Statue Bust of an Official

Place CreatedEgypt, Africa

CultureEgyptian

PeriodNew Kingdom, Dynasty 18, reign of Thutmose III

Date1479-1425 BCE

MediumDiorite

Credit LineGift of the Georges Ricard Foundation

Dimensions12 11/16 x 11 13/16 x 5 15/16 in., 16 kg 500 g (32.3 x 30 x 15.1 cm, 36 lb. 6 oz.)

Object number2018.010.075

Label TextKing Thutmose III transformed Egypt into an expansionist empire. A mighty military ruler, he extended Egypt’s borders north into modern-day Syria and Turkey and south into Nubia. With these conquests came tremendous wealth, which included tribute and taxes from the new vassal states. To care for this wealth, the number of officials expanded, who also had access to artisans to sculpt their statuary.

The statue bust represents an official wearing a smooth bag wig that sits low on his forehead and extends to his shoulders. Although damaged, his face is broad with a small, rounded chin. His eyebrows and almond-shaped eyes with extended cosmetic lines are carved in raised relief. The bridge of his nose is broad, and the lips of his small mouth bulge slightly. The remains of his chest show two stylized folds of fat, typical of a seated or cross-legged male statue pose. The folds denote an overweight, mature man of high status, a stylistic device first seen in the Old Kingdom. The statue bears two cartouches of Thutmose III’s throne name Menkheperre on his right pectoral and upper arm. The royal cartouches indicate that the statue belonged to a high official who was given the honor of writing the king’s name.
Exhibition HistoryLife and the Afterlife: Ancient Egyptian Art from the Senusret Collection, Michael C. Carlos Museum, February 4 - August 6, 2023
Published ReferencesMunzen und Medaillen A.G., Basel, Werke Agyptischer Kunst von der Fruhzeit bis zur Spatantike, Agyptische Munzen, Sammlung eines osterreichischen Diplomaten, Genfer Privatsammlung und anderer Privatbesitz (April 28, 1972), 16 and 35, lot 57.
Melinda K. Hartwig, ed., Life and The Afterlife: Ancient Egyptian Art from the Senusret Collection (Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, 2023), catalogue entry 25.

ProvenanceWith Munzen und Medaillen A.G., Basel, Switzerland, April 28, 1972. Purchased by Georges Ricard (1921-2012) from Pino Donati, Lugano, Switzerland, October 1, 1975. Ex coll. Musée de l'Égypte et le Monde Antique, Collection Sanousrit, Monaco, 1975-1982. Ex coll. Georges Ricard Foundation, Santa Barbara, California.

Markings"10/9/23/2" painted on back.

Status

Not on view

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