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Figure with a sidelock strumming a harp on his phallus

Ptolemaic Period
400–200 BC
Not on view
On loan to The Met
This work of art is currently on loan to the museum.
The small figure crouches with his knees raised on either side of an oversized phallus on which he rests and plays a lyre. The presence of a side lock indicates the figure should be identified with a child god, probably Harpokrates. They type is connected with a complex of informal statuary including many ithyphallic figures in the Late and Ptolemaic Periods. In general these informal figurines are thought to be connected with festivals celebrating a divine birth.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Figure with a sidelock strumming a harp on his phallus
  • Period: Ptolemaic Period
  • Date: 400–200 BC
  • Geography: From Egypt
  • Medium: faience
  • Dimensions: H. 5.4 × W. 1.8 × D. 3 cm (2 1/8 × 11/16 × 1 3/16 in.)
  • Credit Line: On loan from a private collection
  • Object Number: L.2001.84
  • Curatorial Department: Egyptian Art