Ceiling Painting from the Tomb Chapel of Senenmut
During the 1922–1923 excavation season, members of the Museum's Egyptian Expedition began work in the tomb chapel of Senenmut, one of Hatshepsut's best-known officials. The chapel had been carved into a layer of very poor quality limestone on the northeast slope of Sheikh Abd el-Qurna hill in Western Thebes and portions of the ceiling had caved in, including thick layers of painted plaster.
Senenmut's offering chapel consisted of two rooms forming a T. The chapel faces almost due east and the entrance leads into a broad, transverse hall extending to the right and left (north/south). The long axial hall extends straight ahead (west). The ceilings of these two rooms were painted with a variety of geometric patterns and bands of text recording offering prayers and the name and titles of Senenmut. At the end of the excavation season, the Museum was awarded several pieces of the painted ceiling plaster. This fragment came from the axial hall (the second room.
Senenmut's offering chapel consisted of two rooms forming a T. The chapel faces almost due east and the entrance leads into a broad, transverse hall extending to the right and left (north/south). The long axial hall extends straight ahead (west). The ceilings of these two rooms were painted with a variety of geometric patterns and bands of text recording offering prayers and the name and titles of Senenmut. At the end of the excavation season, the Museum was awarded several pieces of the painted ceiling plaster. This fragment came from the axial hall (the second room.
Artwork Details
- Title: Ceiling Painting from the Tomb Chapel of Senenmut
- Period: New Kingdom
- Dynasty: Dynasty 18
- Reign: Joint reign of Hatshepsut and Thutmose III
- Date: ca. 1479–1458 B.C.
- Geography: From Egypt, Upper Egypt, Thebes, Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, Tomb of Senenmut (TT 71), Ceiling of passage, MMA excavations, 1923
- Medium: Mud plaster, paint
- Dimensions: H. 76 (29 15/16 in.); W. 78.5 (30 7/8 in.); Th. 6.4 cm (2 1/2 in.); Weight 41 kg (90.4 lbs.)
- Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1923
- Object Number: 23.3.462
- Curatorial Department: Egyptian Art
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