Senet Game in the Brooklyn Museum, August 2007

Senet Game
wood and faience
New Kingdom, Dynasty XVIII, circa 1539-1295 BC
From Thebes
Accession # 37.93E and 37.94E 1-23

Painted on some Middle Kingdom coffins were texts to guide the deceased through the underworld, where lurked demons who would deny entrance to gateways through which he needed to pass. The game of Senet reflects similar thinking, as the Egyptian word senet, meaning "passing," implies. The game board represents the spheres through which the deceased had to travel to reach the place of judgment. A New Kingdom text suggests that the game was played between the deceased and an unnamed opponent, the stakes being the deceased continued existence. But there is also evidence that Senet was popular with the living.

Text from the Brooklyn Museum label.