322
Daressy #: --
Owner: Nefer (tomb undiscovered)
Reasons: --
Transliteration: xtmw-bjtj Hm-nTr 3 nw n jmn nfr mAa-xrw
Translation: Seal-bearer of the king of Lower Egypt, third prophet of Amun, Nefer justified.
Date: A. II - A. III (Gaballa 1970 [MDAIK 26]: 52).
Length: --
Colours: --
Findspots: --
Remarks:
The owner may be the same as that of # 299 and could potentially be the father of the owner of # 30.
The design and handwriting of # 299 and # 322 suggest that the maker of the two is the same but as the inscriptions of both cones denote, # 322 was made first and # 299 was made later. The dimension of # 299 is larger than that of # 322, which may suggest that Nefer wanted to emphasise his new title. Given the absence of findspot data, it is not possible to ascertain whether Nefer proceeded to cut his second tomb following his promotion.
However, we do know of cases where individuals who held the position of Hm-nTr 3-nw n jmn were promoted to Hm-nTr 2-nw n jmn. In contrast, there are no known instances of someone advancing from Hm-nTr 2-nw n jmn to Hm-nTr tpj n jmn. This suggests that the position of Hm-nTr tpj n jmn may have been reserved exclusively for individuals from certain privileged families. Furthermore, it is possible that this title was largely honorary in nature, serving more as a ceremonial position than a practical administrative role.
The specimen stored in the Royal Ontario Museum is fragile (ROM: 993X2.68).
The Musées Royaux du Cinquantenaire in Brussels houses a fragment of a statue from the reign of Amunhotep III. The inscription on it mentions Amunemhat, son of Nefer (E. 1103. Speleers 1923: 60). The EMC also possesses a black granite shrine found in Medinet Habu (Jd'E 59868), belonging to Nefer. The inscription on it states that his other title is jt-nTr 3-nw n jmn (third god's father), which is almost equivalent to Hm-nTr 3 nw n jmn. The same shrine also mentions Nefer's parents, Tjutji and Taruiu. Interestingly, Nefer's father and wife shared the same name (Gaballa 1970 [MDAIK 26]).
See also 01-152 in Davies's notebook, 05-086 in Macadam's DALEX file 1, and 06-068 & 082 in his DALEX file 2.