Representing crocodile hide with spines. The Old Kingdom form is rounded, with the spikes rising from the curving top,
, while the later form that became usual in the Middle Kingdom shows a more squarish piece of hide with spikes at its left side. The phonogrammatic value of km possibly derives from the glyphâs use in jkm(âshieldâ).
Gardiner, Alan (1957) Egyptian Grammar: Being an Introduction to the Study of Hieroglyphs, third edition, Oxford: Griffith Institute, âISBN, page 475
Henry George Fischer (1988) Ancient Egyptian Calligraphy: A Beginnerâs Guide to Writing Hieroglyphs, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, âISBN
Betrò, Maria Carmela (1995) Geroglifici: 580 Segni per Capire l'Antico Egitto, Milan: Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A., âISBN