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Ελληνικά05 · OBJECT · TARKHAN
Tarkhan Dress
The dress that survived time
A linen garment may be older than many stone monuments.
Museum documentation · free public access, no account required.
Generated reconstruction · Declared visual hypothesis
Declared visual reconstruction; not a photograph of the original nor documentary evidence.
History and context
The Tarkhan dress is a tailored, pleated linen garment that survived in a funerary context. Its weaving requires cultivation, water, time and technical knowledge, although the experience of wearing it rarely reaches museums.
This stop shifts attention from the crowns to the body. Dressing was everyday technology: prepared fibers, stretched threads, seams and specialized hands before the fabric was buried.
The garment was recognized in 1977 by preserving a mass of linen excavated in 1913. Its three woven pieces, V-neckline and pleated sleeves retain cutting and sewing decisions.
A sample of only 2,24 mg allowed radiocarbon dating of the flax. The result places its manufacture on the threshold of the First Dynasty and corrects previous dating based only on association.
Evidence and interpretation
Documented fact: Radiocarbon dating of the dress provided a calibrated interval of 3482–3102 BCE with a 95 % probability. Interpretation and caution: The chronology of the garment is well defined, but attributing it to a specific job, gender or status without knowing its user would be unsafe. Documented extension: The calibrated date published by UCL is 3482–3102 BCE at 95 %; The garment has folds and wear. Interpretation and expanded caution: The lower edge is missing and the context was altered, so we do not know length, user or exact reason for deposit.
Catalogue facts
- Narrative date
- ca. 3482–3102 BCE (95 % probability)
- Location
- Tarkhan, Egypt
- Material
- Woven and sewn linen
- Context
- Clothing preserved in a funerary context
- Curatorial reading
- The documented fact and its interpretation appear separately in the evidence block.
- Museum number
- Petrie Museum UC 28614a–j
- Construction
- Three pieces of handwoven linen
- Documentary coverage
- 2 museum, heritage, primary corpus or research sources for this stop.
A SHARED TOPIC, DIFFERENT MOMENTS
Objects connected through time
Follow a topic across the collections. A shared tag is a way to compare objects, not proof that one culture influenced another.
The order uses the midpoint of each approximate date range; ranges can overlap. Spacing does not represent elapsed time. Swipe, scroll or use the arrows. With the sequence focused, use ← / →, Home or End.
Linen1 dated object
A closer look
About 1 min to read · 1 section. Further reading and sources · free access. Editorial review recorded: .
The traces of a body and a restoration
Wear creases at the elbows and armpits indicate that Tarkhan's garment was worn before reaching its funerary context. When she was recognized among the group of fabrics, she was inside out; A relationship with funerary practices has been proposed, but the position within the deposit does not allow it to be made certain. Its exhibition aspect also has history: the conservation held the linen on crepeline, a very fine silk fabric, to support it and show its shape. Distinguishing the old seams from the modern support allows you to appreciate both the use and fragility of the piece.
- Museum · UCL Petrie Museum · Tarkhan dressAccess recorded: .
Location and territory
APPROXIMATE LOCATION
Tarkhan EgyptApproximate marker of the necropolis.Where it is held
UCL Petrie Museum of Egyptian and Sudanese Archeology
Item or group in the record · Documented collection
Collection record UC28614.
The holding institution is documented; public display may change. Check its official record before visiting.
Sources and references
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