A frame for a portrait

The relief fragment is rectangular, with a maximum width of 29.5 cm. That’s not a coincidence. It forms a frame that is an exact fit for the head and shoulders of the figure. Modern art collectors loved that: a nice portrait in an easily displayable size.

That is not exactly proof of non-authenticity in and of itself, since any art collector could, in theory, carve a true ancient Egyptian relief into a nice rectangle. But the shape seems fitting for the choices a lot of forgers had to make. It’s one of the many clues the forger unwillingly left for us, just like his choice of stone. There’s more on that in the next step.

But for that we will have to turn over the relief…