[Last modified: March, 25 2019 03:48 PM]
Spiritual and functional change, under human influence
Welcome to the Chapel. For thousands of years, religion has influenced the relationship humans have with objects and also the physical and spiritual significance placed on an object. Objects have diverse roles in different religions, such as aiding with worship, acting as a remembrance of historical events in religious history and creating connections to spiritual worlds. The function of specific religious objects may have changed over time as dominant religious beliefs have changed in societies.
The Ancient Egyptians are an excellent example of a civilisation that attached religious significance to objects as a way to connect them to the spiritual world. An object like the inscribed axe-head from the New Kingdom era is a standard granite stone with no physical properties that make it particularly special. However, for an Ancient Egyptian priest, this stone axe has incredible significance. It paves the way for the metamorphosis of a human soul to part from its body and enter the world of the afterlife. A spiritual change from body to soul and life to afterlife.
Imagine seeing this axe-head 1000 years before it had been inscribed. It would have had very different connotations to the Ancient Egyptians. The axe-head would have been a normal stone found in nature, that was eventually carved into a weapon with the desired function of exerting physical damage to a person or a material. However, as it travelled through time, a hieroglyphic was inscribed into it and this physical change transformed the object from an ordinary weapon into a religious artefact with symbolic meaning. The hieroglyphic is the name of the priest Sekhenu, and it is most probable that the inscribed axe was placed in the tomb of the priest. This was typical of Ancient Egyptian practices at this time, as it was believed that what was placed in the tomb was taken with the deceased to the afterlife. The axe-head was a symbol of courage and bravery and would help Sekhenu fight in the afterlife.
The inscribed axe-head has taken quite a journey of change to rest here in this exhibition. It took a physical change from stone to weapon, then a permanent inscription changed its function from weapon to religious artefact and a civilisation with strong spiritual beliefs enhanced the value of the object, transforming the axe within its societal context. However, change does not stop here. In the present day, we now look at this object and all the objects in the exhibition as artefacts that unlock realms of discovery into intriguing civilisations and their practices. How will the meaning of the axe-head change in another 1000 years?
This is an inscribed axe-head from the New Kingdom period of Ancient Egypt c.1570- c.1069 BC. Originally, the axe-head would have been carved as a weapon or a tool but the inscription on the axe indicates that its function has religious roots as the hieroglyphics inscribed on the axe read the name Sekhenu. Sekhenu was a priest working in a temple, which is established by the last hieroglyphic symbol which acts as a determinative. He was a wab-priest and his role was to purify the statues in the temple and provide daily offerings to the Ancient Egyptian gods. It is likely that the axe was placed in the tomb of Sekhenu as a symbol of bravery and courage, in order to protect him in the afterlife.