Column of King Merenptah

Column of King Merenptah
Column of King Merenptah
 

GEM Number

22711

Collection

Grand Hall

Period

New Kingdom

Dynasty

19

Description

Parts of this column were found during excavations at Heliopolis (Tell Hisn). It is formed of a high limestone stand, a sandstone base and a red granite shaft and abacus. Inscriptions on the column commemorate King Merenptah’s victory in a war he waged in his fifth regnal year against transgressors on Egyptian borders. Scenes on the column show the king receiving a mace from goddess Anath and the sword of victory from the deities Amun, Re-Horakhty, Seth, Montu and Sekhmet. Slightly above the column base are bearded captives bound with ropes accompanied by a concise record of the battle and the received spoils of war. The discovery of this column points to the presence of a temple dedicated by Merenptah to the principal deities of Heliopolis.

Region
Lower Egypt
Area
Tell Hisn
Granite

Height

600 cm

Diameter

105 cm