Men from Punt Carrying Gifts, Tomb of Rekhmire

The Men from Punt scene in the Rekhmire tomb documents Egypt's trade relationship with the land of Punt — a semi-mythical African trading partner from whom Egypt obtained myrrh, ebony, gold, and exotic animals. Punt tribute-bearers appear alongside representatives from the Aegean, Nubia, and the Levant in the tomb's comprehensive tribute program, and Nina Davies's copy of these figures preserves the specific visual markers — skin color, dress, the distinctive products they carry — that Egyptians used to distinguish Punt from other tributary peoples. The precise location of Punt remained debated throughout the twentieth century, and Davies's copies contributed to the visual evidence available for that debate.

Davies's reproduction of the Punt figures captures the Egyptian convention for representing sub-Saharan Africans while preserving the specific product-forms — the distinctive myrrh trees, the animal skins — that carry the scene's geographical and commercial information. Her color accuracy in reproducing the skin tones and textile patterns is particularly critical for scholarly use.