Model Domestic Figure

A model domestic figure is a small, carved representation of a person (often crafted from wood and painted) that was placed in Ancient Egyptian tombs to symbolise aspects of daily life. These figures typically depict servants, labourers, or household workers engaged in domestic or agricultural tasks such as grinding grain, baking bread, brewing beer, carrying water, or tending livestock.

Originating mainly during the Middle Kingdom (c. 2055–1650 B.C.), these models served a profoundly religious and magical purpose. The Ancient Egyptians believed that in the afterlife, the deceased would continue to require the comforts and provisions they enjoyed on earth. Since the physical body could no longer work, these figures were meant to magically perform essential tasks on behalf of the tomb owner in the next world.

Rather than literal portraits, model figures represented an idealised household workforce. They were sometimes arranged in miniature scenes or set in model workshops and granaries, forming part of a larger funerary assemblage. Alongside offering tables and ushabti figurines, model domestic figures reflected the Ancient Egyptian emphasis on ensuring eternal sustenance and order for the ka (the soul’s life force) of the deceased.

This charming and delicately crafted Model Domestic Figure hails from the Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, specifically from the 12th Dynasty, dating to approximately 1981–1640 B.C.

It was unearthed in the Memphite Region at Lisht South, within a context described as the Double Row of Pits, Pit 6L.P13, during the 1923–24 excavations conducted by the Egyptian Expedition of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Carved from wood and adorned with traces of original paint, the figure stands at a modest height of 11.5 cm (4½ inches), yet offers an evocative glimpse into domestic life in Middle Kingdom Egypt.

Its small scale belies its cultural richness, embodying both artistic simplicity and symbolic presence within the funerary realm. The piece entered the Museum’s collection through the division of finds, made possible by the Rogers Fund and the generous gift of Edward S. Harkness in 1924. It is catalogued under the object number 24.1.16.

This model figure appears to be holding an object that is likely related to food preparation or domestic service, a common theme for such figures. Based on similar examples from the period and the context of its excavation, it is probable that the figures would be depicted carrying a vessel, basket, or possibly a tool used in food production such as a dough-making implement or a container for grain or water.

Given the classification as a “domestic” figure rather than an agricultural or craftworker, the item he holds was likely intended to symbolise his role in household sustenance, perhaps bringing offerings, preparing meals, or serving the deceased in the afterlife. These figures often portrayed servants mid-action, reinforcing their role as eternal labourers in the tomb owner’s next world.

Summary:

Painted wooden domestic model

Middle Kingdom, 12th Dynasty, c. 1981–1640 B.C.

From Memphite Region, Lisht South.

Met Museum. 24.1.16