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Today at the Museum

June 18, 2013

Your MIA, S18 (ages 9-12)

9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Studios 111-113

Full-day camp Kick off summer by finding ways to spend it in and around the museum, solo or with friends. $310; includes a 1-year Student Membership ($20 value) To register, call (612) 870-3000 or register online.

False Door
Title:False Door
Artist:Ancient Egyptian
Date:c. 2400 B.C.
Creation Place:Africa, Egypt, Giza
Credit Line:The Christina N. and Swan J. Turnblad Memorial Fund
Accession Number:52.22
Located in the west wall of a tomb chapel, the false door was the focal point of the offerings made to the deceased. Two door jambs and a lintel frame a central niche. This was the interface between the world of the living and the world of the dead, where visitors came to say prayers and deposit food and gifts for the spirit of the deceased, whose soul was supposed to pass through the door. The inscriptions commemorate Iryenakhet, a priest, who is depicted seven times. Symmetry rules the composition. The normal direction of Egyptian writing was from right to left, with the hieroglyphs facing right, but here the hieroglyphs on the right jamb face left (as do the figures) toward the niche.