Greg Gavenda

Ancient World E

5/11/15
Legacy Project

Eternal Life in Stone: Stela of Kemes

All people and religions are interconnected in some way. Whether
clearly visible or not, all is interconnected. One thing that almost every
religion offers is some form of eternal life. In cases such as Judaism and
Christianity, it is heaven or hell. In Hinduism, it is becoming one with
Brahman, the manifestation of the universe. And in popular culture, it
is considered as being immortal. But there are other ways to have
eternal life: that is through legacy. Legacy can be considered as
immortalization, such as within a book or historical documents.
Sometimes it can be through architecture, or a person could simply be
a historical figure, a leader, famous or infamous. But in Egypt, the stela
is a popular way of doing so. The stela is essentially an Egyptian
gravestone, but in some cases, it is used for commemoration. The
Stela of Kemes is a perfect example of this. Dedicated to a man named
Kemes (who has no historical records) and created around 1750 BCE;
this was not used as a gravestone, but rather as a type of sculpture.
The Stela of Kemes demonstrates the eternal truth of the afterlife
within the ancient world, which is still present today.

To start off, the Stela of Kemes demonstrates the eternal truth of

the afterlife through its appearance. Along the Stela of Kemes, there
are many different depictions, mainly of Kemes giving offerings. There

Greg Gavenda
Ancient World E

5/11/15
Legacy Project

are other depictions of Kemes, including Kemes described as

(according to former owner of the Stela of Kemes, Pierre Berg),
living, clad in a triangular loincloth over which his hands are
placed. The whole scene is framed by a line and two columns of
hieroglyphics: traditional formulae to Sobek and Ptah-SokarOsiris in favour of the Superior of the musicians Kemes, son of
the Superior of the musicians Senaa-ib, and born of Tepouhaou,1
Now, one thing that needs to be established and will be worked
towards throughout this is who Kemes might have been. The fact that
Sobek appears on the stela is a large piece of evidence for figuring this
out. Sobek was a god associated with alligators, but he was also seen
as a representation of military power or power as the pharaoh, so
Kemes may have been a Pharaoh or a member of the military. Osiris is
the god of the underworld, working alongside Anubis. With these two
gods both appearing on the Stela of Kemes, it is likely that Kemes was
being honored for either his servitude in the military with this, or as a
pharaoh, which is less likely, as there would probably be some kind of
document found noting that he was a pharaoh. However, this does not
mean that Kemes cannot be a pharaoh, and that possibility is not void.
But the main point that needs to be stated is that this stela was made
to immortalize Kemes, give him a type of afterlife in the same world he
was born in. There are also more scenes on the Stela of Kemes, which
have hieroglyphs describing them as well. For example, on the stela,
there are hieroglyphs describing this scenario:
1 "PBA-21-May-2014-Chapel." PBA-21-May-2014-Chapel. Web. 1 May
2015.
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Greg Gavenda
Ancient World E

5/11/15
Legacy Project

Words spoken, the arms of the-one-who-is-in-bandages (Anubis)

who is upon his mountain are around the Overseer of
Percussionists Kemes as the Western Desert enfolds him truly in
peace inside the chapel of the Lord of Offering, so that the one
who is in it may be well. May he cause the Overseer of
Percussionists Kemes to become an akh-spirit among the souls
that never set.2
This is a much more interesting idea, as this is coming straight from
when the stela was created, and can be interpreted in different ways.
Kemes is described as becoming a spirit (another form of afterlife) and
accepted by Anubis (one of the gods of the afterlife in Egypt, as
mentioned earlier) into the afterlife. It is possible that due to whatever
power Kemes or his family may have had, that Anubis is accepting him
for that, or he had given a great sacrifice for his family or country as
well. And finally, Kemes is depicted in an interesting way on another
side of the coffin. He appears as, Osiris, in a mummified position,
holding the crook (heka) and the flail (nekhakha).3 Kemes is depicted,
himself, as the divine on one side of his stela. Based on what the stela
is usually used for, Kemes is being honored with this stela. However,
this stela is most likely also connected to the ritual of mummification
based on this depiction, because Kemes is being depicted as a mummy
and as the god of the underworld as well. Therefore, Kemes is likely
being wished to be in the afterlife by his family, friends, and possibly

