Harvard Art Museums> 1993.222: Tomb Relief of the Official Ptahshepses, Also Called Impy Sculpture Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Tomb Relief of the Official Ptahshepses, Also Called Impy , 1993.222,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Mar 23, 2023, https://hvrd.art/o/303779. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Gallery Text This relief probably formed a door lintel of the mastaba, or tomb chapel, of the palace superintendent Ptahshepses in the great necropolis of Saqqara in Lower Egypt. Ptahshepses, who was also called Impy, is depicted on either side of an offering formula written in hieroglyphs. In both representations he holds a staff and a scepter. On the right, he is shown with a wig and a youthfully slim waistline; on the left, he appears with short-cropped hair, a longer kilt, and a more pronounced belly, indicating his advanced age. His wife and oldest son, Impy II, are behind him on the right, and his three daughters behind him on the left. The technique of sunk relief, in which the figures are carved into a level background (rather than the background being cut away, as in raised relief), was common on the exterior of Egyptian buildings, where its effect was enhanced by sunlight. Identification and Creation Object Number 1993.222 Title Tomb Relief of the Official Ptahshepses, Also Called Impy Other Titles Alternate Title: Sunk Relief, inscribed for Ptahshepses, called Impy, Superintendent of the palace and his family Classification Sculpture Work Type sculpture Date 2323-2150 BCE Places Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Africa, Egypt (Ancient) Period Old Kingdom, Dynasty 6 Culture Egyptian Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/303779 Location Location Level 3, Room 3740, Ancient Mediterranean and Middle Eastern Art, Ancient Egypt: Art for Eternity View this object's location on our interactive map Physical Descriptions Medium Limestone Technique Carved Dimensions 32.4 cm h x 94 cm w x 7 cm d (12 3/4 x 37 x 2 3/4 in.) Provenance Recorded Ownership History Charles Dikran Kelekian, New York, NY, (1951-1982), by inheritance; to Nanette Rodney Kelekian, New York, NY, (1982-1993), gift; to the Harvard University Art Museums, 1993. Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Nanette Rodney Kelekian in memory of George and Ilse Hanfmann Accession Year 1993 Object Number 1993.222 Division Asian and Mediterranean Art Contact am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Descriptions Description Egyptian official Ptahshepses, also called Impy, is depicted twice flanking an offering formula written in hieroglyphs on this limestone funerary relief: at left striding, with his three daughters, Kerfet, Ity and Khuit, “whom he loves,” as the inscription above them attests, standing behind him; at right he appears with his wife Hatkau and his eldest son Impy II. In both instances he wears a short kilt and holds a staff and scepter, though he is shown with two different headdresses. Publication History James Cuno, Alvin L. Clark, Jr., Ivan Gaskell, and William W. Robinson, Harvard's Art Museums: 100 Years of Collecting, ed. James Cuno, Harvard University Art Museums and Harry N. Abrams, Inc. (Cambridge, MA, 1996), p. 94-95, ill.. Masterpieces of world art : Fogg Art Museum, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Busch-Reisinger Museum, 1997 James Cuno, ed., A Decade of Collecting: Recent Acquisitions by the Harvard University Art Museums, Harvard University Art Museums (Cambridge, Mass., Spring 2000), p. 21 Jennifer Thum, Learning from the Lintel of Ptahshepses Impy at the Harvard Art Museums, In the House of Heqanakht: Text and Context in Ancient Egypt. Studies Presented in Honor of James P. Allen, ed. M. Victoria Almansa-Villatoro, Silvia Štubňová Nigrelli, and Mark Lehner, Brill Academic Publishers (Leiden) (Leiden, 2022), 152-170, figs. 11.1-11.5 Exhibition History Re-View: S422 Ancient & Byzantine Art & Numismatics, Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 04/12/2008 - 06/18/2011 32Q: 3740 Egyptian, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050 Related Articles Art Talk: How Egyptian Art Works Collections, People, Programs April 14, 2020 Verification Level This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
