The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 18, 2024

Stele of Shemai

Stele of Shemai

c. 1960–1916 BCE
(2040–1648 BCE), Dynasty 12, probably reign of Senusret I (1971–1926 BCE)
painted limestone
Overall: 83.5 x 86 x 23 cm (32 7/8 x 33 7/8 x 9 1/16 in.)
Gift of Edward S. Harkness 1921.1017
Location: 107 Egyptian

Did You Know?

This door-shaped stele honors a deceased chief of police named Shemai.

Description

Two techniques of relief carving are employed here: the scene of the deceased seated before a table of offerings and its accompanying inscriptions are in raised relief, while the border inscriptions are in sunk relief. The three columns of hieroglyphs in the center read: "The one honored before Osiris, lord of Busiris, the great god, lord of Abydos, that he [the god] may give invocation-offerings of bread and beer, oxen and fowl, travertine [vases] and clothing to the ka [vital spirit] of the chief of police, Shemai, vindicated."
  • "Accessions." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 8, no. 9 (1921): 138-41. Mentioned: p. 138 www.jstor.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1925. Mentioned and Reproduced: 55 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1928. Reproduced: p. 70 archive.org
    Berman, Lawrence M. "The Stele of Shemai, Chief of Police, of the Early Twelfth Dynasty, in The Cleveland Museum of Art," in Simpson, William Kelly, Peter Der Manuelian, and Rita E. Freed (Eds.), Studies in honor of William Kelly Simpson, vol. I. Boston: Dept. of Ancient Egyptian, Nubian, and Near Eastern Art, Museum of Fine Arts, 1996. Pp. 93-99.
    Berman, Lawrence M., and Kenneth J. Bohač. Catalogue of Egyptian Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1999 Reproduced: p. 159; Mentioned: p. 159-160
  • {{cite web|title=Stele of Shemai|url=false|author=|year=c. 1960–1916 BCE|access-date=18 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1921.1017