© Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University

ClassificationsAncient Egyptian Art

Head of Zeus Serapis

Place CreatedEgypt, Africa

CultureEgyptian

PeriodPtolemaic Period

Date305-30 BCE

MediumBronze

Credit LineGift of the Georges Ricard Foundation

Dimensions3 5/8 x 1 11/16 x 1 11/16 in., 136 g (9.2 x 4.3 x 4.3 cm, 4 13/16 oz.)

Object number2018.010.787

Label TextBeginning in the 1st millennium, elite individuals made offerings of metal statuettes to the gods. Particularly popular were statues of the universal deities Osiris, Isis, and Harpocrates, whose cults were celebrated throughout Egypt. Most deities were worshiped in their specific cult centers. Ptah, Sekhmet, and Nefertem were honored in Memphis. Amun, Mut, and Khonsu were revered in Thebes.

Bronze statuettes were often inscribed with the names of the deity and the donor. Once offered by the owner, the figurines were displayed in divine temples and shrines. The statuettes gave the donors access to the gods by acting as participants in cult practices so that their prayers and wishes would be answered. Dedication formulas on Saite bronze figurines of Osiris mention temple personnel entrusted to give figurines to the local god so that the donor would receive divine protection. After some time, the figures were buried in caches and sacred animal catacombs.

Many figurines have tangs for insertion into bases. Other statuettes have a ring or loop attached at the back of the head. These figurines were likely fastened to sacred boats. A rope or rod was passed through the ring to support the statuette and safeguard it against accidents.

The beard and hairstyle of this bronze head identify it as a depiction of Zeus. The vessel worn on the head is a kalathos, a container used to store produce that was often associated with Serapis. Syncretic imagery combining attributes of two or more deities became widespread in Egypt during the Ptolemaic period. The hollow reverse of this head indicates that it probably served as a decorative attachment for a tripod vessel or an article of furniture.
Exhibition HistoryLife and the Afterlife: Ancient Egyptian Art from the Senusret Collection, Michael C. Carlos Museum, February 4 - August 6, 2023
Published ReferencesHotel des Ventes, Marseille, Archeologie (27 Juin 1974), lot 111.
Melinda K. Hartwig, ed., Life and The Afterlife: Ancient Egyptian Art from the Senusret Collection (Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, 2023), catalogue entry 27.

ProvenancePurchased by Georges Ricard (1921-2012) from Hotel des Ventes, Marseille, France, June 27, 1974, lot 111. Ex coll. Musée de l'Égypte et le Monde Antique, Collection Sanousrit, Monaco, 1975-1982. Ex coll. Georges Ricard Foundation, Santa Barbara, California.

Status

Not on view

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