Limestone headrest of
Qeniherkhepeshef
From Deir el-Medina,
Egypt
19th Dynasty, around 1225
BC
Carved with protective figures of
Bes
Qeniherkhepeshef lived at the village of Deir
el-Medina, and was the official scribe of the tomb. His job was to
keep the attendance register of the workers who were employed in
the construction of the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings. His
comfortable seat, by the workmen's rest huts on the pass
between the village and the valley, can still be seen. It is
inscribed with his name to prevent anyone else from using it.
Surviving documents show that Qeniherkhepeshef used men of the gang
to do private work for him during official hours. He tried to use
his office to get the workmen to do the work without payment. He
was also accused of bribery on two
occasions.
It is perhaps no
wonder then, that he seems to have suffered from bad headaches. A
papyrus
written in his sloppy hand gives a spell against demons. His
limestone funerary headrest is decorated with figures of Bes. The
god's hideous appearance and the snakes and a spear that he
is brandishing were intended to drive away night demons. The
'Dream Book' in Qeniherkhepeshef's private
library also offered interpretations of nightmares. These were
thought to be caused by demons, or sent as a punishment by
particular gods.
G. Pinch, Magic in Ancient Egypt (London, The British Museum Press, 1994)
R. Parkinson, Cracking codes: the Rosetta St (London, The British Museum Press, 1999)
M.L. Bierbrier, The tomb-builders of the Phara (London, The British Museum Press, 1982)