Upper part of a statue of Iqer
The upper body of a statue of Iqer, facing forward with arms crossed on his chest, an early Middle Kingdom limestone figure with traces of color. Full commentary ↓
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Upper part of a statue of Iqer is a stone object by an unknown maker (ca. 2000–1917 B.C.) in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
In the pictureThis is the upper body of a man, with everything below the waist lost. The face, under a short wig, is broad with large eyes, and his two arms cross in front of his chest with the hands resting on the shoulders. Traces of black and red paint remain here and there on the limestone surface. It is 21 cm tall.
BackgroundThe pose with arms crossed on the chest is linked to the hope that the deceased would be reborn in the form of Osiris, god of the underworld. An inscribed name identifies it as a statue of a man named Iqer, and it was originally painted all over. The white stone of Egyptian sculpture is mostly the result of paint flaking off like this; when the statues were made, the skin tones and black wigs were vivid.
Puzzle tipThe dark background and the light stone separate clearly, so the outline is easy to find. Assemble the face and the hands of the crossed arms first, and use the blotches of remaining paint as clues for the smooth pieces of the chest and shoulders. The black pieces of the base below have clear shapes.
- Period
- Middle Kingdom
- Dynasty
- Dynasty 11, late–12, early
- Medium
- Limestone with traces of color
- Dimensions
- H. 21 × W. 14 × D. 9.4 cm (8 1/4 × 5 1/2 × 3 11/16 in.)
- Credit line
- Purchase, Edward S. Harkness Gift, 1926
Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art ↗
Stories about this work
- Not Royal, Yet Remembered in Stone: An Egyptian Vizier, Nurse, and Mason
A vizier, a nurse, an overseer of stonemasons, an unknown official. People who were not royal could also set up statues of themselves in their tombs. The named commoners of Egyptian art.
