- Museum number
- EA60756
- Description
-
Bronze figure of Isis nursing Horus: there are some cracks in the metal and the tops of the horns are missing on the crown of this stauette. The sun disc and cow's horns identify the subject as Isis, who is accompanied by her son, the young Horus, who sits on her knees. The goddess wears an incised tripartite wig with vulture headdress, decorated with a cobra rather than the usual vulture head. On top of her head, supporting the crown is a modius of cobras. Her dress is Egyptian in style and sheath-like in appearance, and around her neck she wears an incised collar of beads. She holds her left breast with her right hand for her son, who leans back, supported by his mother's left hand. The young god is naked and is identified by the single lock of hair, denoting his youth, on the right side of his head. The tang is beneath the base.
- Production date
- 4thC BC-3rdC BC
- Dimensions
-
Height: 23.60 centimetres
-
Weight: 0.89 kilograms
-
Width: 6 centimetres
-
Depth: 8.50 centimetres
- Curator's comments
- Published:
S. Walker & P. Higgs [eds.], 'Cleopatra: Regina d'Egitto' (Milan, 2000), p.48 [I.27] = S. Walker & P. Higgs [eds.], 'Cleopatra of Egypt' (London, 2001), p. 105 [127].
The tang at the bottom of this statue indicates that it would have originally been attached to a base. Bronze figures of deities could stand alone or be part of a group composition. Bronze statuettes of divine family groups became very popular in the Late Period (661-332 BC), and were placed in temples by wealthy individuals. The figures of Isis and Horus symbolised the divine mother and the living king, who succeeded his father, the deceased king Osiris, but both were also important protective deities. Isis was revered for her skills with magic, and Horus, as the child god Harpokrates, had power over dangerous animals.
For a similar statue dated to the 26th Dynasty, see Aubert, Bronzes et or Egyptiens, 2001, pl. 17-18. Compare also Berlin 2362 and 2374, in G. Roeder, ‘Ägyptische Bronzefiguren’ (1956), pp. 251-2, pls. 35d-e.
- Location
- Not on display
- Exhibition history
-
Exhibited:
2006-2007 6 Oct-18 Feb, Tokyo, National Museum of Nature and Science, Mummy: The Inside Story
2007 17 Mar-17 Jun, Kobe City Museum, Mummy: The Inside Story
2011 Jul–Sept, Newcastle, Great North Museum, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
2012 Oct–Jan, Dorchester, Dorset County Museum, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
2012 Feb–June, Leeds City Museum, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
2012 Jul-Oct, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
2012 Nov– Feb 2013, Glasgow, Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
2013 Mar–Aug, Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
2016 8 Mar-12 Jun, Cleveland, Cleveland Museum of Art, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
2018 7 Jun-16 Sep, Barcelona, La Caixa, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
2018-2019 16 Oct-20 Jan, Madrid, La Caixa, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
2019 19 Feb-25 Aug, Girona, La Caixa, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
2019-2020 24 Sept-12 Jan, Seville, La Caixa, Pharaoh: King of Egypt
- Condition
- fair (incomplete)
- Acquisition date
- 1839
- Department
- Egypt and Sudan
- BM/Big number
- EA60756
- Registration number
- 1839,0921.76
- Additional IDs
-
Miscellaneous number: BS.756 (Birch Slip Number)
