Scribal Palette

The site of Birabi is located in the area of Hatshepsut's valley temple at the eastern end of the causeway leading to her temple at Deir el-Bahri. The valley temple and causeway had covered up earlier tombs that dated from the Middle Kingdom to the joint reign of Hatshepsut and Thutmose III in the early New Kingdom. The northern side of a large courtyard CC 41, located in front of the Middle Kingdom portico tomb CC 62, was partially cleared by Lord Carnarvon and Howard Carter (hence the designation CC). The southern half of the courtyard was in the concession of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. During the 1915-1916 field season, the museum excavated three pits and seven burials (C 1-7) in the courtyard and twelve rock-cut tombs along the courtyard's southern wall (R 1-12). This object was among the pieces given to the Museum by the Egyptian Antiquities Service when the finds were divided at the end of the season.