Collection
/
Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

Plaque with Name of Amenhotep III

ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E.

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Object Label

Personal Arts under Amunhotep III

King Amunhotep III supported artisans and workshops that produced extraordinary personal arts.

The objects included faience, glass, and intricately designed pottery vessels and gold jewelry. Found in both domestic and funerary contexts, these luxury objects were prized by the living and often buried with their owners for use in the afterlife.

The opulence of these objects reflects the splendor and extravagance of the reign of Amunhotep III—the self-styled “Dazzling Sun Disk of All Lands,” who initiated monumental building programs and commissioned vast amounts of sculpture —and anticipates the flamboyant style of Tutankhamun’s time (circa 1332–1322 B.C.E.).

All objects in this case date to the reign of Amunhotep III (circa 1390–1352 B.C.E.) unless otherwise indicated.

Caption

Plaque with Name of Amenhotep III, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E.. Faience, 1 3/4 x 2 5/16 in. (4.5 x 5.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 40.126.1. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.40.126.1_erg456.jpg)

Title

Plaque with Name of Amenhotep III

Date

ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E.

Dynasty

Dynasty 18

Period

New Kingdom

Geography

Place made: Egypt

Medium

Faience

Classification

Sculpture

Dimensions

1 3/4 x 2 5/16 in. (4.5 x 5.8 cm)

Credit Line

Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund

Accession Number

40.126.1

Rights

Creative Commons-BY

You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

Frequent Art Questions

  • What is this?

    40.126.1 "Plaque with the Name of Amenhotep III"
    Amenhotep III was an "expansionist" ruler -- he was in charge of the Egyptian empire at a high point in its political, economic, and cultural power. He also made some important changes to Egyptian religion and built many new temples.
    Another note about the plaque -- you'll see other objects made of bright-blue faience throughout the Egyptian galleries -- including jewelry and bowls. It's the bright blue pottery-like substance -- made with earth/mineral ingredients that give it its color. It may have been meant to imitate precious stones with blue colors -- like lapis lazuli -- but it's human-made.

  • What is this?

    This faience plaque is imprinted with the name of the king Amunhotep III. He was a powerful and prosperous ruler who reigned during the prestigious 18th Dynasty. You can see numerous other objects made during his reign nearby.
    Faience was an extremely popular material for small, decorative objects in Ancient Egypt. It's a quartz-based paste that's molded and then fired at a high temperature. Faience is naturally sparkling white so it takes color and glazes very well making it easy to achieve the brilliant blues you see here imitating lapis lazuli (the darker blue) and turquoise (the lighter blue) two semi-precious stones.

  • Can you tell me more about this plaque? I wonder what was for.

    We don't know the exact purpose of this plaque unfortunately.
    But we do know that is was likely an object of value because of the material it was made out of called faience. It was an extremely popular material for small, decorative objects and imitates the blue of lapis lazuli, an extremely expensive and valuable blue stone.
    It looks very "modern." I never realised that it should imitate Lapis Lazuli. Good to know!
    It reflects the extravagance of the king Amunhotep III. It does doesn't it? The Egyptians were in many ways, ahead of their time aesthetically I think.
    Thanks, have a nice day!

Have information?

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bkmcollections@brooklynmuseum.org.