OLD KINGDOM, 5TH-6TH DYNASTY, 2494-2181 B.C.

Made in three separate pieces, with the crescentic upper portion attached to the fluted stem by means of a tenon, this finely carved headrest compares to a number of examples assigned to the 5th and 6th Dynasties (see p. 78 in. S. D’Auria, et al., Mummies & Magic: The Funerary Arts of Ancient Egypt). The headrest was an essential piece of household furniture and was fashioned from a variety of materials including wood, ivory and stone. Depictions of headrests on tomb walls indicate that they also served an important role in funerary rituals and were magically empowered to resurrect the body from eternal slumber and to guard against the threat of decapitation (see no. 86 in L. Berman, Catalogue of Egyptian Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art).