Lotus chalice

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Lotus chalice (replica)
Lotus Cup (JE67465) Replica.JPG
Chalice in the shape of a lotus flower
material alabaster
Dimensions H. 18.3 cm; W. 28.3 cm;
origin Valley of the Kings , KV62 , Tutankhamun's tomb
time New Kingdom , 18th Dynasty , Tutankhamun period
place Cairo , Egyptian Museum , JE 67465, find number 14
Floor plan of KV62 (The Tomb of Tutankhamun)
1) Treasure Chamber 2) Burial Chamber 3) 3rd Doorway 4) Antechamber 5) Annex 6) 4th Doorway 7) 2nd Doorway 8) Passage 9) 1st Doorway 10) Staircase A) Gypsum Wall B) Wall C) Niche
Chair from Tutankhamun's tomb (JE 62029, Cairo Egyptian Museum)

The lotus chalice or alabaster chalice , referred to by Howard Carter as the Wishing Cup ("wishing cup") or "goblet", comes from the grave treasure of King ( Pharaoh ) Tutankhamun ( 18th Dynasty , New Kingdom ). The object with the find number 014 is today as an exhibit with the inventory number JE 67465 in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo .

Find situation

Heh with the symbols for infinity: Schen ring, tadpole and palm rib kneeling on the Heb symbol

The grave ( KV62 ) of the young king was discovered almost untouched by Howard Carter on November 4, 1922 in the Valley of the Kings in West Thebes . The lotus cup was one of the first objects that Carter and his staff found when entering the tomb. The vessel had been lying on the floor almost directly behind the perforated entrance from the corridor to the antechamber ( Antechamber ) and was not in its original position.

Material and meaning

The lotus cup is made from a single piece of alabaster . The chalice has the shape of a fully blooming lotus flower . The handles are designed the same on both sides and are formed by lotus flowers growing upwards, on the tips of which the god Heh sits on a basket, the Heb symbol. In his hands he holds the so-called palm rib, with the notches for the year count, at the lower end of which a tadpole sits on a Schen ring . These are the typical attributes of the god of "millions of years", the god of infinity and eternity: the palm ribs stand as hieroglyphs for years and both the symbol Shen and the tadpole for infinity. As a hieroglyph, the kneeling god means “one million” as a numerical word. The motif can also be found on other objects from the grave. For example on one of the wooden chairs (JE 62029, find number 87). At the upper end of each palm rib there is an ankh symbol, which stands for life. This goblet symbolically stands for the infinite and eternal life of King Tutankhamun.

In Egyptian mythology, the lotus stood for the birth of the sun god, who rose from the lotus after the latter had risen from the floods of the primal waters of Nun . The name of the king in the middle of the open white flower symbolizes the rebirth of the king.

Inscriptions

The inscriptions are engraved and filled in with dark paste. Howard Carter copied these inscriptions and asked Alan Gardiner for a translation as he needed it for a publication. The main flower, which forms the actual lotus cup, calls the throne written in cartouches - ( Neb-cheperu-Re - "Lord of figures, a Re") and proper names (Tut-anch-Amun - "Living image of Amun ") des King, "who may live in all eternity". The first column describes him as "loved by Amun-Re , Lord of the Thrones ( Neb-nesut ) of the two countries ( taui ), Lord of Heaven ( Neb-pet )." The reading is from right to left.

The inscription on the rim of the chalice can be read in two directions. From right to left, beginning with the Horus falcon , are the less commonly used Horus name and the Nebtin name Tutankhamun. From left to right, starting with the ankh sign, you can read:

May your spirit live, may you spend millions of years, you, who love Thebes, sitting with your face to the north wind, your eyes beholding happiness.
"May your Ka live, may you spend millions of years, you who love Thebes, you sit with your face in the north wind, your eyes behold bliss."

Trivia

Howard Carter named the lotus cup the King's Wishing Cup because of this inscription . The wish inscription of this lotus cup was added to Howard Carter's new tombstone .

Exhibitions

In addition to the exhibition in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, the lotus chalice was on view as an exhibit in the world's first special exhibitions of selected original finds from Tutankhamun's grave treasure. For example with the exhibition number 39 at the Tutankhamun exhibition in 1980–1981 in Cologne. The chalice is also shown in the exhibition "Tutankhamun - His Tomb and Treasures", in which only replicas can be seen.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Jaromir Malek: The Treasures of Tutankhamun. German, London 2006, ISBN 0-233-00197-2 , p. 29.
  2. ↑ Card / Transcription No .: 014-2
  3. ↑ Karl-Theodor Zauzich : Hieroglyphs without a secret. An introduction to the ancient Egyptian script for museum visitors and Egypt tourists (= cultural history of the ancient world . Volume 6). Published by the Association for the Promotion of the Egyptian Museum in Berlin-Charlottenburg eV 12th edition. Philipp von Zabern, Darmstadt / Mainz 2012, ISBN 978-3-8053-4267-4 . Pp. 72-73.
  4. ↑ Nicholas Reeves, John H. Taylor: Howard Carter before Tutankhamun. British Museum Press; London 1992, ISBN 0-7141-0959-2 , p. 188.
  5. ↑ TGH James: Tutankhamun. The eternal splendor of the young pharaoh. Cologne 2000, p. 311.