Fragment of a Stela of Neferhotep

New Kingdom, mid-Dynasty 19, about 1240-1195 BCE

Egyptian; probably Theban Tomb 216, Deir el-Medina, Egypt

The hieroglyphs at the top of this stela (commemorative stone) fragment help identify the man depicted as Neferhotep, a foreman of the workers who built and decorated the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings at Thebes. Neferhotep, who is finely dressed in pleated white garments, raises his hands before him in a gesture of adoration toward the deity, who would have been depicted in the upper portion of the stone. Stelae such as this one allowed nonroyal Egyptians to demonstrate their devotion to the gods.

Status: On View, Gallery 50
Department: Arts of Africa

Culture: Ancient Egyptian
Title: Fragment of a Stela of Neferhotep
Place: Egypt (Object made in)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: 1239 BCE–1194 BCE
Medium: Limestone and pigment
Dimensions: 38.5 × 23.8 × 5.8 cm (15 × 9 3/8 × 2 3/8 in.)
Credit Line: Lois H. Culver Fund
Reference Number: 1924.579
IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.: https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/12985/manifest.json

James K. Hoffmeier, “A Relief of a ‘Chief of the Gang’ from Deir el-Medineh at Wheaton College, Illinois,” The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 74 (1988), p. 218.
Roberta Casagrande-Kim, ed., When the Greeks Ruled Egypt: From Alexander the Great to Cleopatra, with contributions by Mary C. Greuel et al., exh. cat. (New York: Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, 2014), 24, fig 1-7.

Art Institute of Chicago, Ancient Art Galleries, Gallery 154A, April 20, 1994 - February 6, 2012.
Art Institute of Chicago, When the Greeks Ruled: Egypt After Alexander the Great, October 31, 2013 - July 27, 2014.
Art Institute of Chicago, Life and Afterlife in Ancient Egypt, Feb. 11, 2022 - present.

Spink and Sons, Ltd., London; sold to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1924.

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

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IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.

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IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.