Ikhernofret Stela


The Ikhernofret Stela is an important ancient Egyptian stela dated to the Middle Kingdom and is notable for its veiled description of how the mysteries of the deity Osiris were carried out in Abydos. The stela is 100 cm high and made of limestone. Osiris is depicted standing under a winged sun disk facing Senwosret III. The text is laid out below Osiris in twenty-four horizontal lines. Underneath the text, Ikhernofret, a 12th dynasty treasurer under Pharaoh Senwosret III, is depicted at an offering table with his family. The rituals celebrated the god's kingship, death and resurrection.
The stela describes how Ikhernofret is regarded as a beloved "foster child" of the King who was made "Companion of the King" when twenty-six. He is sent on a mission to Abydos by the King to carry out work in honour of the Kings Father "Osiris, Foremost of the Westerners".
The stela records how the festivities were celebrated in four main parts.
The Egyptologist and novelist Christian Jacq used the Ikehernofret inscriptions as the foundation of his Osirian series "The Mysteries of Osiris".