Skip Navigation

Statuette of a Cloaked Figure

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

On View: Old Kingdom to 18th Dynasty, Egyptian Galleries, 3rd Floor
Late Twelfth Dynasty sculptors introduced a new subject: the male figure wearing a full-length, enveloping cloak. This new form—demonstrated by the example seen here—may reflect a sense of introspection evident in later Middle Kingdom texts, or it could refer to Osiris, god of the dead, who was buried in mummy bandages. An example of the block statue—a form developed shortly before the cloaked statue—is exhibited nearby.
MEDIUM Limestone, pigment
  • Place Made: Egypt
  • DATES ca. 1836-1759 B.C.E.
    DYNASTY late Dynasty 12
    PERIOD Middle Kingdom
    DIMENSIONS 9 1/16 x 5 3/8 in. (23 x 13.7 cm)  (show scale)
    ACCESSION NUMBER 41.83
    CREDIT LINE Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
    PROVENANCE Archaeological provenance not yet documented; by 1894, reportedly acquired by Heinrich Karl Brugsch (Brugsch-Pasha) of Berlin, Germany; before 1921, reportedly acquired from Heinrich Brugsch by an unidentified collector; circa 1921, acquired in France from an unidentified collector by the Brummer Gallery, New York, NY; 1941, purchased from the Brummer Gallery by the Brooklyn Museum.
    Provenance FAQ
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Yellow limestone statuette of a seated man. He wears a long cloak drawn tightly around body and grasped with right hand. Left hand extended flat on breast, palm down. Pleated wig. Simple block throne with plinth extending up to base of wig. Inscription on plinth, sides of throne and base. Name lost. Inscriptions: inscriptions on throne seem to be conventional offering formula texts. Inscription on plinth not entirely clear. “An offering which the king gives and Geb for” are the following words titles of the deceased? Condition: Broken at hips and assembled. Major portion of sides and back of throne missing. Portion of left foot missing. Area around left knee missing. Remains of paint, entire cloak originally painted pinkish-red. Wig and eyes painted black.
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in Old Kingdom to 18th Dynasty, Egyptian Galleries, 3rd Floor
    CAPTION Statuette of a Cloaked Figure, ca. 1836-1759 B.C.E. Limestone, pigment, 9 1/16 x 5 3/8 in. (23 x 13.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 41.83. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 41.83_SL1.jpg)
    IMAGE front, 41.83_SL1.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
    "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
    You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
    RECORD COMPLETENESS
    Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.