bloggers@brooklynmuseum » Yekaterina Barbash

Meet Another Charming Lady

Yekaterina Barbash — Thu, 17 May 2012 14:32:51 +0000

All of us were a little sad to see “Bird Lady” go, even if it is only for a brief period of time, but we were able to take this opportunity to conserve another female figurine and introduce her to you.

Figurine of Woman, ca. 3650 B.C.E. - 3300 B.C.E. Terracotta, painted, 8 3/4 x 1 9/16 x 2 in. (22.2 x 3.9 x 5.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 07.447.501.

Like our “Bird Lady,” the “Female Figure with Stump Arms” was also made five and a half thousand years ago, and comes from a nearby tomb in Ma’mariya. Although this female figure is missing her head, she is just as delicate and charming as the better known “Bird Lady.” You may notice that her arms are stubbed rather than upraised. She’s an example of another type of figurine from the site of Ma’mariya that have these particular abbreviated “stub-arms.”

You’ll find her in our Egypt Reborn galleries in May, and she will remain on view with her more complete partner, the “Bird Lady,” when she returns from her venture across the river in August.

Where is our Bird Lady?

Yekaterina Barbash — Wed, 09 May 2012 16:41:44 +0000

Many of you may be wondering where our beloved Female Figurine, nicknamed the “Bird Lady” is. One of the stars of our Egyptian collection, she normally greets visitors to the Egyptian Galleries’ Predynastic section and she’s the signature image for the second phase of our reinstallation, which opened in 2003. For this reason and because she is the most complete example of this type of figurine, the “Bird Lady” traditionally does not travel on loan to other institutions for special exhibitions, but she has taken her first voyage out of the Brooklyn Museum to be part of The Dawn of Egyptian Art, a very exciting exhibition on Predynastic art at the Metropolitan Museum.

Female Figure, ca. 3500-3400 B.C.E. Terracotta, painted, 11 1/2 x 5 1/2 x 2 1/4 in. (29.2 x 14 x 5.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 07.447.505

In addition to being stunningly beautiful and graceful, our “Bird Lady” is one of the most ancient objects in the Museum. She was excavated by Henri de Morgan in 1907 from Tomb 2 at the site of Ma’mariya in Egypt, which dates to about 5,500 years ago. Female Figurines of this type are extremely rare and this is the best preserved example. That is why we very much wanted her to be part of The Dawn of Egyptian Art exhibition.

The Dawn of Egyptian Art is on view at the Met from April 10 to August 5, 2012.

Several other important objects from the Predynastic (circa 4400-3100 B.C.E.) and Old Kingdom (circa 2675-2170 B.C.E.) sections of Egypt Reborn accompanied our Bird Lady across the river, so be on the lookout for Brooklyn Museum objects just across the way.

Object of the Month: April 2010: Pair Statue of Nebsen and Nebet-ta

Yekaterina Barbash — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 17:59:22 +0000

It is pretty timely that this month’s object for discussion is the Pair Statue of Nebsen and Nebet-ta . I absolutely adore this sculpture because it is one of the best examples of art made during the reign of Amunhotep III. Coincidentally, in this past month Egyptian archeologists found a red granite head of Amunhotep III among other artifacts buried in ancient ruins.

Pair Statue of Nebsen and Nebet-ta, ca. 1400-1352 B.C.E. Limestone, painted, 15 3/4 x 8 9/16 x 9 1/4 in. (40 x 21.8 x 23.5 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 40.523.

Nebsen and his wife, Nebet-ta, lived at the end of the 15^th century B.C.E., but this statue on view in the museum, was commissioned by their son, Weserhat, only after they died. Like today, fashions changed in ancient Egypt, and since Weserhat lived during the reign of Amunhotep III (circa 1390-1352 B.C.E.), he ordered the sculpture to be carved in the style of the day. Just compare the large almond-shaped eyes, curved eyebrows, broad noses and full sensuous lips of Nebsen and Nebet-ta with Amun-Re or Amunhotep III.

Amun-Re or King Amunhotep III, 1403-1365 B.C.E. Quartzite, 7 11/16 x 5 5/8 x 3 15/16 in. (19.5 x 14.3 x 10 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 76.39.

Have you ever noticed that ancient Egyptian statues all look like the ruling pharaoh? Most likely, Nebsen and Nebet-ta did not actually resemble the king, but the artists were not striving to make portraits. By adopting the ruler’s features the artist associated the persons he was depicting with the king. This way, they could magically receive protection and reward in the afterlife, just like their king.

The inscriptions on the back of the object identify the owners by name. They also tell us that Nebsen was a scribe in the royal treasury, and Nebet-ta was a singer in the temple of Isis. The texts on this statue also describe the food and drink offerings for the ka-spirits of Nebsen and Nebet-ta. The inscription here wishes that Nebsen have “a fine memorial in his town, and that his ka-spirit be nourished daily…” The ancient Egyptians believed that one’s ka-spirit, created at the time of birth, continued to exist in this world after the person died. This is why sculptures like this, known as ka-statues, were created. They were placed in tombs or temples, and were thought to serve as a home for the ka-spirit, a place where it could receive offerings from the living family and the gods.

Nebsen’s offering formula appeals to the god Amun, One Enduring of Everything. Nebet-ta’s text connects this statue with the Brooklyn Museum because it summons Mut, the Lady of Isheru, whose temple precinct at Karnak is being excavated by the Brooklyn Museum expedition.