| Virginia
Journal of Science.
2005. Vol 56 (4) : 163-208 |
| Comparison
of Aquatic Life Depicted in Illustrations and Plaster Casts of the Punt
Relief from the Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir El-Bahari Emily Lord, Department of Biology, Randolph-Macon College, Ashland, VA 23005 and Eugene G. Maurakis, Science Museum of Virginia, 2500 W. Broad St., Richmond, VA 23220 and School of Continuing Studies, University of Richmond, VA 23173 ABSTRACT
The primary objective of this study is to document
differences between image characteristics of two sources (illustrations
in Naville, 1898; and images in the cast of the relief at Virginia
Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) of the Punt relief from the temple of
Hatshepsut at Deir El-Bahri. Our second is to compare cast images to
photographs of the original relief. Characteristics of 30 species in
the illustrations were described and compared to descriptions of the
corresponding 30 species photographed from the cast at VMFA. The
number of differences and similarities were recorded for each pair of
corresponding icons and used to calculate percent difference
hypothesized to be zero. Compared to cast images, all
illustrations contained errors. Total average difference in the
30 icon comparisons was 43.5 % (s.d.=18.5; range=14.3-90.0%). Average
number of errors between 300 external characteristics of cast images
and illustrations was 4.5 (s.d.=2.16; range=1-9). Over 76% of the
illustrations had three or more errors. Cast images were comparable to
those in the original relief containing only 5 errors (1.6%).
Results of a paired t-test indicated that the average character
difference (41.8) between illustrations and cast and cast and relief
was significant (t= 13.96; p>t=0.0001).We reject the hypothesis that
there are no differences between illustrations and photographs of casts
of aquatic species on Punt Relief from the Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir
El-Bahari, but accept the hypothesis that cast images are an accurate
representation of the original relief depicted in photographs of Meyer
(1913). Key words: Hatshepsut, Punt expedition, aquatic life, archaeology |