Column Drum

Topmost drum of the western column from the South Portal. The upper portion of the drum is damaged, and the capital is missing. On the four cardinal directions are texts, surmounted with a pt hieroglyph, whose edges extend down to create vertical borderlines. The texts record the Horus and Two-Ladies names of the kings. At the bottom of the drum is the beginning of the column's central decorative band. This decoration is executed in sunk relief, and portrays the king offering a seated image of Maat to the god Ptah. Around the figures are the cartouches and serekhs of the king.