2 "Stela of Kemes | Middle Kingdom." The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Accessed April 30, 2015.
3 "PBA-21-May-2014-Chapel." PBA-21-May-2014-Chapel. Web. 1 May
2015.
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Ancient World E

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Legacy Project

subjects based upon this. Kemes was also, most likely, mummified at
some point.

Secondly, the Stela of Kemes proves the eternal truth of the afterlife
through the events that were occurring at the time. At the time, Egypt
was in its Middle Period, during its 13th dynasty. During this time,
(which was from 1756-1630 BCE), about 70 kings occupied the
throne.4 With this considered in what was noted earlier regarding
Sobek and the possibility that Kemes could have been a king, it further
reinforces that Kemes was in some way important to the society back
in the 13th dynasty, and it is still possible that he could have been a
pharaoh, and the stela was used to wish him into the afterlife.
However, there is still more evidence that could disprove this.
According to Encyclopedia Britannica, there were, Large numbers of
private monuments document the prosperity of the official classes, and
a proliferation of titles is evidence of their continued expansion.5 With
this piece of evidence, there is now possibility that Kemes could have
been in one of these official classes, and that this was a private
monument, possibly kept inside of the home of Kemes family. The
stela does seem to idolize Kemes more so than a pharaoh, showing a
type of family love within it. Another factor supporting this would be
4 "The 13th Dynasty (c. 1756-c. 1630 Bc)." Encyclopedia Britannica
Online. Encyclopedia Britannica. Web. 14 May 2015.
5 Ib. Id.
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Greg Gavenda
Ancient World E

5/11/15
Legacy Project

that Kemes is shown on the stela with his family.6 As such, it does seem
that the Stela of Kemes was not dedicated to a pharaoh, but rather a
government official of some sort. Kemes, in any case, was most likely
valued by the community if his family was able to have a stela made
for him.

Finally, the Stela of Kemes proves the eternal truth of the afterlife in
conjunction with the Book of the Dead. The Book of the Dead highlights
a good number of gods, including those of death and the afterlife
(Osiris and Anubis). Osiris is, according to the Book of the Dead, Alone
among all the many gods of Egypt, Osiris was chosen as the type of
what the deceased hoped to become when, his body having been
mummified in the prescribed way, and ceremonies proper to the
occasion having been performed and the prayers said, his glorified
body should enter into his presence in heaven; to him as "lord of
eternity," by which title as judge of the dead he was commonly
addressed, the deceased appealed to make his flesh to germinate and
to save his body from decay.7 Kemes, as mentioned earlier, was
depicted as Osiris on his stela. Since Osiris represented what all
Egyptians wanted to be in the afterlife, and Kemes was depicted as
Osiris on the Stela of Kemes, the people who dedicated the stela to him
6 "Stela of Kemes | Middle Kingdom." The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Accessed April 30, 2015.
7 "THE GODS OF THE BOOK OF THE DEAD." The Gods Of The Book Of
The Dead. Web. 8 May 2015.
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Ancient World E

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Legacy Project

must have had some kind of love for him if they wanted him to be a
type of model citizen within the afterlife. Also, according to the BBC,
mummification (which essentially is the easiest way to get into the
afterlife, and one of the greatest forms of honor) was very much a
growth industry, with levels of service depending on cost.8 In Ancient
Egypt, there seemed to be two ways into the afterlife: either live a
good life, or become mummified, which based on how ceremonious it
was, the price would go up. Kemes most likely took the second way
into the afterlife, as he not only was buried (and most likely
mummified), but he also had a small monument made for him to
commemorate his life and death. It seems that those of higher status
were guaranteed to be remembered for years to come, while those of
lower status were forgotten in time, though either could have gotten
into the afterlife through either method. However, the primary method
was necessary in any case, the mummification just aided; upon arrival
in front of Osiris, people would need to undergo weighing of the
heart a process which judges your good and bad deeds, sentencing
you to eternal heaven or torture.9 So, the afterlife was only given if one
had led a truly noble life; if Kemes was worthy of being commemorated
with a stela, it is doubtful that he was unable to get into the afterlife;

8 "Ancient History in Depth: Mummies Around the World." BBC News.

