Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity
Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity Egyptian Graywacke Stone Head of a Priest - Art for Eternity

Egyptian Greywacke Stone Head of a Priest

14459

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Middle Kingdom, 12th Dynasty, Circa 1991–1783 BC

A finely and sensitively carved head of a priest or high official, with a smooth, shaved/bald cranium, gently rounded face, calm downcast eyes defined by subtly raised relief lids, and a softly modeled mouth — the dignified, introspective manner of late 12th-Dynasty private portraiture in the tradition of Senwosret III and Amenemhat III. The shaved head identifies the subject as a priest, who shaved for ritual purity. 

Greywacke (Egyptian bekhen-stone, quarried at the Wadi Hammamat) was a highly esteemed sculptural material, favored for its hardness and fine, lustrous gray-green surface that takes a beautiful polish — the same stone used for the celebrated Late Period "Boston Green Head" priest. Middle Kingdom private portraiture is renowned for its serious, careworn expressions, modeled on the realistic royal images of Senwosret III and Amenemhat III in the 12th Dynasty (ca. 1991–1783 BC). The shaved head is the conventional marker of a priest, who shaved to maintain ritual purity, a feature seen across Egyptian sculpture from the Middle Kingdom onward. Such small heads typically broke from statuettes originally about 30 cm tall, representing a seated or standing dignitary.

Condition: Fine quality but heavily abraded; surface encrustation; nose and edge losses

Size: 1-7/8 in. H (4.8 cm); 4-5/8 in. H (11.7 cm) overall on block base

Comparison (cf.): Middle Kingdom priest/dignitary heads in the Metropolitan Museum, the Fitzwilliam (Amenemhat III), and the shaved-priest tradition culminating in the MFA "Boston Green Head," itself carved of greywacke

Provenance: From the estate of Dr. Arnold A. Rogow, New York, NY; acquired 1970s–80s

Every object is guaranteed authentic and as described, and has been legally acquired and imported in accordance with U.S. and applicable foreign regulations on the movement and sale of antiquities. A signed certificate of authenticity with a description and photograph accompanies this object. Any restoration is described on the invoice.

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