Tomb Relief

The mastaba tombs of the later Old Kingdom were decorated with scenes of daily life in hopes that these activities would be perpetuated in the next world. Within a standard set of motifs, the artists were allowed freedom to interject personal and even humorous detail. This relief depicts two servants, (only the back of the front figure and an arm and foot of the back figure can be seen) shouldering a long pole that would have supported a carrying chair in which the tomb owner would probably have been seated.

Beneath the carrying chair is a male servant, carrying a short staff with a curled end in his left hand. His short, stocky proportions indicate he is a dwarf. The master's hunting hound walks in front of him, his short tail curled tightly behind, ears pricked. The dog wears a collar to which the leash is attached. The comical pair trotting along beneath the litter adds a note of levity to an otherwise somber procession.

The three hieroglyphs beneath the carrying pole spell out the word "hbn," the dog's name. This is also the word for the dark African wood that we now call "ebony," derived from the ancient Egyptian. Egyptian pets were often given names referred to their color or physical attributes. The breed depicted is the basenji, one of the most ancient of all dogs.