Found on the floor of the Annex, these arm-shaped
clappers measure some 15.7 cm (6-1/8 in) in
length. Holes at the proximal end of each clapper
were intended for the insertion of a cord linking
the two together in the manner of castanets -
though, as tomb scenes apparently show, the noise
would have been produced by shaking rather than by
controlled percussion. Each arm is rather crudely
incised on its polished outer surface with an
elongated cartouche associating
Queen
Tiye with her granddaughter, Meritaten: 'The
great royal wife Tiye, may she live; the king's
daughter Meritaten'. Precisely why granddaughter and
grandmother should have been linked in this way is
uncertain. The clappers' presence in the
tomb of Tutankhamun is similarly obscure.