Animal Stall Tethering Stone

Limestone rectangular block pierced at one end for a tethering rope to be passed through. Used to tether an animal in a stall. Carved into one side of the block is a cartouche containg a name of king Akenaten. Of the two tethering stones in the museum this is the largest and has the best preserved inscription. The object doesn't seem to match with the two inscribed tethering stones listed in the Amarna Small Finds Database (29/334 and 31/473). The stone comes from a building units intended for the housing of different kinds of animals such as the North Palace. Similar tethering stones from Amarna are now in other museums: e.g., Brooklyn no. 25.886.18; Penn Museum E648B.