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Metropolitan Museum of Art — Egyptian Art (Open Access) · ostracon

Ostracon with hieroglyph and hieratic

Source of record: Metropolitan Museum of Art — Egyptian Art (Open Access) — catalogued by the holding institution. View the original record →

Description

Ostracon, hieratic. New Kingdom, Ramesside, Dynasty 19–20, ca. 1295–1070 B.C. Limestone, ink, paint. H. 7.1 × W. 7.5 × Th. 1.8 cm (2 13/16 × 2 15/16 × 11/16 in.). From: Valley of the Kings, Upper Egypt, Thebes, Egypt. Excavation: Davis excavations. Credit: Gift of Theodore M. Davis, 1909.

AI image analysis GPT-5.4-nano

Machine-generated from the object's image on Jul 2026. Not curatorial; treat deities, names, and signs below as the model's best reading, not authority.

Fragmentary limestone ostracon with ink/red-painted signs in vertical strokes and a damaged central band, likely including both hieroglyphic and hieratic writing.

The object appears to be a small, irregularly shaped fragment of limestone. A set of writing marks is visible near the upper portion: several dark vertical strokes (possibly hieroglyphic elements) flank a lighter central area, with an additional curved/dashed cluster of marks to the right. Near the top edge there is also a short transverse/rectangular mark. The central area of the text is incomplete due to breaks and abrasion, making specific sign identification uncertain. No clearly legible cartouche, royal titulary, or deity name can be confirmed from the visible portion. No Greek, Coptic, or Arabic script is visible.

hieroglyphic only New Kingdom (Ramesside), as catalogued; exact reign/king unknown from this image fragmentary
Materials limestone (fragment)ink (dark marks)paint/red-brown residue (possible)
Signs Unidentified dark ink strokes (hieroglyph/hieratic elements), exact form unclear ×6
Visible text "Unable to transcribe: marks are fragmentary and not clearly legible in the provided image."

Inscriptions (1)

Inscription #1 AI reading of the photograph

Visible text (machine reading)

Unable to transcribe: marks are fragmentary and not clearly legible in the provided image.

Connections

Found at Valley of the Kings
Materials LimestoneInk

Cross-references (4)

  • Wikidata-Q Q116438413 tier-1
  • Collection-QID Q160236 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
  • Inventory-Number 09.184.761 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
  • MET-Object 561402 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
About this record's data
  • From the source institution — accession, description, dimensions, and dating are as catalogued by Metropolitan Museum of Art — Egyptian Art (Open Access).
  • AI-inferred — the image-analysis panel (deities, names, signs) is machine-generated and may be wrong.
  • Approximate location — most map points are plotted at the site centroid, not the exact findspot.
  • Inferred links — cross-references marked with a match method other than explicit-source-field were matched by us, not stated by the source.