Lot Essay
The present piece is a royal seal issued by the king Pepy I. Such objects were produced for officials who acted on behalf of the pharaoh and through the power and will of their sovereign. This fact is not only expressed by the right to use such a seal in office, but also by the epithets frequently inscribed on them, such as irr wdwt nb-f, "who does what is commanded by his Lord" or irr hzzt nb-f, "who does what is praised by his Lord."
According to Goedicke ("Die Siegelzylinder von Pepi I", MDAIK 17, p. 69ff.), this type of seal has to be understood as an instrument that confirms the action of an official as a representative of the pharaoh; this is why only the titles of the owner are mentioned and not his name. These cylinder seals are therefore not destined for a certain person, but for a specific office, which was held through the authorization of the king. The seal becomes the visible attribute or symbol of an office and is therefore not personal property. This explains why such objects are not found in private burials.
While there seems to be some dispute over whether this cylinder seal was issued in the latter half of the reign of Pepy I, there can be no doubt that it was altered and re-inscribed later in his reign. The third vertical column is longer than the other two and suggests that a new title representing a higher rank was added in the course of a promotion.
According to Goedicke ("Die Siegelzylinder von Pepi I", MDAIK 17, p. 69ff.), this type of seal has to be understood as an instrument that confirms the action of an official as a representative of the pharaoh; this is why only the titles of the owner are mentioned and not his name. These cylinder seals are therefore not destined for a certain person, but for a specific office, which was held through the authorization of the king. The seal becomes the visible attribute or symbol of an office and is therefore not personal property. This explains why such objects are not found in private burials.
While there seems to be some dispute over whether this cylinder seal was issued in the latter half of the reign of Pepy I, there can be no doubt that it was altered and re-inscribed later in his reign. The third vertical column is longer than the other two and suggests that a new title representing a higher rank was added in the course of a promotion.