Skip Navigation

Statue of Metjetji

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

On View: Old Kingdom to 18th Dynasty, Egyptian Galleries, 3rd Floor
These two wooden statues, like another example nearby, come from the tomb of an official named Metjetji. They depict him at different stages of his career, signified by different details of his costume. On these statues, the unusually well-preserved paint shows beaded jewelry around his neck and strands of beads hanging from his belt. The figure holding a staff, with a round face and strong-looking body, may represent Metjetji as a young man. The other statue, slightly thinner, appears more serious, possibly to indicate the onset of middle age.
MEDIUM Wood, pigment
  • Possible Place Collected: Saqqara, Egypt
  • DATES ca. 2371–2288 B.C.E.
    DYNASTY late Dynasty 5 to early Dynasty 6
    PERIOD Old Kingdom
    DIMENSIONS 27 9/16 in. (70 cm) base: 13 3/4 x 1 3/4 x 6 7/8 in. (35 x 4.5 x 17.5 cm)  (show scale)
    ACCESSION NUMBER 53.222
    CREDIT LINE Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Standing wooden statue of Methethy, frontal, arms at sides, left leg advanced, Curled black wig. Entire surface gessoed and painted. Kilt white, pleated area yellow, polychrome bead apron and belt. Wsh collar and additional necklace, both elaborately painted. Large and elaborate counterpoise on back of torso. Separate, base inscribed in two columns. Condition: Poor. Statue intact but gesso broken in many places. Surface missing as under chin and lower jaws. Left chest and shoulder broken as in portion of left strand of long necklace. Scattered portions of arms missing. Small areas lost from legs. Lower right side and back of kilt lost. Left foot detached. Base, inscribed with two columns, split lengthwise into two pieces.
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in Old Kingdom to 18th Dynasty, Egyptian Galleries, 3rd Floor
    CAPTION Statue of Metjetji, ca. 2371–2288 B.C.E. Wood, pigment, 27 9/16 in. (70 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 53.222. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 53.222_SL1.jpg)
    IMAGE overall, 53.222_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.