Knife K 3325 + K 3324

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The knife K 3325 + K 3324 is a magnificent knife made of flint and ivory from the predynastic period ( Naqada IId, around 3200 BC) of Egyptian history . He was found in the mid-1990s in the U cemetery in Umm el-Qaab near Abydos . The motif of the knife is very close to the knob side of the Gebel el-Arak knife .

Finding circumstances

This magnificent knife is so far the only known specimen from Abydos that has been found almost completely with handle and blade. It comes from grave U-503 in the north central area of ​​the cemetery. The grave has a length of about 3 m, a width of about 2.20 m and a depth of about 1.50 to 2.00 m. It was found in a disturbed condition. Only a few discarded bones could be identified from the burial. In addition to the knife, the grave equipment included numerous ceramic vessels, other flint blades, fragments of a bone comb, fragments of an ivory model vessel, pearls and a piece of malachite . In the upper filling of the grave, further ivory fragments, a splinter of an obsidian bowl and further pearls were found. The pottery allows the grave to be dated to the level Negade IId.

description

The knife has a total length of 19.3 cm. It consists of a completely preserved blade using the "ripple-flake" technique (K 3324) and an ivory handle (K 3325, Fig. 5). The blade has a length of 15.7 cm, a width of 4.3 cm and a diameter of 0.45 cm. The cutting edge is finely serrated and the shaft has been retouched on both sides. Remains of a putty compound were found both on the shaft and in the blade bed of the handle. The handle has a length of 7.65 cm, a width of 4.45 cm and a maximum diameter of 1.05 cm without the knob or 1.8 cm with the knob. The handle is almost completely preserved in its basic form, but the surface shows some flaking. The upper part of the pommel and larger parts of the decoration at the lower end of the handle are missing. The upper part, on the other hand, has been completely preserved and can be interpreted well despite strong signs of weathering. The decoration is perpendicular to the blade, as is otherwise only shown in the knives from Gebel el-Arak and Gebel el-Tarif . The connecting element on both sides of the decor is a snake that wraps itself around the handle several times. It winds around the knob and crosses on the front. Thus, it divides both sides into four triangles, whereby only the two upper and lower form independent units, while the side triangles merge with the adjacent triangles on the opposite side to form a rhombus and contain cross-side decoration.

front

Three triangles have been preserved on the front. The filling of the upper triangle, however, is lost. In the lower gusset there is an ostrich looking to the left . Below him is a lion with an erect tail while tearing a prey animal. Most of this animal has been destroyed. The abdomen on which the lion lays his paw and a horn that borders the coiled snake on the right can still be recognized. So the animal is likely to be an ibex with its head turned back to the lion. The left triangle contains two animals. The upper one is a standing capride with a lasso tied around its neck belonging to a hunter on the opposite side. There is a lying ibex under the Capriden. The area above the Capriden has been destroyed, but there is room for another animal. Perhaps a hunting dog was originally shown here. The decor in the right triangle is very similar. The central figure is again a capride. This is hit in the back by a spear belonging to a hunter who is on the back. A young animal stands below the Capriden. The area above is also disturbed here, but the back line of a third animal can still be seen, which may also be a hunting dog.

Knob side

The degree of preservation of the pommel side is similar to that of the front. The contents of the upper triangle are almost completely destroyed. A minimal remnant is perhaps a bird's head. Above this, the remains of the snake's head and tail can be seen. In the lower triangle, only the tail of an animal has been preserved on the right. Since the tail is relatively thick and the triangle is very flat, a crocodile would most likely fit here. In the left triangle, a standing hunter is depicted, who thrusts a spear into the back of a Caprid pictured on the opposite side. In the right triangle, a hunter is also shown who has captured a Caprid on the opposite side with a lasso.

literature

  • Günter Dreyer : Motifs and dating of the decorated predynastic knife handles. In: Christiane Ziegler (ed.): L'art de l'Ancien Empire égyptien. Actes du colloque organisé au musée du Louvre par le Service culturel les 3 et 4 avril 1998 . La Documentation française: Musée du Louvre, Paris 1999, ISBN 2-11-004264-8 , pp. 195–226.
  • Günter Dreyer et al .: Umm el-Qaab. Follow-up examinations in the early royal cemetery. 9/10 Preliminary report. In: Communications from the German Archaeological Institute, Cairo Department. (MDAIK) Vol. 54, 1998, pp. 77-167.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ G. Dreyer: Motifs and dating of the decorated predynastic knife handles. Paris 1999, pp. 200-202.
  2. ↑ G. Dreyer et al .: Umm el-Qaab. Follow-up examinations in the early royal cemetery. 9/10 Preliminary report. 1998, pp. 91-92, 98-100.
  3. ^ G. Dreyer: Motifs and dating of the decorated predynastic knife handles. Paris 1999, pp. 210-211.
  4. ^ G. Dreyer: Motifs and dating of the decorated predynastic knife handles. Paris 1999, pp. 211-212.
  5. ^ G. Dreyer: Motifs and dating of the decorated predynastic knife handles. Paris 1999, p. 211.