The handprint was probably left by the maker of the object. He touched the clay before it was dry, reports Egyptologist and curator of the new exhibition ‘Made in Ancient Egypt’ Helen Strudwick. “I have never seen such a complete handprint on an Egyptian object,” she says.
Soul houses
The print has been left on a so -called ‘soul house’, a model of a house in clay that was placed in a grave. The clay model that has now been discovered dates from around 2055-1650 BC. Historians assume that food was left as a sacrifice in the soul houses. The models were built so that the soul of the deceased could live on. “
An analysis shows that the maker has made the structure of the house with sticks and then covered with clay. For example, he made a two -storey building that is supported by pillars. The wooden structure was burned during baking, creating empty spaces.