ClassificationsAncient Egyptian Art

Sculptor's Model

CultureEgyptian

PeriodPtolemaic Period, reign of Ptolemy II Philadelphos (?)

Dateca. 282-246 BCE

MediumLimestone

Credit LineAnonymous gift

Dimensions3 1/8 x 2 1/4 x 1 3/4 in. (7.9 x 5.7 x 4.4 cm)

Object number2014.040.001

Label TextSculptor's models were teaching tools prepared by master sculptors to educate students about the process of carving. Of Greek descent, Ptolemaic rulers adopted the Egyptian manner of representation and required the manufacture of a number of statues. To meet the demand, instruction shifted away from the traditional father-son apprenticeship system to a larger artistic workshop structure that stressed systemized training. This sculptor's model shows the guidelines that helped students proportion the facial features and the bottom of the crown. The rounded face and slightly double chin suggests this sculptor's model belonged to Ptolemy II Philadelphus. Under his reign, the royal court reached great heights of artistic and material splendor. Ptolemy II finished the Great Library of Alexandria and commissioned a priest named Manetho to compile the earliest history of ancient Egypt.
Exhibition HistoryMCCM Permanent Collection Galleries, November 1, 2023 - Present
Published ReferencesGalerie Gunter Puhze, Kunst der Antike Katalog 27 (2013), 87, lot 196.

ProvenanceEx coll. Antonio Martin Araujo (1905-1983), Venezuela, from 1960s. With David Ghezelbash, Paris, France, until 2012. Purchased by MCCM from Galerie Gunter Puhze GmbH, Freiburg, Germany.

Status

On view

Collections