<em>Head of a Lion</em>, ca. 525–404 B.C.E. Stucco, 2 3/16 x 2 3/16 x 1 3/4 in. (5.6 x 5.5 x 4.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 66.176. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.66.176_wwg8.jpg)

Head of a Lion, ca. 525–404 B.C.E. Stucco, 2 3/16 x 2 3/16 x 1 3/4 in. (5.6 x 5.5 x 4.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 66.176. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.66.176_wwg8.jpg)

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Was most of Egypt not a desert in the ancient times? Don’t lions live in grasslands?

The climate of Egypt in pharonic times (beginning around 3000 to 2500 BCE) was relatively similar to the climate of Egypt today. At that time, there actually weren't that many lions in Egypt.

But about 10,000 years ago, the Sahara was not a desert, but a lush grassland full of hunter-gatherer groups. As the region dried out people settled into the Nile Valley and became more organized out of necessity.

During this organizational period, there were still lions in Egypt. They were revered and there is some evidence that some were even tamed. It was during this period that beliefs around lions and their association with the king was formed. The belief endured even after the lion territory shrank deeper into Africa.

Head of a Lion

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

On View: 19th Dynasty to Roman Period, Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Gallery, 3rd Floor

MEDIUM Stucco

Place Made: Egypt

DATES ca. 525–404 B.C.E.

DYNASTY Dynasty 27

PERIOD First Persian Period

DIMENSIONS 2 3/16 x 2 3/16 x 1 3/4 in. (5.6 x 5.5 x 4.4 cm) (show scale)

COLLECTIONS Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

ACCESSION NUMBER 66.176

CREDIT LINE Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund

CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Dirty grey-brown stucco lion’s head with open mouth, slight red traces of paint on tongue, empty eye sockets; used as a finial since back of head is modeled concavely; yet surface fluorescence is dark purple throughout. Face well modeled; roof of mouth grooved, teeth indicated in detail. Condition: Chipped around edges of back of head; part of left ear missing, also part of right cheek. Modern metal ring of suspension let into back of head.

EXHIBITIONS

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view on the 19th Dynasty to Roman Period, Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Gallery, 3rd Floor

CAPTION Head of a Lion, ca. 525–404 B.C.E. Stucco, 2 3/16 x 2 3/16 x 1 3/4 in. (5.6 x 5.5 x 4.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 66.176. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.66.176_wwg8.jpg)

IMAGE installation, West Wing gallery 8 installation, CUR.66.176_wwg8.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2006

"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.

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Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

Was most of Egypt not a desert in the ancient times? Don’t lions live in grasslands?

The climate of Egypt in pharonic times (beginning around 3000 to 2500 BCE) was relatively similar to the climate of Egypt today. At that time, there actually weren't that many lions in Egypt.