Headless unshrouded ithyphallic deity statuette

This statuette stands in the traditional ithyphallic pose of Min, although it highlights the difficulty of identifying a represented deity when the work has no naming inscriptions or archaeological context. The missing right arm of this serpentinite statuette was almost certainly raised and supported a flail. Both it and the missing phallus would have been made separately then attached to the trunk. This statuette shows a marked difference from earlier representations of Min and other ithyphallic deities in that it has no shroud and is nude except for a broad collar, pectoral, armlets, and bracelets. Nude ithyphallic representations were a late development, and several Ptolemaic and Roman Period examples are known. Nudity is typically a marker of a child god, most often seen with Horus the Child. While Min was frequently merged with adult Horus, perhaps this and similar statuettes could reflect a late merger of Min and the child Horus.