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Royal or divine figure with high conical headdress

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Royal or divine figure with high conical headdress

Period:
Middle Bronze Age
Date:
ca. 18th–17th century B.C.
Geography:
Syria-Levant
Medium:
Bronze
Dimensions:
H. 7 in. (17.9 cm)
Classification:
Metalwork
Credit Line:
Gift of Sheldon and Barbara Breitbart, 1985
Accession Number:
1985.262.2

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 403

  • Description

    The close relationship between the divine patriarch El and his earthly counterpart, the Syrian king, may be expressed in this male figure wearing a wrapped mantle with thickly rolled borders and a version of the Egyptian white crown. As the eternal king, he might wear the Mesopotamian horns of divinity or the Egyptian white crown. As a mortal ruler, this figure may appear in the presence of such deities as the weather god and the Syrian goddess with the square miter. Examples appear on the cylinder seals rolled on tablets at the city of Alalakh, an important center in northwestern Syria.

  • Provenance

    Acquired by the Museum in 1985, gift of Sheldon and Barbara Breitbart

  • References

    Pittman, Holly, in collaboration with Joan Aruz. 1987. Ancient Art in Miniature: Near Eastern Seals from the Collection of Martin and Sarah Cherkasky. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, p.41, fig. 22.

    Annual Report of the Trustees of The Metropolitan Museum of Art 116 (July 1, 1985 - June 30, 1986), p. 16.

  • See also
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    Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
    MetPublications
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