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Head of a God

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

On View: Egyptian Orientation Gallery, 3rd Floor
The tall White Crown of Upper Egypt flanked by two plumes is an attribute of Osiris, the god of the dead, who is probably represented here. The rare combination of the crown with this type of wig signified a special form of Osiris, worshipped in a chapel or shrine. At least one other figure was carved so close to the god’s right side that the vertical striations on that side of the wig were never completed.
MEDIUM Metamorphic stone
  • Place Made: Egypt
  • DATES ca. 1390-1353 B.C.E.
    DYNASTY Dynasty 18
    PERIOD New Kingdom
    DIMENSIONS 10 3/16 x 5 1/2 x 4 13/16 in. (25.9 x 14 x 12.2 cm)  (show scale)
    ACCESSION NUMBER 67.14
    CREDIT LINE Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
    PROVENANCE Archaeological provenance not yet documented; before 1964, acquired by Maurice Nahman of Cairo, Egypt; by 1964, acquired by Ernest Brummer of Paris, France; November 16-17, 1964, purchased at Sotheby's sale of Ernest Brummer Collection, lot 91, by Alice Domergue of Paris, France; 1967, purchased from Alice Domergue by the Brooklyn Museum.
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    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Greenish brown magnesite bust of a male deity with long striated hair and long plain beard wearing an upper Egyptian crown flanked by two feathers with incised lines set against a back slab. Face pleasing and youthful, ears plainly cut; plastic eyebrows and cosmetic lines; eye rims outlined; lips bordered; may come from a group. Condition: Left side and back of slab original, right side broken off and possible once adjoining a second figure. Top of crown and feathers missing; deep drill holes in left feather near top and at top of back slab - possibly modern. Break diagonally across chest; right shoulder missing. Tip of nose repainted.
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in Egyptian Orientation Gallery, 3rd Floor
    CAPTION Head of a God, ca. 1390-1353 B.C.E. Metamorphic stone, 10 3/16 x 5 1/2 x 4 13/16 in. (25.9 x 14 x 12.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 67.14. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.67.14_erg456.jpg)
    IMAGE overall, CUR.67.14_erg456.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 9/6/2007
    "CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
    RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY
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     <em>Head of a God</em>, ca. 1390-1353 B.C.E. Metamorphic stone, 10 3/16 x 5 1/2 x 4 13/16 in. (25.9 x 14 x 12.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 67.14. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.67.14_erg456.jpg)

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