ClassificationsAncient Egyptian Art

Ring with Name of Thutmose III

Place CreatedEgypt, Africa

CultureEgyptian

PeriodNew Kingdom

Date1479-1077 BCE

MediumFaience, copper alloy

Credit LineGift of the Michael C. Carlos Museum Board in honor of James B. Miller, Jr.

Dimensions5/8 x 1 in. (1.6 x 2.5 cm)

Object number2003.057.001

Label TextThis faience and copper ring is one of many such rings made during the New Kingdom, in imitation of the true signet rings made in metal that could function as seals. The faience bezels of these rings seem to have been made in large numbers and it is likely that they were manufactured by the palace to be granted to servants and subjects for faithful service. The ring features impressed images on both sides and the copper setting allowed for the bezel to flip, revealing each of the two images. On one side stands the figure of the king on the hieroglyphic sign nb, meaning "all". He holds a crook in his left hand and a cloth in his right and wears an ureaus on his brow, all symbols of the king's authority. A cartouche sits before the king identifying him as Thutmose III. On the other side of the bezel is a hieroglyphic phrase that reads: "The good god, lord of the two lands, Thuthmose, beloved of Amun Re". The ring emphasizes the supremacy of the king and his relationship to the gods in both word and image and would have perhaps been worn in both life and death by its owner.
Exhibition HistoryFrom Pharaohs to Emperors: New Egyptian and Classical Antiquities at Emory, Michael C. Carlos Museum, January 14 - April 2, 2006
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, 2006 - Present
Published ReferencesMCCM Newsletter, December 2003 - February 2004.

ProvenancePurchased by MCCM from Sue McGovern-Huffman [Sands of Time Antiquities], Kemah, Texas.

Status

On view

Collections