A complete-looking museum object may bring together surviving fragments and modern additions. Reading the label closely can reveal those layers without making the display any less interesting.
Check what belongs to which stage
The Met’s gameboard, object 01.4.1a, includes ancient faience inlays displayed on a modern wooden box. Its record explains that missing tiles were replaced with modern copies. The visible playing side is arranged for senet with thirty squares.
That distinction changes the description. “An entirely surviving ancient wooden box” would misrepresent what the catalogue actually says.
Use a two-layer note
Make one list for surviving ancient material and another for reconstruction. Record how the museum explains their relationship. Do not decide which individual tile is modern from colour alone unless the source identifies it.
Then ask what the reconstruction helps communicate: layout, proportions or the relationship between pieces. A reconstruction can aid understanding while still needing to be labelled clearly.
Keep rules separate from appearance
A board’s surviving arrangement does not, by itself, provide a complete rulebook. If you try a modern reconstruction of an ancient game, identify the source and its assumptions rather than presenting it as a direct ancient instruction.
Our decorative illustration is not the gameboard. Follow the museum link for actual views and compare the material terminology with our introduction to Egyptian faience.