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Introduction

The stela of Qema-mar and his household

This well preserved sandstone stela at the Zagreb Archaeological Museum (No. 592) is 25.5 cm wide and 41 cm high and fairly elaborately carved. The owner of the stela is an official, Qema-mar, who carries the titles "man-of-the-festival" and "hall-keeper".

Acknowledgements

Igor Uranić, head of the Egyptian collection of the Zagreb Archaeological Museum, provided a high-resolution photograph of the stela. The analysis is by Gabor Toth and Michael McClain. This web version was prepared by Mark-Jan Nederhof using PhilologEg.

Context

Period

This stela is from the New Kingdom.

Pointers

This analysis of the stela was published as:

G. Toth and M. McClain. The stela of Qema-mar and his household. Journal of the Zagreb Archaeological Museum, Vol. 45, No. 1, May 2013.

A short discussion of the stela can also be found in:

I. Uranić. Aegyptiaca Zagrabiensia, Egipatska zbirka Arheološkog muzeja u Zagrebu. Katalozi i monografije arheološkog muzeja u Zagrebu 4. Zagreb, 2007.
J.M. Saleh. Les antiquités égyptiennes de Zagreb: Catalogue raisonné des antiquités égyptiennes conservées au Musée Archéologique de Zagreb en Yougoslavie. Mouton, 1970.

People

Qema-mar

Qema-mar is shown twice, sitting on a chair and standing. An interesting feature of the composition is that Qema-mar’s wife is missing. He is sitting alone (with no women behind him in a typical supporting position) and the phrase ḥmt.f is not used anywhere in the text.

His son

His son, Seneferu, is sitting on a chair. In addition to his sitting posture, his importance is clear from the four columns of writing that are devoted to him, including a short version of the typical invocation offering formula. Seneferu’s mother, Res-hetep, whom one would expect to be Qema-mar’s wife, is mentioned in the text with the vague designation nbt-pr, "mistress/lady of the house". This designation is shared with the three depicted women from the household.

His household

Seven people are depicted in addition to Qema-mar and Seneferu. These all appear to be household members.

The designation nbt-pr and the nearly identical posture of the three depicted women indicate that they are household employees. The first is in the second register facing Qema-mar across an offering table. Her position being closest to the master and her name ḥnwt both suggests leading role and utmost respect within the household. The two other women appear in the fourth register with somewhat different inscriptions. The first has her mother named, and the second’s name is Bener-merut, literally "sweet and beloved".

Two men are shown at the end of the third and fourth registers with their offices explicitly specified but without mention of their relationship to Qema-mar. Note that the first of these men, Peher-sab, is the only person who has no mꜣꜥ ḫrw affixed after his name, suggesting that he was still alive at the time of Qema-mar’s burial.

Text

Lunette

⍰

nb tꜣ ḏsr wp-wꜣwt

Lord of the Sacred Land, Wepwawet.

Appeal

⍰

j ꜥnḫw tp(jw)-tꜣ ẖr(j)-ḥ(ꜣ)b nb

Oh (you) living who are on earth, all lector priests,

⍰

wꜥb nb ḥm-kꜣ nb sš nb srj nb

all wab-priests, all ka-priests, all scribes, all officials,

⍰

r(m)ṯ nb swꜣt(j).sn ḥr špsj pn

all people who shall pass by this (deceased) nobleman,

⍰

m ḫd m ḫntyt

downstream and upstream!

⍰

mrr.ṯn ḥz.ṯn wp-wꜣwt

(As) you love and praise Wepwawet,

⍰

nb tꜣ ḏsr ḏd.ṯn

lord of the Sacred Land, you should say:

Offerings

⍰

ḥtp-dj-(n)swt wsjr nb ꜣbḏw dj.f

A royal offering of Osiris, lord of Abydos, he gives

⍰

prt-ḫrw t ḥnqt kꜣw ꜣpdw šsr mnḫt snṯr mrḥt

an invocation offering of bread and beer, cattle and fowl, linen and clothing, incense and ointment

⍰

ḫt nbt nfrt wꜥbt n kꜣ n z(j)-n-ḥ(ꜣ)b

and every good and pure thing for the ka of the man-of-the-festival,

⍰

mry n rmnwtjw zmꜣy (j)m(j)-r ḫtm

beloved of companions (of equal rank) and confederates, overseer of the seal,

⍰

jry-ꜥt qmꜣ-mꜥr mꜣꜥ ḫrw

hall-keeper, Qema-mar, justified.

Second register

⍰

tꜣ-snb-sw m-ꜥ mꜣꜥ ḫrw

Ta-seneb-su (together) with the justified.

