This scepter is made of sheet-gold beaten on a
wooden core. The shaft is in the form of a papyrus
flower and stem; it is embellished at each end with
a feather design in cloisonne work inlaid with
carnelian, turquoise, lapis lazuli, felspar, faience
and glass. Embossed on one side of the blade are
rows of trussed and slaughtered
bulls, partly
dismembered, beneath a frieze of lotus petals
between borders of checker and diamond patterns. On
the other side of the blade, beneath a similar
frieze, is an inscription which reads: 'The Good
God, the beloved, dazzling of face like the Aten
when it shines, the son of Amun Nebkheperure, living
for ever'.
Scepters of this kind have three names
in Egyptian texts, kherep 'the controller',
sekhem 'the powerful' and aba 'the
commander'. They were carried as symbols of
authority from very early times, but no distinction
can be drawn between their various uses. In
temple
ritual and in the mortuary service the aba
scepter was often held by the officiant who
presented the offerings. If the sacrificial
offerings shown on the blade of this scepter are
indicative of its use, it probably represents the
aba scepter, but precise identification is not
possible. It was found in the Annex where it had
probably been taken from the Treasury by the
robbers.