ClassificationsAncient Egyptian Art

Finial of a Thoth as a Baboon

Place CreatedEgypt, Africa

CultureEgyptian

PeriodLate Period

Date722-332 BCE

MediumBronze

Credit LineGift of the Georges Ricard Foundation

Dimensions5 1/4 x 1 5/16 x 1 1/8 in., 215 g (13.3 x 3.3 x 2.9 cm, 7 9/16 oz.)

Object number2018.010.782

Label TextThe baboon was the animal manifestation of the Egyptian lunar gods, Khonsu of Thebes and Thoth of Hermopolis. The baboon was also associated with the sun based on its behavior. At dawn, baboons stretch, raise their front paws, and chatter. The Egyptians interpreted this singing and dancing as praising the sun god.

The finial depicts a squatting baboon with its front paws resting on its hind legs. Thoth wears a crown composed of a sun disk and crescent moon. Horizontal lines define the thick fur around the baboon’s ears and muzzle. A pectoral necklace hangs from the primate’s neck. The baboon sits on top of a shrine perched on a papyrus column, the bottom of which once fit into a staff.
Exhibition HistoryLife and the Afterlife: Ancient Egyptian Art from the Senusret Collection, Michael C. Carlos Museum, February 4 - August 6, 2023
Published ReferencesMelinda K. Hartwig, ed., Life and The Afterlife: Ancient Egyptian Art from the Senusret Collection (Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, 2023), catalogue entry 50.

ProvenanceEx coll. Georges Ricard Foundation, Santa Barbara, California, possibly purchased from Jean-François Mignon, Aix-en Provence, France.

Status

Not on view

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