Middle Kingdom

Egyptian Faience Hedgehog Figurine

Egyptian Faience Hedgehog Figurine

Faience hedgehog with a white core and turquoise and black coating. Hedgehog-shaped objects of the most diverse types have been present in Egypt since the Predynastic Period. We find it in jewelry, as an amulet, as a decorative element on the bow of boats, but also in containers for cosmetics. Images of hedgehogs were painted...

Statue of Lady Sennuwy

Statue of Lady Sennuwy

This elegant seated statue of Lady Sennuwy of Asyut is one of the most superbly carved and beautifully proportioned sculptures from the Middle Kingdom. The unknown artist shaped and polished the hard, gray granodiorite with extraordinary skill, suggesting that he was trained in a royal workshop. He has portrayed Sennuwy as a slender, graceful young...

Ancient Egyptian Beaded collar with amulets

Ancient Egyptian Beaded collar with amulets

The central motif of this small, elegant beaded collar, is a large, hollow gold ball bead flanked by a pair of amulets in the form of wadjet eyes, one of the most popular and powerful amulets for warding off potential threats. Centrally placed on each side of the main motif is an openwork amulet representing...

Mirror of Princess Sithathoriunet

Mirror of Princess Sithathoriunet

This mirror of Princess Sithathoriunet is a masterpiece of Middle Kingdom art. The mirror itself is made from silver, while the handle is of obsidian. The handle takes the form of a papyrus stem inlaid with gold ending with a double sided face of the goddess Hathor. Through the depiction of the goddess Hathor, the...

Statue of King Senusret III

Statue of Senusret III

This statue of Senusret III sculpted of black granite was found in the forecourt of the temple of Mentuhotep II at Deir el-Bahari. It was one of the six statues that Senusret III dedicated to the temple of his ancestor Mentuhotep. Senusret restored and endowed this temple, which was the site of an important local...

Statue of a Seated Vizier

Statue of a Seated Vizier

This seated figure’s rank of vizier is confirmed by the cord around his neck from which his official badge or seal would have been suspended. The seal would have been tucked into his kilt for safekeeping. Carved from anorthosite gneiss (also known as Khafre diorite, the material associated with the Old Kingdom king Khafre), the...

Seated Statue of Queen Nofret

Seated Statue of Queen Nofret

In this statue, the Queen Nofret is shown seated on a throne, wearing a wig known as a Hathor wig, which has three separate tresses of hair. A large tress falls behind the head, while two wavy tresses are pulled to the front and wrapped in narrow bands, which end over the breasts in two...

Egyptian Faience Statuette of a Hippopotamus

Faience Statuette of a Hippo

This statuette of a hippo was molded in faience, a crushed quartz glazed and fired at a relatively low temperature. Copper salts in the glaze impart the bright blue or blue-green color so characteristic of faience objects. Over the animal’s naturalistic shape, the craftsman painted lily plants that appear as a giant tattoo. Small sculptures...

Statue of a Woman Carrying Offerings

Statue of a Woman Carrying Offerings

This masterpiece of Egyptian wood carving of a woman Carrying offerings was discovered in a hidden chamber at the side of the passage leading into the rock cut tomb of the royal chief steward Meketre, who began his career under King Mentuhotep II of 11th Dynasty and continued to serve successive kings into the early...

Bust of a 13th Dynasty King

Bust of Neferhotep I

Based on the style of this bust, it has been dated to the second half of 13th Dynasty, during the reigns of Userkare Khendjer to Khasekhemre Neferhotep I (ca. 1764-1731 BC). He is one of the most powerful kings of this dynasty. The upper part of this life-sized statue was found at the temple of...