Statuette of Merer

In the pictureIn front of an apricot-colored background, a man carved of wood stands on a red base with his feet almost side by side. The paint on his body has turned a dark brown, patches where it has flaked off spread like white stains over his whole body, and there is a black stain on his chest as well. Below his short, rounded hair, white paint remains in his eyes. On his white kilt are red hieroglyphs, on his belt black writing on a yellow ground, and a dark gray-green front panel hangs down the middle. His two fists hang at his sides. On the front of the top of the base, traces remain of fine lines dividing it into sections.

BackgroundThe Metropolitan Museum of Art has four wooden statues of Merer that came in together in 1910 through the Rogers Fund. The record dates this statue to the early Middle Kingdom, Dynasties 10–11 (about 1981–1802 B.C.), and notes that it very likely came from Asyut. Of the four, this is the only one whose kilt inscription is written in red. Placing several statues of the same person in a tomb is interpreted as a way to ensure that the spirit would still have a place to dwell even if one was damaged. The record lists only wood and paint as materials and, unlike two of the others, does not separately list plaster. It is 33.5 cm tall.

Puzzle tipThe stained body pieces look alike, so start with the white kilt. Fit the red writing, the gray-green front panel and the yellow belt first, and fix the top and bottom ends with the head and face and the red base below. The arms and legs are long and thin, so join them vertically, and fill in the apricot background starting from the figure's outline. The flaked white stains are shaped differently on each piece, which makes them a clue for checking against the preview. 24 or 48 pieces is about right.