The rectangular frame representing a palace façade and enclosing an early pharaoh’s name is called a serekh.
A serekh combines a stylized view of a palace façade with a royal name written inside it. It was the earliest major convention for marking a king’s name in Egyptian royal iconography. The word comes from an Egyptian term meaning “façade,” reflecting the image’s architectural appearance.
A Horus falcon usually stands above the frame. This made the enclosed name the king’s Horus name and connected the living ruler with Horus, the divine protector of kingship. The design also symbolized the palace as the center of royal administration and power.
The serekh predates the cartouche by roughly four dynasties and several centuries. That distinction causes frequent confusion: both devices frame royal names, but a serekh is associated especially with the early dynastic Horus name and normally has a palace façade and falcon. Early examples appear on objects such as vessels, seals, labels, and funerary monuments.