Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Box with Isis-Tyche-Aphrodite and Dionysus-Serapis
Not on view
The style and iconography of this box is part of a Hellenistic tradition, yet the meaning behind the work has roots in Egyptian religion. Syncretic imagery that combined different forms of belief remained popular in Egypt through the early Byzantine period. For example, on this ivory box, Isis bears the same attributes featured on the painted panel. She also carries a basket of fruit and a rudder connecting her to the Roman goddess Tyche-Fortuna, while the Eros holding a mirror to her left links her to Aphrodite. On the other side of the box is the Greek god Dionysus. He is flanked by a maenad (left) and a satyr (right).
Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.
