Neith-hotep Serekh Sealing

3D Model

Clay sealing from a jar or bottle, with impression naming Queen Neith-hotep, with her name written in the form of a serekh. The object was excavated by John Garstang from the Naqada Royal Tomb, a large mudbrick mastaba tomb dating the unificatin of Egypt (c.3100BC). the tomd was badly damaged by a fire in antiquity, leaving many of the remianing artefacts fire-damaged. This clay seal has fired in the heat, becoming a ceramic object which is more friable than the original clay.

The form of Neith-hotep’s name on this object is significant. Serekhs were used to indicate a person was a ruler in their own right, not a consort. the only women who had recorded serekhs ruled as Pharaoh themselves. This, along with the immense size of her tomb and the richness of her funarary goods, suggests that Neith-hotep was a woman who had a very important role in the unification of Egypt into a single state.

Accession no: E.1335