Imagine this carving in its original setting: in a temple that sat on the island of Philae, within the Nile River.

[SOUND OF BIRDS SINGING AND OARS SPLASHING IN THE WATER]

Philae was a major cult center for the goddess Isis, and was also the site of temples to gods associated with her. Here we see a god with the head of an ibis and the body of a man. In true Egyptian fashion, the carver has tucked the god’s front arm behind the tip of his beak, so as not to obscure any part of the curving Ibis beak which identifies him. He is Thoth, who is associated with wisdom, and the sacred art of writing. Out of the tall jar he pours forth a libation—in the form, appropriately enough, of hieroglyphs— representing life and dominion. The stream flows over the head of the ruler; a Roman Emperor depicted as a Pharaoh.

Above his head, in the top row, notice the only partially preserved hieroglyphs. Depending on how one reads them, he is either Claudius or Nero. The first-century A.D. carver of this relief took great care in the depiction of the emperor’s face, which, despite the damage, retains a wonderful sense of softness around the mouth. For the Roman emperors serving as pharaohs, it was good politics to include their images in temples decorated in the true Egyptian style.