Accessed May 15, 2015.
9 "Museum of Science : Ancient Egypt Science & Technology : The
Egyptian Afterlife." Museum of Science : Ancient Egypt Science &
Technology : The Egyptian Afterlife. Accessed May 15, 2015.
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Ancient World E

5/11/15
Legacy Project

as such, it is likely that anybody who had received a stela made it into
the afterlife.

The eternal truth of the afterlife is not only present within the Stela of
Kemes, but it is also present within 21st century media. The afterlife is
an interesting topic to cover in media, because it can be depicted in so
many ways. As hell or heaven, as a temple, with angels or demons, it is
almost infinite. Even songs can depict the afterlife through their words.
For example, in the song Viva la Vida by Coldplay, there is one line that
sticks out for the afterlife. The lyrics go, For some reason I cant
explain / I know Saint Peter will call my name.10 This line depicts the
Christian afterlife, with Saint Peter guarding the gate of heaven. This
being said, the song must mean that the person singing was worthy of
going to heaven, despite the song depicting him as a tyrannical ruler at
the same time. The song, in a way, stretches the limits as to which
heaven and the afterlife can be obtained.
However, this is not the only way the afterlife is depicted in 21st
century media; in the 2013 film, R.I.P.D., the premise is that dead
police officers who had done something wrong during their life have to
retrieve deados (dead spirits refusing to go to eternal damnation)
from Earth, undead or destroyed.11 Unlike the Christian theology of the
afterlife, this idea of the afterlife depicts great amounts of unrest
10 Coldplay-Viva la Vida. YouTube. Accessed May 13, 2015.
11 R.I.P.D. Official Trailer. YouTube. Accessed May 13, 2015.
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Ancient World E

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Legacy Project

among the undead, escaping their judgment and living on Earth. In this
case, the movie suggests that the afterlife could not only take place in
a metaphysical location, but on Earth as well. It suggests the idea that
our dead relatives are living among us; the only thing is, [they] dont
look like [them], [they] dont sound like [them].12

In conclusion, the Stela of Kemes can represent the eternal truth

of the afterlife through its visuals and how it depicts Kemes; the
context in which this was made, and the possibilities of who Kemes
could have been; and in conjunction with the Book of the Dead. The
eternal truth of the afterlife can also be shown in many pieces of
culture and media today, both religious and entertainment-based.

Bibliography
"Ancient History in Depth: Mummies Around the World." BBC News.
12 Ib. Id.
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Ancient World E

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Legacy Project

Accessed May 15, 2015.

"Coldplay-Viva La Vida." YouTube. Accessed May 13, 2015.
"Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History." China, 20001000 B.C. Accessed
May 1, 2015.
"Museum of Science : Ancient Egypt Science & Technology : The
Egyptian Afterlife." Museum of Science : Ancient Egypt Science &
Technology : The Egyptian Afterlife. Accessed May 15, 2015.
"PBA-21-May-2014-Chapel." PBA-21-May-2014-Chapel. Accessed May 1,
2015.
"R.I.P.D. - Official Trailer." YouTube. Accessed May 13, 2015.
"Stela of Kemes | Middle Kingdom." The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Accessed April 30, 2015.
"THE GODS OF THE BOOK OF THE DEAD." The Gods Of The Book Of
The Dead. Accessed May 8, 2015.
"The 13th Dynasty (c. 1756-c. 1630 Bc)." Encyclopedia Britannica
Online. Accessed May 14, 2015.