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Cenotaph
- Accession Number:AKM912
- Place:Egypt or Tunisia
- Dimensions:160 x 22 x 17 cm
- Date:1101
- Materials and Technique:Carved marble
This type of cenotaph with its fine carving and elaborate inscription would have been part of the tomb of a notable individual. The inscription carries the name of an anonymous female, “al-Qamar, daughter of al-A‘la,” who died in September 1011. Qur’anic verses and the Muslim profession of faith (shahada) cover the remaining sides of the upper section of the cenotaph. The inscriptions are carved in a foliated Kufic script with curling leaves decorating the uprights of all the letters. The form of the cenotaph, the calligraphic style, and the half-palmette element that decorates the end panels are typical of carved marble cenotaphs from North Africa dating to the Fatimid period (909–1171). This one, however, is the earliest known.
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