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...
Amidst the sprawling grandeur of Karnak Temple in Luxor, once the spiritual heart of ancient Thebes, stands a most curious and venerable monument: a colossal stone scarab carved from rose-hued granite. It is thought to date from the reign of Amenhotep III (r. 1391-1351 B.C.), during Egypt’s glittering 18th Dynasty, a period marked by architectural...
Among the many sculptural treasures of Ancient Egypt, few are as quietly evocative as the statues known as the “Bald One of Hathor”. These figures, though not divine themselves, were profoundly entwined with the sacred world of temple ritual and devotion. Most often depicted as shaven-headed men in attitudes of piety or offering, they represent...
King Menkaure, the illustrious pharaoh of Egypt’s Fourth Dynasty, reigned during the mid-26th century B.C., leaving an enduring legacy of majesty and refinement. Best known for his resplendent pyramid at Giza—smaller yet more exquisitely crafted than those of his predecessors—Menkaure was a sovereign of both might and measured grace. His reign is immortalised through sublime...
This statue, a life-sized representation, presents Hatshepsut wearing the nemes headdress—an insignia typically reserved for the reigning king. While she is draped in female attire, the inscriptions beside her legs already bear her throne name, Ma’at-Ka-Re, yet interestingly her titles remain feminine, calling her the “Lady of the Two Lands” and the “Bodily Daughter of...
Nestled within the hallowed grounds of Deir el-Medina’s East Cemetery, Tomb 1379 stands as a silent testament to the lives and legacies of its inhabitants. This ancient necropolis, home to the artisans who toiled upon the grandeur of Pharaonic tombs, harbours the remains of Satnem and Nub, figures shrouded in the mystique of Egypt’s storied...
This fragment of a statue base shows a Assyrian man’s head and shoulders. He wears a fringed robe embroidered with rosettes and has long hair and a headband. He also has a beard and a moustache, something that Assyrians were usually depicted with. The man’s complete figure was positioned flat on his belly, his back...
Made of glazed steatite, often known as soapstone, and at 29cm tall, this figurine shows Queen Tiye in full royal regalia. She is pictured wearing the double-plume crown, with a triple uraeus upon a falcon-winged headpiece cascading over her extravagant and expansive wig. A finely detailed usekh collar is worn around her neck and rests...
This painted limestone statue of a woman named Ta-Seket was discovered within Tomb Y 524 at Hu. Hu, Huw or Hiw (Arabic: هُو, Coptic: ϩⲱ, ϩⲟⲩ)is the modern name of an Egyptian town on the Nile, which in more ancient times was the capital of the 7th Nome of Upper Egypt. Hu was the centre...
This statue of a man dating from the Late 5th Dynasty-Early 6th Dynasty, c. 2430-2195 B.C., is made of limestone and pigment of black and red still remains quite prominently upon the piece. Despite the lack of titles, the piece is clearly of the Old Kingdom style; rigid form, layered spiral-style cropped wig, a pleated...
