The painted Casket

<!--<!--

Various chests were found in the tomb of Tutankhamen they were more than 50 boxes and they range in size from the smallest and most delicate to hold jewelry and cosmetics to large and more functional sizes. Some of them even fitted with poles

Discovery:

This magnificent casket was found in the antechamber of the tomb. It is supposed to be one of the masterpieces of the collection because of its state of preservation and also it’s a fine example of painting from the New Kingdom.

Its made out of wood then covered with a layer of plaster or stucco and then painted.

The two long sides:

We have representations of the king in a battle scene one side against the Asiatics or Syrians and on the other side against the Nubians

The two short sides:

It represents the king as a sphinx who is trampling his enemies one Asiatic and the other Nubian in a double scene

In the middle there is a representation of the cartouches of the king

Twt anx imn HkA iwn rsyt

nb xprw ra

The top of the lid:

 It is representing the king while hunting the idea of all scenes is confirming the victory upon chaos

n.b: we know that Tutankhamen was not a great warrior he had no military expeditions except for one sent to Palestine to reassure the people there

the decoration on the long side starts with a frame of geometrical and floral patterns inside there is a scene in which the king is riding the chariot, at the back of the king there is his fan bearer and the rest of the army, the king fires an arrow from his chariot which is drawn by two horses charging at full gallop. He controls his horses by means of a harness which is tied around his waist leaving his hands free to shoot his arrows

The Egyptian army is represented in three registers and well organized. While on the enemies side you can see the state of the foreigners in chaos and disorder. On one of the sides the enemies are Asiatics while on the other side they are Nubians. It is one of the features of the Ancient Egyptian army in very well organized rows while the enemy in a state of disorder. The king here wears the xprS crown of war

The lid is decorated with two hunting scenes. The king is represented riding his chariot accompanied by his troops but in this case he is attacking wild animals. In one of the scenes he is attacking antelopes, wild donkeys, gazelles, hyenas, ostriches who areskillfully represented fleeting the arrows of his majesty while in the other scene powerful lions and lionesses pierced by arrows fall victim to the king’s irresistible attack and he is accompanied by his hunting hounds.

The contents of the box:

A pair of papyrus sandals, three pairs of gilded sandals, gilded headrest, necklaces, labels and embroidered ceremonial robes belonging to the king, one of them was studded with over 3000 golden rosette; it took the excavators three weeks to empty the contents of the box.

n.b; the army in Ancient Egypt was divided into four parts; the heart, the two wings and the rear. Each division carried the name of a certain god. Before Ramses II they were three; Amon-Re, Ptah, Re horakhty then since the time of Ramses II Seth was added. The king always led the heart division which was called Amon-Re while the two wings were Ptah and Re-Horakhty and the back was Seth.