TT181, the tomb of Nebamon and Ipuky .

TT181, the tomb of Nebamon and Ipuky .

This barque is pulled by another, somewhat larger, where is preserved the most beautiful scene of ancient Egyptian mourners (similar to the better known one of Ramose, TT55, dating from the same period).

The women, in a state close to hysteria, give the impression of extreme sadness, and the artist worked so well this fairly new theme in Egyptian craftsmanship that it is possible to think of them being agitated in all senses and that their howling can be heard (as still heard at the time of the funerals in Arabic countries nowadays). This taste for over-emphasis and complication can still be found during the Ramesside period. The men, who are seated with their arms wrapped around their knees, seem to be a thousand miles from all this agitation, almost indifferent. According to Sweeney, it refers to a social convention: the men don't have to show their tribulation in public. All of this activity takes place on the roof of the cabin, possibly made necessary by the lack of space. This lack is because a crew is represented, with rowers, a helmsman, a man of prow announcing the direction to take according to the sandbars, and a man at the stern, standing in a very decorative structure

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TT181, the tomb of Nebamon and Ipuky .