Painting of Lady Tjepu

Painted on a limestone substrate, the scene employs a translucent white garment that allows the underlying form to show through, a characteristic of high‑status portraiture. The wig is finely rendered, topped with a floral crown, and a small head cone of grease signals aristocratic rank. The work shows signs of pigment loss, exposing the stone beneath, yet retains enough detail to convey the intricate jewelry and patterned shoulder straps.

The original composition placed Tjepu behind her son Nebamun, a tomb owner who shared the burial space with the sculptor Ipuki. This arrangement is atypical, as wives usually occupy that position; the deviation likely reflects Nebamun’s marriage to Ipuki’s widow and the resulting familial connections. The fresco fragment was recovered from the tomb’s wall and entered the museum collection during early 20th‑century excavations.

Tomb 181 belongs to a period when elite families emphasized their devotion to Amun through elaborate offering scenes. The presence of the menat and the shrine in the background aligns with the ritual practices of the Beautiful Festival of the Valley, a ceremony that celebrated the renewal of the god’s power and the deceased’s participation in divine rites.