A Reinterpretation of the So-called Bread Loaves in Egyptian Offering Scenes

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Possibly no other images in Egyptian art undergo as many stylistic variations as do the blade-like objects found upon the tabletops in offering scenes (pls. III). And yet, in spite of their variety, each of these blade-like shapes is unvaryingly accepted as representing bread loaves or, to be more exact, halfloaves of bread.1 As logical as this interpretation may seem to some, even a brief examination of these images must leave the viewer with the uneasy feeling that a better solution is needed; all too often these blade-like projections simply do not look anything like half-loaves of bread, and this alone should be sufficient to cast doubt upon the label. Thus, an alternative explanation should be considered, one which broadens the meaning and function of the offering scene and takes into account the curious evolution of these