DRAG IMAGE TO ROTATE ARTWORK
Model of a boat with crew
Middle Kingdom, Dynasties mid XI–XII 2020 BCE-1773 BCE
Medium
wood, gesso, pigment
Measurements
80.3 × 31.8 × 14.3 cm
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Felton Bequest, 1939
© Public Domain
Gallery location
18th Century Decorative Arts - Great Hall Costume Corridor
Level 2, NGV International
About this work
Boats were an important form of transport in ancient Egypt, being the quickest way to move people and goods up and down the Nile. As Egypt lacked good timber, most wood was imported, and the royal, state and temple barges were made from cedar imported from Lebanon. Boats for everyday use were made from either papyrus reeds or wood. Models of boats, such as this one, were often included intombs. They represented boats used in daily life, to transport the deceased across the river to the cemetery or for pilgrimages in the afterlife.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
Egypt
Accession Number
D90-1982
Department
Antiquities
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of Digitisation Champion Ms Carol Grigor through Metal Manufactures Limited
Physical description
Model of a wooden boat with 13 figures on top. The boat is painted green on the sides and has a design of brown and cream on the deck; at each end of the deck are some details in black, probably indicating elements of the boat's structure. At one end of the boat are three falcon-headed standards, one of them painted green (the paint has worn off the other two). The figures are painted brown with white loin cloths, black hair/wigs and white faces with black details. Seven of the figures have white head bands/fillets and two figures have pieces of linen tied around their waists. The figures are not in their original positions.
The figures and boat were covered in a thin layer of gesso before being painted.