The stela of king Den of the 1st Dynasty (c. 2800 BC) is a very simply structured object. Inside a rectangle in the centre of the stone slab stands as protector the falcon godHorus, to whom the king is assimilated, while below is a schematically represented palace enclosure. Inside this enclose may be seen the (so-called Horus) name of the king, the reading of which is uncertain. Den is currently the most favoured reading, but some Egyptologists prefer Udimu or even Niudi. This funerary stela from the royal cemetery at Abydos was placed in front of the king's mastaba and was one of a pair.
L. Speleers, Recueil des inscriptions égyptiennes des Musées Royaux du Cinquantenaire à Bruxelles, Bruxelles 1923, 2 nº 12
L. Limme, Egyptische stèles - Stèles égyptiennes, Bruxelles 1979, 12-13
J.-Ch. Balty, e.a., Koninklijke Musea voor Kunst en Geschiedenis, Brussel, Oudheid - Musées Royaux d'Art et d'Histoire, Bruxelles, Antiquité - The Royal Museums of Art and History, Brussels, Antiquity, Bruxelles 1988, 14-15
F. Lefebvre et B. Van Rinsveld, L'Égypte. Des Pharaons aux Coptes, Bruxelles 1990, 24-25
Th. De Putter et Chr. Karlshausen, Les pierres, Bruxelles 1992, 88
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