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PRICE TEN CENTS

PUBLISHED MONTHLY

BULLETIN
THE

OF

METROPOLITAN
MUSEUM

OF

ART

NEW YORK, JULY, 1907

VOLUME II

THE EGYPTIAN EXPEDITION *

II
the report of the excavations underINtaken
by the Museum expedition
at the Pyramids of Lisht, given in
the April Bulletin, the first stages in
the clearing of the eastern side of the pyramid of Amenemhat I were described. The
work has continued without interruption
during the past three months and has now
resulted in the complete excavation of the
pyramid-temple and in the determination
of the principal external features of the
pyramid on this eastern side.
The method employed in the earlier
stages of the work at the southeast angle
of the pyramid, as outlined in the first
report, has since been continued over the
greater part of its entire eastern side (cf.
figs. i, 2 and 3)-first, the removal of
drift sand and the disintegrated limestone
from the plundered core of the pyramid
(cf. fig. i), thus exposing the house walls
and similar construction which were found
to represent a later occupation of the site
(cf. fig. 2); and finally, after recording
completely these remains by means of
plans and photographs, the continuation
of the excavation down to the original
twelfth-dynasty construction underneath
(cf. fig. 3). Owing to the great mass of
debris to be removed, a force of 250 workmen was employed during the month of
March, and I50 have since continued the
clearing of the lower levels during April
and May.
Reference was made in the first report
*We will remindour readersthat,as stated in

the Bulletin for November last, the funds for the

support of this expedition in behalf of the Museum have been supplied by private generosity.

NUMBER7

to tentative excavations on this part of the

site by the French expedition ten years
ago. These resulted in the partial uncovering of the remains of the temple at
its easternmost end, and also of a mastabatomb of Antef-aker, an important official
of the twelfth dynasty, just south of the
temple. Under the plan adopted in the
present work-of clearing back completely
to the face of the pyramid itself-important material and facts have now been
recovered which make a distinct contribution to the history of Egyptian
architecture and art during this period of
the Middle Empire.
The pyramid-temple of Amenemhat I
has been found to differ in its position
from other similar temples, in that it
stands on a lower level than the pyramid
to which it was directly attached in its
use. The rising slope of the hill on which
this pyramid is built was met, in the first
instance, by the construction of a platform along the eastern face of the pyramid,
supported on its outer side by a retaining
wall parallel with the pyramid-face and
of an average height of 2.50 meters. This
platform is interrupted about the middle
of its length by a recess, 36 m. wide,
which is on a level with the base of the
platform-wall and cuts back into the bedrock of the hill to a perpendicular face of
2 m. at the rear end nearest the pyramid.
On both its northern and southern sides the
recess is flanked by a heavy wall of mudbrick, which abuts on the rock-cut face
of the recess and runs eastward beyond
the retaining wall of the platform, thus
framing in the position of the temple.
The latter, with its entrance on its eastern
end overlooking the Nile valley, has a
total length of 31.60 m., resting in the

113

FIG.

FIG. 2

FIG 3
EXCAVATIONS

OF PYRAMID-TEMPLE

OF AMENEMHAT

114

I IN ITS THREE

SUCCESSIVE

STAGES

BULLETIN

OF THE METROPOLITAN

rear against the rock-cut face of the recess.

As the excavation progressed it became clear that a reconstruction of the
temple had taken place at some period
subsequent to its erection, the evidence
for this resting in part on the occurrence
of limestone blocks bearing scenes in
relief with the names of Amenemhat-and
which were without question from the
original construction of that kind-as
re-used material in the foundations, as
they are now preserved, of the temple walls.
The date at which this reconstruction
took place can be more certainly fixed
when the excavations have been carried further and have included the ground
immediately east of the front of the temple where indications point to the pos-

FIG.

4.

"FALSE

DOOR"

MUSEUM OF ART

sibility of remains of an outer gateway.

