This monumental head of a woman comes from a statue composed of discrete parts, including a veil. The top and back of the head are roughly worked to receive the veil (and perhaps also a diadem), which was made of stone, stucco, or conceivably metal and is now missing. The features are highly idealized in a pure Greek style, but the face is stamped with enough individuality to justify calling it a portrait.

The likeness represents a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty, the succession of Macedonian Greeks who ruled Egypt from the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C. until the annexation of Egypt by Rome and the suicide of Cleopatra VII in 30 B.C. Our portrait has been variously identified since it surfaced in Egypt in the late eighteenth century in the collection of George Baldwin, who had served as the British consul general in that country. Most recently, it has been argued that the head represents Arsinoë II. She ruled together with her brother, Ptolemy II, from 278 B.C. until her death in 270 B.C., when she was deified. This noble and radiant head, which retains its original polish, ranks among the best Ptolemaic royal portraits.