The Newborn calf (hieroglyph) is Gardiner's sign listed no. E9, in the series of ''mammals''. The hieroglyph represents ''any newborn animal'', and specifically the calf as the hieroglyph. In Egyptian hieroglyphs, the hieroglyph is used for the phonetic value of ''iu'',〔Betrò, 1995. ''Hieroglyphics: The Writings of Ancient Egypt,'' p. 126.〕 as well as a determinative. Budge's vocabulary dictionary for the Book of the Dead has about thirty entries〔Budge, 1991. ''A Hieroglyphic Dictionary to the Book of the Dead,'' pp. 17-21.〕 that start with ''newborn calf'', "iu". They relate to ''conceiving, crying-out (as young creatures do), and other related items''. When used with the "bone-with-meat" hieroglyph E9-F44, the reference is to ''heir''.

In the 2390 BC Palermo Stone, the first row of year-registers (Row I of VI, on the Palermo piece of the 7–piece stone), only contains names of the first kings of the Predynastic period of the north (Nile Delta Egypt). Below each king's name is the symbol for ''"Pharaoh w/ (Red Crown)"'' A46, the "seated King, w/ Red Crown" (the King of the North, or King of the Delta, Lower Egypt). The calf is used for Pharaoh Khayu, L6:E9.