THE WINGED MOON
A BRIEF HISTORY OF (FRUITCAKE)
Karen Walker
Museum location: South Gallery. I'm basement, 51 North Avenue Memphis.
Period: New Kingdom. Same old same old, period. Back in Dad's kingdom.
Date: about 1450 B.C. Reign of Pharaoh Thutmose III. Upstairs, Theodore I.
Artifact: Desiccated barley bread with dates, grapes (raisins), figs.
Today, keeps at room temperature for two months. If frozen, until kingdom come.
Geography: Egypt, Thebes, tomb of Nefer.
Credit: Acquired in 1954. Private gift. The immortal Johnny Carson: "The worst gift is fruitcake."
Museum Accession Number: 1954.6.81. Mine 1992.12.27 to Theodore and the late Margaret Poole. December 27 is National Fruitcake Day.
Comments: A grave good to sustain Nefer on the journey through the netherworld. Dark down here, too.
Today, a sticky holiday tradition like Dad's Christmas hug and bourbon talk: "There was nothing wrong with Josh. Liking girls makes you a fruitcake. That's what they used to call it."
Old tapes of The Tonight Show. Dad's. Upstairs I'm invited."There is only one fruitcake in the entire world and people keep sending it to each other." Carson, about A.D.1978. When they used to call it that, would've called me that.
ART CLEOPATRA by KASIANI
Kasiani is a US-based artist. Her work has been exhibited in Brussels, London, Paris, as well as Portugal and Brazil and can be seen on Instagram @kasiani_tales
Karen Walker (she/her) is in a basement in Ontario, Canada. Her most recent work is in or forthcoming in A Thin Slice of Anxiety, Misery Tourism, Centaur, Cosmorama, Overheard, and Bending Genres. @MeKawalker883