Conservation and restoration of the sandstone stele of Tia found at Deir el-Bahari: a field report

2024, 33, Vol. 33, Regular Issue

Kacper Prus

DOI

10.37343/uw.2083-537X.pam33.14

Publication date

31.12.2024

Submission date

03.06.2024

Acceptance date

02.10.2024

Publishing model

open access

License type

CC BY 4.0 Int.

Field

Humanities

Discipline

archeology

Language of publication

English

Downloads

PDF 2 MB

Article

Number of views:311

Number of downloads:77

Crossref citations:0

Altmetric score:0

Abstract

The paper describes the process of conservation and restoration of a severely damaged polychrome stone slab decorated in sunken relief. The slab was found broken into over 30 fragments in a Third Intermediate Period tomb on the third terrace of the Temple of Hatshepsut in Deir el-Bahari during the 2005/2006 season of the Polish-Egyptian Archaeological and Conservation Expedition at the Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari. The sandstone relief depicts Ramesses II and the official Tia as the main figures. The stele was in a state of advanced degradation, to a point of powdering of the stone surfaces. It was first cleaned and consolidated using a silico-organic preparation. Then, the remains of polychromy were reinforced, the slab was reassembled from the fragments, and the gaps between them were filled. Lastly, the object was prepared for future display in the Temple at Deir el-Bahari. The treatments performed allowed for the restoration of the esthetic and historical value of this artifact dating from the Nineteenth Dynasty.

Keywords:

Bibliography

Arnold, D. (2005). A chronology: The later history and excavations of the temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari. In C.H. Roehrig, R. Dreyfus, and C.A. Keller (eds), Hatshepsut: From queen to pharaoh (pp. 290–293). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Barwik, M. (1990–1991). Fragments of columns from the Ramesseum found at Deir el-Bahri. Memnonia, 1, 19–24

Barwik, M. (2007). Overseer of the Treasury Tia at Deir el-Bahari. Memnonia, 18, 67–70

Bosticco, S. (1965). Museo archeologico di Firenze: le stele egiziane II. Nuovo Regno. Rome: Libreria dello Stato

Collier, S. (1993). The khepresh crown of pharaoh. Ufahamu: A Journal of African Studies, 21(1–2), 137–155

Duda-Maczuga, A. and Kudzia, A. (2023). Karta obiektu. Piaskowcowa płyta urzędnika o imieniu Tia (Object card. Sandstone stele of Tia). Unpubl. report in the PCMA Archive. DBAH.2023.1.004

Godlewski, W. (1986). Le monastère de St Phoibammon (=Deir el-Bahari 5). Warsaw: PWN – Éditions Scientifiques de Pologne

Nicholson, P.T. and Shaw, I. (2000). Ancient Egyptian materials and technology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Prus, K. (2022). Karta obiektu. Piaskowcowa płyta urzędnika o imieniu Tia (Object card. Sandstone stele of Tia). Unpubl. report in the PCMA Archive. DBAH.2022.1.033

Tatomir, R.G. (2017). Incense. In The encyclopedia of ancient history (pp. 1–3). John Wiley & Sons.

https://doi.org/10.1002/9781444338386.wbeah30047

van Dijk, J. (2021). Four notes on Tia and Iurudef. In B. van den Bercken (ed.), Egyptian delta archaeology: Short studies in honour of Willem van Haarlem (pp. 61–70). Leiden: Sidestone Press

van Sittert, B. (2020). “Maintaining order over chaos”: A study of the ba and baw concepts in the Predynastic Period, Early Dynastic Period, and Old Kingdom (MA thesis). American University in Cairo