gods. To the right of the king is a kneeling prisoner, who is about to be struck by the king. The stone has often been wrongly identified, in the past, as being slate or schist. In Ubisoft's 2017 release of Assassins Creed: Origins, the Palette is a quest item and minor plot point toward the end of the main quests storyline. [21] More recently, scholars such as Nicholas Millet have argued that the Palette does not represent a historical event (such as the unification of Egypt), but instead represents the events of the year in which the object was dedicated to the temple. Behind him is his sandal-bearer, whose name may be represented by the rosette appearing adjacent to his head, and a second rectangular symbol that has no clear interpretation, but which has been suggested may represent a town or citadel.[16]. Siltstone was first utilized for cosmetic palettes by the Neolithic Upper Egypt culture during the Predynastic Era. Along with the Scorpion Macehead and the Narmer Maceheads, also found together in the Main Deposit at Nekhen, the Narmer Palette provides one of the earliest known depictions of an Egyptian king. The Australian author Jackie French used the Palette, and recent research into Sumerian trade routes, to create her historical novel Pharaoh (2007). On the first register on both sides, we Find the Name of Narmer(Nc… Getting to the museum. The Narmer Palette (Egyptian Museum of Antiquities, Cairo) Due to its age, its complex and ambiguous iconography, the Narmer Palette stands out as the most famous and most discussed early Egyptian artifact. Attached to the belt are four beaded tassels, each capped with an ornament in the shape of the head of the goddess Hathor. Slate is layered and prone to flaking, and schist is a metamorphic rock containing large, randomly distributed mineral grains. Discover. Many of the palettes were found at Hierakonpolis, a center of power in pre-dynastic Upper Egypt. (Egyptian Museum, Cairo) The Ancient Egyptians since the New kingdom recorded on their monuments the name Mena as their first King. As on the other side, two human-faced bovine heads, thought to represent the patron cow goddess Bat, flank the serekhs. Palette of King Narmer, from Hierakonpolis, Egypt, Predynastic, c. 3000-2920 B.C.E., slate, 2' 1" high (Egyptian Museum, Cairo) The object itself is a monumental version of a type of daily use item commonly found in the predynastic period—palettes were generally flat, minimally decorated stone objects used for grinding and mixing minerals for cosmetics. The Narmer Palette is a 63-centimetre-tall (2.07 ft), shield-shaped, ceremonial palette, carved from a single piece of flat, soft dark gray-green siltstone. [12] The serekh on each side are flanked by a pair of bovine heads with highly curved horns, thought to represent the cow goddess Bat. Palettes were typically used for grinding cosmetics, but this palette is too large and heavy (and elaborate) to have been created for personal use and was probably a ritual or votive object, specifically made for donation to, or use in, a temple. Narmer Palette at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Visit Our Services. The Palette has raised considerable scholarly debate over the years. Whitney Davis has suggested that the iconography on this and other pre-dynastic palettes has more to do with establishing the king as a visual metaphor of the conquering hunter, caught in the moment of delivering a mortal blow to his enemies. The original executed in greywacke or schist was discovered by Quibell in 1894 in Kom el-Ahmar (Hierakonpolis). The palette presents a complex scene of domination in which King Narmer is pictured on both sides of the palette in various forms. Hathor, who shared many of Bat's characteristics, is often depicted in a similar manner. [19] In general, the arguments fall into one of two camps: scholars who believe that the Palette is a record of an important event, and other academics who argue that it is an object designed to establish the mythology of united rule over Upper and Lower Egypt by the king. [13], Both sides of the Palette are decorated, carved in raised relief. Kinnaer, Jacques. On one side, the king is depicted with the bulbed White Crown of Upper (southern) Egypt, and the other side depicts the king wearing the level Red Crown of Lower (northern) Egypt.