Fragmentary statue of Ramesses II as a standard bearer
New Kingdom, Ramesside
In this portion of a temple statue, Ramesses II holds the staff of a sacred standard with his left hand, propping it against his side and shoulder (see 65.114 for a non-royal but complete example of a standard-bearing statue). Crowned with royal or divine figures (or their heads), such standards either represented the king's life-force (ka) or served as portable images of gods. By holding this object, the king drew attention to his diligent performance of temple ritual. The inscriptions on the shaft of the standard and the back pillar state that Ramesses is dedicating a "cult object" to "his father," the god Amun-Re; the king's name is carved inside a cartouche on his belt. The competent handling of the hard material in the modeling of the figure places this statue among the finer works of his reign.
See 51.8 for a fragment of the standard.
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