Seated Statue of the official Minmose

Despite the front of the statue having extensive damage, the back provides us with quite a bit of information about Minmose, thanks to the wonderful inscriptions having survived.

Minmose’s primary titles reveal his close association with the cult of Osiris; the deity central to Egyptian beliefs about resurrection and the afterlife. He is described as the “overseer of the festivals of Osiris,” suggesting that he played a pivotal role in organising and supervising the great rituals and ceremonies dedicated to the god, particularly those held at Abydos, Osiris’s cult centre. These festivals were essential to maintaining the spiritual and cosmic balance, reinforcing the myths of death and rebirth that underpinned Egyptian religion.

Moreover, Minmose held the esteemed position of “steward of the God’s Wife”, a reference to the God’s Wife of Amun, a title often bestowed upon royal women, such as queens or princesses, who served as high-ranking priestesses. As steward, Minmose would have been responsible for managing the estates, offerings, and ceremonial functions associated with this sacred office, reflecting his trusted status within the temple hierarchy and his close connection to the royal and divine spheres.

Intriguingly, the statue also describes Minmose as the “first priest of Osiris”, reinforcing his preeminent religious standing and likely indicating his role as the high priest or leading officiant in Osirian rites. His position would have granted him prestige and spiritual authority, enabling him to intercede with the gods on behalf of both the living and the dead.

The statue’s dedication, commissioned by his son, underscores the Ancient Egyptian belief in the power of commemorative monuments to sustain one’s name and memory in perpetuity. The inscription invokes offerings of bread, beer, meat, linen, incense, oils, wine, and milk, reflecting the essential provisions for the Ka, or life-force, in the afterlife.

“An offering that the king gives to Osiris, ruler of eternity, so that he may give a voice offering of bread and beer, meat and poultry, alabaster and linen, incense and oil, and all things good and pure.

To breathe in the fragrance of myrrh and frankincense, fresh water, wine, and milk, for the Ka of the overseer of the festivals of Osiris, steward of the God’s Wife, Minmose. Made by his son so that his name may live, the first priest of Osiris, Minmose.”

Based on the stylistic cues and conventional artistic representations of the New Kingdom, particularly within private statuary of the 18th Dynasty, it is indeed likely that the two female figures flanking Minmose on either side are his wife and daughter, or possibly two daughters, rather than goddesses.

These women are not depicted with divine regalia or insignia. They do not wear the horns and solar disk of Hathor or any divine headdresses that would suggest goddess status. Instead, they are shown with the wigs and dress typical of noble Egyptian women of the period; often consisting of long, close-fitting garments and elaborate plaited wigs, sometimes adorned with a lotus or headband.

During the New Kingdom, it was common for statues of elite men to include smaller-scale figures of family members (particularly wives and children) carved alongside or embracing them, signifying familial piety, legacy, and continuity. This visual formula was a way to demonstrate the cohesion of the family unit in life and in the afterlife.

When two women are depicted, they are often interpreted as a wife and daughter, or in some cases, two daughters or sometimes the same woman depicted twice. This framing could represent both earthly lineage and future remembrance, the wife perhaps overseeing household and ritual roles in the man’s life, while the daughter ensures the offering rites and perpetuation of his name after death.

Their positioning, seated at either side of Minmose, reflects their supportive and reverential roles. While not equal in status, they are accorded a place of honour. Egyptian statuary adhered to strict rules of hierarchy, where the central figure (Minmose) signifies primary importance, while the flanking figures represent devotion, lineage, or veneration.

The mutual embrace between Minmose and the two women suggests an intimate, affectionate bond, characteristic of a family grouping. The embrace not only symbolises family closeness in life, but also evokes perpetuity in the afterlife, where the trio are preserved together, eternally connected in stone. This visual embrace becomes a sculptural declaration of emotional and spiritual immortality.

The title “Steward of the God’s Wife” became increasingly significant from the reign of Thutmose III onward, with Osirian festivals and priesthoods were especially prominent at Abydos under pharaohs such as Amenhotep III. It is most likely that Minmose lived and served during the reign of Amenhotep III (c. 1390–1352 B.C.), although late in the reign of Thutmose IV or early Akhenaten could also be considered. Based upon the style, Amenhotep III’s reign seems most plausible.

Summary:

Fragmentary limestone seated statue of the official Minmose, flanked by two female figures

New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty, c. 1550-1292 B.C.

Likely from Abydos

Purchased through Harry Osborn Cureton, 1841. British Museum. EA2300