This imposing statue depicts Nakhthorheb, a high-ranking noble and priest from Hermopolis Parva in the eastern Delta. He kneels in eternal devotion, hands resting upon his thighs, dressed in a pleated kilt and wearing a bag-shaped wig, his face composed in serene concentration. The statue’s inscription, written in clear hieroglyphs, offers prayers to the god...
Carved in the glittering age of Amenhotep III, this finely carved acacia wooden figure captures the calm poise and refinement that defined Ancient Egyptian art at its most elegant. The man measures at 30.5 cm, and stands with his arms at his sides, clothed in a short-sleeved tunic and a pleated linen kilt whose layered...
Excavated at Koptos (Qift) by Sir Flinders Petrie in the 1890s, this statue is one of three, which are among the earliest monumental sculptures known from Ancient Egypt, dating to the dawn of its civilisation. At 4 metres tall and 2 tonnes in weight, this towering figure was created to honour the fertility god Min....
Born in Alexandria in 47 B.C., Ptolemy XV Philopator Philometor Caesar; known to history as Caesarion, “Little Caesar”, was the only son of Cleopatra VII and Julius Caesar. His lineage alone seemed to fuse two worlds: the golden legacy of the Pharaohs and the iron empire of Rome. Through him, Egypt and Rome might have...
This intimate limestone group captures three generations (or three male relatives) in quiet harmony. The two men and the boy are rendered in the distinctive style of the Amarna Period, with elongated heads and supple, naturalistic forms. Scholars have long debated their identity: are they a grandfather, father, and son united in familial devotion, or...
This finely carved limestone head depicts Akhenaten, the pharaoh who reshaped Ancient Egypt’s religion and art in devotion to the Aten, the radiant sun-disc. The king wears the blue war crown (khepresh), its smooth form contrasting with the sensitive modelling of his features. Traces of red pigment still tint the lips, lending warmth to the...
This limestone stela belonged to Pashed, one of the craftsmen of Deir el-Medina, the village whose inhabitants built and decorated the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings. It is an example of what scholars call an akh iqer en Re, literally, “the excellent spirit of Re”. Such stelae were placed in domestic shrines,...
Rounded of belly, crocodile-tailed and lion-pawed, the goddess Taweret guarded childbirth and the nursery. Here her form is endowed with the features of Queen Tiye, great royal wife of Amenhotep III, weaving queenly authority into the most intimate sphere of protection. Such statuettes, small enough for chamber or chapel, were charms of presence, depicting the...
Among the innumerable treasures discovered within the tomb of Tutankhamun, none speak more tenderly of the Ancient Egyptian belief in the afterlife than his ushabtis; the small, spell-bound servants who would labour in eternity on behalf of their master. More than four hundred and fifteen of these figures were found within the Boy King’s tomb...
The so-called Faiyum portraits; hauntingly lifelike painted panels affixed to mummies from the Roman Period, are often misrepresented as evidence of Greek or foreign settlers in Egypt. Yet the scientific, archaeological, and cultural record tells a very different story. These portraits, dating mainly from the 1st century B.C. to the 3rd century A.D., come chiefly...
