nemes headdress
E216368
The nemes headdress is the distinctive striped royal headcloth of ancient Egyptian pharaohs, often depicted in sculpture and relief as a symbol of kingship and divine authority.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| nemes headdress canonical | 1 |
Statements (49)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
ancient Egyptian royal headdress
ⓘ
pharaonic regalia ⓘ symbol of kingship ⓘ |
| associatedWith |
Middle Kingdom of Egypt
ⓘ
surface form:
Middle Kingdom Egypt
New Kingdom of Egypt ⓘ
surface form:
New Kingdom Egypt
Old Kingdom of Egypt ⓘ
surface form:
Old Kingdom Egypt
Ptolemaic period royal imagery ⓘ |
| colorPattern | alternating light and dark stripes ⓘ |
| contrastedWith |
atef crown
ⓘ
Red Crown ⓘ
surface form:
deshret (Red Crown of Lower Egypt)
White Crown of Upper Egypt ⓘ
surface form:
hedjet (White Crown of Upper Egypt)
White Crown ⓘ
surface form:
pschent (Double Crown)
|
| culturalContext |
ancient Egyptian court ceremonial
ⓘ
ancient Egyptian religion ⓘ |
| depictedIn |
ancient Egyptian reliefs
ⓘ
ancient Egyptian sculpture ⓘ royal statuary ⓘ temple wall carvings ⓘ tomb paintings ⓘ |
| function |
distinguish the king from non-royal elites
ⓘ
express the divine nature of the king ⓘ visually identify the pharaoh ⓘ |
| hasCharacteristic |
covers crown and back of head
ⓘ
extends down behind the ears ⓘ has lappets hanging down on both sides of the face ⓘ often gathered or tied at the back ⓘ striped cloth ⓘ |
| iconographicRole |
marker of the king even in damaged or fragmentary statues
ⓘ
standard element of royal iconography ⓘ |
| influenced | modern popular imagery of Egyptian pharaohs ⓘ |
| material |
linen
ⓘ
textile ⓘ |
| notableExample | gold and blue nemes on the funerary mask of Tutankhamun ⓘ |
| representedAs | metallic gold-and-blue version in funerary art ⓘ |
| symbolizes |
divine kingship
ⓘ
legitimacy of the ruler ⓘ pharaonic power ⓘ royal authority ⓘ |
| timePeriod | primarily 3rd millennium BCE to 1st millennium BCE ⓘ |
| usedBy |
Egyptian queens in some periods
ⓘ
ancient Egyptian pharaohs ⓘ |
| wornBy |
Hatshepsut
ⓘ
surface form:
Hatshepsut (in some kingly depictions)
Ramesses II ⓘ
surface form:
Ramesses II (in statues and reliefs)
Thutmose III ⓘ
surface form:
Thutmose III (in royal imagery)
Tutankhamun ⓘ
surface form:
Tutankhamun (in funerary mask depictions)
|
| wornOver | shaven or closely cropped royal head ⓘ |
| wornWith |
false beard in many royal depictions
ⓘ
uraeus cobra on the forehead ⓘ vulture head or vulture symbol on the forehead in some reigns ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.