Egyptologists have long been puzzled by a type of figure in ancient Egyptian art depicted wearing an unusual kind of conical hat. These figures often appear in scenes depicting banquets, funerary rituals, or interactions with the gods. Scholars assumed that these strange headpieces were symbolic artistic devices, since no archaeological evidence of them had ever been uncovered. But new excavations of two burials dating to between 1347 and 1332 B.C. in Amarna have yielded proof that these headpieces did, in fact, exist. One hat was found atop the head of a female in her twenties, while the other belonged to a 15-to-20-year-old individual of undetermined sex. Analysis of the cones indicates that they were made of beeswax, perhaps molded around a textile lining. Experts are still unsure why some Egyptians wore the headpieces, or what they represent. “It’s probably wrong to think that there is one definitive answer as to the function and use of the cones,” says Monash University archaeologist Anna Stevens. “It seems that they placed the wearer in a special state, particularly a purified state, which was especially suitable when seeking out the company or assistance of divinities.”
Egyptian Coneheads
SHARE:
Recommended Articles
Features March/April 2019
Egypt's Eternal City
Once the most sacred site on the Nile, Heliopolis was all but forgotten until archaeologists returned to save it from disappearing forever
(Courtesy Dietrich Raue and Aiman Ashmawy/The Heliopolis Project)
(bpk, Berlin/ Aegyptisches Museum, Staatliche Museen, Berlin, Germany / Art Resource, NY)
Digs & Discoveries July/August 2024
Sticking Their Necks Out
(Photo Vyacheslav Argenberg via Flickr)
-
Features March/April 2020
Remembering the Shark Hunters
Unique burials show how ancient Peruvians celebrated dangerous deep-sea expeditions
(Courtesy Gabriel Prieto) -
Letter from the Four Corners March/April 2020
In Search of Prehistoric Potatoes
Native peoples of the American Southwest dined on a little-known spud at least 10,000 years ago
(©2020/Jerry Redfern) -
Artifacts March/April 2020
Gravettian "Venus" Figure
(Courtesy INRAP) -
Digs & Discoveries March/April 2020
Ancient Academia
(© The Trustees of the British Museum)