⍰

tꜣ-nfr-tm ms.n j.qmꜣj

Ta-nefer-tum, born of I-qemai,

⍰

jr.n z(j)-n-dpt ꜥnḫt(j).f mꜣꜥ ḫrw

begotten of the man-of-the-boat, Ankhti-fi, justified.

⍰

nbt-pr ḥnwt mꜣꜥt ḫrw

House mistress, Henut, justified.

Third register

⍰

qmꜣ-mꜥr mꜣꜥ ḫrw nb jmꜣḫ

Qema-mar, justified, possessor of honor,

⍰

m jr(t) n.f zꜣ.f mr(y).f jry-ꜥt mꜣꜥ

(in) acting on behalf of him, his son, his beloved, the loyal hall-keeper.

⍰

ḥtp-dj-(n)swt wsjr nb ꜣbḏw n kꜣ n

A royal offering of Osiris, lord of Abydos, for the ka of

⍰

jry-ꜥt mꜣꜥ ꜥḥ snfrw

the loyal hall-keeper of the palace, Seneferu,

⍰

ms.n nbt-pr rs(.w)-ḥtp mꜣꜥt ḫrw

born of the house mistress Res-hetep, justified.

⍰

jmj-r ꜥ-ẖnwtj n pr-ꜥnḫ pḥr(r)-zꜣb

Overseer of the inner chamber of the House of Life, Peher-sab,

⍰

ms.n jjw(j)

born of Iiui.

Fourth register

⍰

nbt-pr nmtt.sn mꜣꜥt ḫrw

House mistress Nemetet-sen, justified,

⍰

ms.n ktt mꜣꜥt ḫrw

born of Ketet, justified.

⍰

nbt-pr bnr-mrwt

House mistress Bener-merut,

⍰

mꜣꜥt ḫrw nbt jmꜣḫ

justified, possessor of honor.

⍰

mḥ(y) n ꜥt zḥy

Caretaker of the chamber, man of good counsel,

⍰

jmny mꜣꜥ ḫrw nb jmꜣḫ

Imeny, justified, possessor of honor.

Sculptor's signature

⍰

ꜥftj-wr sšꜣt

Afeti-wer, scribe.

Vocabulary

ꜣpd n bird

j interjection Oh

jmꜣḫ n honor

jmj-r n overseer

jrj v (3inf) do

beget

jry-ꜥt n hall-keeper

ꜥt n (f) chamber

ꜥnḫ n living one

ꜥḥ n palace

ꜥ-ẖnwtj n inner chamber

wꜥb adj-verb pure

wꜥb n wab-priest

pn pron this

prt-ḫrw n (f) invocation offering

~ t ḥnqt ~ of bread and beer

pr-ꜥnḫ n House of Life

m prep in

mꜣꜥ adj true

mꜣꜥ ḫrw adj-verb justified

mnḫt n (f) clothing

mrj v (3inf) love

mrḥt n (f) ointment

mḥy n caretaker

msj v (3inf) give birth

m-ꜥ prep with

n prep for

n adj of

nb adj all

nb n lord

possessor

nbt n (f) mistress

possessor

nbt-pr n (f) house mistress

nfr adj-verb good

rmnwtj n companion

rmṯ n people

rḏj v (3inf) give

ḥm-kꜣ n ka-priest

ḥzj v (3inf) praise

ḥtp-dj-nswt n royal offering

ḫt n (f/m) thing

ḫntj v (4inf) go upstream

m ḫntyt upstream

ḫtm n seal

ḫdj v (3inf) go downstream

m ḫd downstream

ẖrj-ḥꜣb n lector priest

zꜣ n son

zj-n-ḥꜣb n man-of-the-festival

zj-n-dpt n man-of-the-boat

zmꜣy n confederate

zḥy n man of good counsel

swꜣj v (caus 3inf) pass

ḥr by (a place)

snṯr n incense

srj n official

sš n scribe

sšꜣt n scribe

špsj n nobleman

šsr n linen

kꜣ n bull

kꜣ n ka

tꜣ ḏsr n Sacred Land

tpj-tꜣ n who is on earth

ḏd v (2lit) say

Names

ꜣbḏw Abydos

jjwj IIui

jmny Imeny

j.qmꜣj I-qemai

ꜥftj-wr Afeti-wer

ꜥnḫtj.f Ankhti-fi

wp-wꜣwt Wepwawet

wsjr Osiris

bnr-mrwt Bener-mrwt

pḥrr-zꜣb Peher-sab

nmtt.sn Nemetet-sen

rs.w-ḥtp Res-hetep

ḥnwt Henut

snfrw Seneferu

qmꜣ-mꜥr Qema-mar

ktt Ketet

tꜣ-nfr-tm Ta-nefer-tum

tꜣ-snb-sw Ta-seneb-su

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