Left Side of a Statuette, Probably a Nude Male
This slightly smiling figure wears a bagwig; the lack of any trace of a garment across the leg indicates that it was nude. The fisted proper left hand, the absence of a pubic triangle, and the iliac crest visible around the hip all indicate a male representation; female figures generally have either open palms or carry birds in a fisted right hand, not the left. Male nude figures are rare in the Middle Kingdom. They have been described as ka-figures, representations of a part of a person’s soul, because one example carries a ka¬-sign on his head. However, it is uncertain if all male nudes had the same meaning.
Artwork Details
- Title: Left Side of a Statuette, Probably a Nude Male
- Period: Middle Kingdom
- Dynasty: Dynasty 11–early 12
- Date: ca. 2030–1917 BC
- Geography: From Egypt
- Medium: Wood, paint
- Dimensions: H. 24 × W. 3 × D. 2.7 cm (9 7/16 × 1 3/16 × 1 1/16 in.)
- Credit Line: Bequest of Nanette B. Kelekian, 2020
- Object Number: 2021.41.112
- Curatorial Department: Egyptian Art
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ca. 1390–1349 B.C.
ca. 1390–1352 B.C.
390–246 BCE
ca. 1550–1479 B.C.
ca. 1981–1500 B.C.
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