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Statuette of an ancestral king

Late Period–Early Ptolemaic Period
390–246 BCE
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 899
The fluid pose and chest-beating gesture of this extraordinary figure evoke a stately performance. Egyptian relief representations depict such figures as part of a troupe of similarly genuflecting divine beings with falcon and jackal heads. This troupe is usually seen attending the sunrise or the birth and coronation of a king; three-dimensional figures of the same type were set around the processional shrines of certain gods, doubtlessly to accompany the epiphany of the deity during a procession.

It is not easy to explain the presence among the animal-headed divinities of the human-headed figure wearing—as seen here—the regalia of a pharaoh. Some scholars interpret the figure as the representation of an actual king. Others understand it as a mythical being that introduces royal aspects into the otherworldly ritual. Whatever its exact meaning, this masterpiece of wood carving was certainly part of a temple's equipment. Its ritual character was further emphasized by a covering of lead sheet, now vanished.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Statuette of an ancestral king
  • Period: Late Period–Early Ptolemaic Period
  • Dynasty: Dynasty 30 or later
  • Date: 390–246 BCE
  • Geography: From Egypt
  • Medium: Wood, formerly clad with lead sheet
  • Dimensions: H. 20.8 × W. 14.5 × D. 11 cm (8 3/16 × 5 11/16 × 4 5/16 in.); H. (with tang): 23.3 cm (9 3/16 in.)
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Anne and John V. Hansen Egyptian Purchase Fund, and Magda Saleh and Jack Josephson Gift, 2003
  • Object Number: 2003.154
  • Curatorial Department: Egyptian Art

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