From this a long incline or footway can
be plainly discerned from the present
surface, leading down to the cultivated
fields of the Nile valley.
The excavation of the temple-site has
yielded, however, a very considerable
amount of material from the original
temple of Amenemhat, from which the
main features of the structure can be
determined. This includes many fragments and a number of complete blocks
of painted relief from inscriptions and
scenes on the temple walls. One scene
is shown in fig. 6, where Amenemhat is
represented as receiving the gift of life
from the gods. All the relief is most
delicately and beautifully modelled and

OR OFFERING

STELA

FROM HIS PYRAMID-TEMPLE

I15

OF AMENEMHAT

BULLETIN

OF THE METROPOLITAN

in many cases has its color still freshly

preserved. Blocks bearing inscriptions
give the names of Amenemhat, and, in one
case, those of Amenemhat and his son
Usertesen I jointly: from which it is
certain either that the temple was constructed in part during the last ten years
of Amenemhat's reign, when as we know,
Usertesen acted as co-regent with him,
or that it was finished after Amenemhat's

FIG.

5.

GRANITE

covery of the two most important objects which it contained orginally. These
are the "false-door" or offering-stela of
the temple (cf. fig. 4),-the place toward
which the offerings were made to the king
-and the great temple-altar or offeringtable (cf. fig. 5).
The stela is of a fine-grained limestone
and is slightly broken away at the top, its
present measurements being 1.28 m. in

ALTAR

death by Usertesen who then placed his

own name on the temple walls with that
of his father.

Interesting architectural material has

been recovered also, such as fragments of
the temple columns, of the so-called
"Proto-Doric" style, bearing perpendicular lines of inscription on two opposite
sides; ceiling-blocks of the temple, with
representations of the stars in painted
relief; and two door-jambs, each bearing,
in double columns of the same beautiful
relief, the names of Amenemhat.
It remained for the excavation of the
rear end of the temple to result in the re-

MUSEUM OF ART

OF THE TEMPLE

height, 1.25 m. in width, and 50 cm. in

thickness. It has, on its eight panels,
perpendicular lines of inscription giving
the various titles and names of Amenemhat
and, as the only example of a royal stela
of its kind which has yet been found, it is
an object of unique importance.
The altar is of red granite, and is i.66
m. in length, 1.62 m. in width, and 1.30
m. in height. The lower part, which
originally sat below the level of the temple
pavement, is only roughly blocked out,
but above this its four sides are worked
to a finished surface 50 cm. wide. At the
back it is uninscribed, but on its other

BULLETIN

OF THE METROPOLITAN

three sides it has a procession of figures,

in sunken relief, representing the various
nomes or provinces of Egypt. These
advance from either side towards the
centre of the front where the cartouche of
the king is inscribed, each figure bearing
in its hands an offering. The top of the
altar is worked out at the front into a
rectangular offering-basin, and at the back
has a representation of offerings-two
vases and the conventional loaf, the latter
inscribed with the king's name.
Both the stela and the altar were found,
not in their original positions in the rear
end of the temple, but at a point to which
they had been moved just outside its
northern wall-at the western end of the
open passage between this wall and the
mud-brick wall referred to above, which
bounds the temple-site on this side. From
the manner in which both objects had
been placed there-carefully propped up
is
with small blocks beneath them-it
clear that their removal from the temple
took place at a time when their signifi-

SLAB OF PAINTED
(PHOTOGRAPHED

MUSEUM OF ART

cance was still known, possibly at the

time of the reconstruction of the temple.
While this excavation of the pyramidtemple has been in progress, work has been
carried on simultaneously for the past three
months on the cemetery west of the pyramid. As was to be supposed from the
proximity of the cemetery to the royal
tent of Amenemhat, its tombs are proving
to be of important twelfth dynasty types,
both in their construction and in the
character of their contents, and their
excavation has been an important factor
in the satisfactory results of the year. A
further report will be made on this part of
the work in a later number of the Bulletin.
All the work of excavation is now being
brought to an end for the present season,
and in early July, when its results have
been finally recorded, the expedition will
withdraw from Egypt for the remainder
of the summer.
A. M. L.
Pyramids of Lisht, June i.

RELIEF

FROM THE TEMPLE

IN TWO SECTIONS)

117