Narmer Palette
In 1898, J.E. Quibell excavated the royal residences of various early Egyptian kings at Hierakonpolis in Upper Egypt when he discovered a large ceremonial slate palette of King Narmer (ca. 3000 BCE) and other objects. The Palette, which has a shield-shape, is decorated on both sides and depicts Narmer defeating his enemies. The palette symbolizes the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt. The name Narmer is represented in hieroglyphs in the serekh sign located at the top of the palette. Narmer's name was recently discovered incised on a piece of an imported Egyptian wine jar in the Nahal Tillah region of southern Israel by the UCSD archaeological research expedition.