Fragment of glazed tile showing a Libyan captive

This image on this fragment represents a Libyan, a traditional enemy of Egypt. He is shown in the conventional Egyptian manner: a short beard, a long sidelock of hair, and simple clothing; the marks on his body may be tattoos.Tiles showing the traditional enemies of Egypt (known as the 'nine bows') may have been part of the decoration of a throne room in a palace, placed either on the base of the throne or on the floor in front of the throne. The king would then literally and metaphorically trample on his enemies.Tell el-Yahudia is a town-site on the Nile delta, about twenty kilometres north-east of Cairo. At some time in the past there was a Jewish temple and fortress, as well as a cemetery, at Tell el-Yahudia and its modern arabic name reflects this. The nineteenth-century excavators, Henri Naville and Flinders Petrie, were particularly interested in the site because they hoped for finds with a biblical connection. This fragment came from a clandestine excavation carried out some time before 1870, but other similar fragments found by Petrie suggest that they came from a building of Ramesses III. Ramesses made major modifications to the settlement, essentially building a new town.