Kneeling figure of Nacht-Hor-heb

The pose of the kneeling figure serves to express man’s direct devotion to god. When making a sacrifice to the deity, the kneeling figure is shown holding vessels or a plate of offerings. When praying, the figure presents the god with a cult symbol or a statue of the deity. When depicted as a ‘stelophor’ he holds out a stele on which his prayer is recorded: the spoken word becomes part of the representation, like a ‘speech bubble. ’The kneeling figures served their original purpose primarily in temples, where they were placed in the courtyards in close proximity to the deity. In the funerary context, stelophor statues were placed in aniche above the façade of the burial place, their gaze directed eastwards towards the rising sun to which the text of the hymn to the sun on the stele was addressed.