The Griffith Institute
University of Oxford
Bersha Watercolours

Griffith Institute w&d 166 | Ceiling decoration


Griffith Institute Watercolour 166
Griffith Institute w&d 166
© Griffith Institute Watercolours & Drawings Project

Artist Marcus W. Blackden.

Date Not dated, probably 1891.

Site
Deir el-Bersha.
Tomb of Djehutinakht. Dynasty XII.

Description
Detail of ceiling decoration.
From scene: Ceiling decoration.

Technical data
Watercolour.
268 mm x 253 mm.
Annotations:
Watercolour, recto [no mount],
'M. W. B.' [initialed signature]; 'red  dark red  black  white  blue  pale green  green  yellow'; '8 colours'; 'El Bersheh II. Pl. V.'; 'Tomb I El Bersheh II. Pl. V.'.
Watercolour, verso [no mount],
'Ceiling ornament Tehutinekht (El Bersheh II. pl )'.

Griffith Institute w&d
166

Publications
See PM iv.177 | TopBib 409-060-010-010; GI w&d Deir el-Bersha Project; Griffith, F. L. & Newberry, P. E. El Bersheh ii [1895], 18 pl. v [upper right].



This is a small sample of the ceiling decoration from the Hall in the tomb of Djehutinakht at Deir el-Bersha. Presented as a tiled grid, arranged chequerboard style, the repeated motif resembles a stylised four-petalled flower, the points of which line up with the tiles' diagonals. The colours red, green, yellow, black and white have been used in rotation to form a reoccurring colour scheme that creates an alternative pattern within the whole. A column of hieroglyphs, painted in blue, forms a border to the right of the tiles. The text is part of a much longer inscription containing Djehutinakht's plea to the gods for continued sustenance in the Afterlife.


Cataloguing John Wyatt & Lee Young | Commentary Elizabeth Fleming
Photography Jenni Navratil, assisted by Hana Navratilova
Editing and web pages Elizabeth Fleming, assisted by Francisco Bosch-Puche & Cat Warsi.