The Anavysos Kouros is a male nude, human-figure that stands at 1.94 meters (6’4) from head to toe, not including the base. Its height is also roughly seven and a half times the height of the head. The kouros is solid, and standing erect, and has the youthful, perfect figure of an athlete. His long hair is uniformly braided and cascades down his back to his shoulder blades, and is tucked behind his ears. There is evidence of red paint on his hair braids, also on his public hair and eyes. A thin strip of fabric holds back symmetrical swirl-shaped curls that frame his forehead. His brow ridge is sharply defined, and his almond-shaped eyes slightly bulge out of the sockets. The figure has high, prominent cheekbones that rest just below the eyes lateral to the nose. His mouth is small, it is only slightly longer than the width of his nose, and is curled into a soft smile. This smile pulls his cheeks back and creates a facial crease on the sides of his lips. His neck is thick, and extends past the width of his head. His shoulders and chest are broad. His pectoral muscles are lightly defined, along with his abdominal muscles, which are faintly carved into the marble. His waist is small, but his hips and buttocks are rounder and more pronounced. His thick thighs touch each other, and his calves are extremely pronounced. They are almost the same width of his thighs. He is striding forward, with his left foot leading. The kouros’ hands are clenched and rested at his sides, without touching his thighs. There are supports that connect his hands to his thighs, most likely to support the weight of the marble so the arms do not break off. The figure is reddish-tinted, showing evidence of paint.

Significance:
The Anavysos Kouros is one of many kouroi created during the Archaic period in ancient Greece. These figures were depicted as strong male nudes, and used as grave markers, offerings, and occasionally portrayed as the god Apollo. The figure shows the classic “Archaic smile”, a characteristic of kouroi created during this time period. The reason for this is unknown, whether it is because the carving technology did not allow for refined facial expressions, or a stylistic choice. This piece was separated from its base, which was found in a different location. It is generally agreed upon by art historians that the base belongs to this kouros, which served as funerary marker set up by an aristocratic family for their son who had fallen in battle. The inscription reads; “Stay and mourn of the monument of dead Kroisos, who raging Ares slew as he fount in the front ranks.” While this references and honors a specific person, Kroisos, that is not to say that this figure depicted is an image of this deceased soldier. This perfect, youthful, male nude is not necessarily a “portrait” in the true sense of the word. There is evidence of some individualization in the depicted youth, for example, there are traces of red paint on his braids and pubic hair. But the face and body is a more typical presentation of the male nude. This kouros also shows an evolution in the knowledge of the anatomy and physiognomy of the human figure. Compared to the New York Kouros with its rigid lines and humanoid features, the Anavysos Kouros has softer, more rounded features and more realistic muscle depictions. There is also more movement in this picture, the figure is moving forward and the corresponding muscles flex and relax, showing a more naturalistic depiction of human movement. ]]>
the "Khan Academy" website: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ancient-art-civilizations/greek-art/daedalic-archaic/v/anavysos-kouros

Philadelpheus, Alex. "The Anavysos Kouros." The Annual of the British School at Athens, vol. 36,
1935, pp. 1-4, www.jstor.org/stable/30096873. Accessed 4 Mar. 2017. ]]> Anacreon is a marble sculpture depicting a full length male figure. The figure is nude, with the exception of drapery covering his shoulders and some of his back as well as the sides of the torso. His musculature is developed, similar to that of an athlete, with defined abdominal muscles and a visible iliac crest. The figure’s arms are slightly raised, but a portion of the figure’s left arm as well as the right hand have been damaged and are missing. His right arm reaches outward and upward toward the head, while the left arm is pointed downward. The positioning of the arms suggests he was playing an instrument or holding a wine cup. He stands in dynamic contrapposto, his right knee bent and his hips tilted. His left leg rests upon a small tree trunk for support, an element that would not have been present in the bronze original. The figure’s head is tilted upward. He has a full beard formed of locks of individual curls, and his hair is similar in texture. The top portion of his head is damaged and is severed off, but much of his thick hair and all of his face is still visible. The figure’s eyes are hollow and his expression is slightly contemplative and pensive, showing little emotion. The face itself is idealized with smooth, polished skin and a narrow nose.

Significance:
Anacreon was a lyric poet whose works would have been heard at symposia. The sculpture alludes to this in the gesture of the figure’s arms that suggests playing an instrument, such as a lyre, or holding a wine cup typical of one used at a symposium. The face is generalized with few identifying features, which is why the sculptor relies on the attribute of a lyric poet (the lyre) in order to convey Anacreon’s character. In addition, it has been suggestion that the dynamic pose of the figure, such as the jaunty tilt of his head and pronounced contrapposto, is representative of intoxication, another illusion to the symposium where his work would have been read. In this sense, the figure’s body illustrates the nature of Anacreon more so than his face, which is idealized and mask-like with few individualizing details or features suggesting close likeness. Scholar J.J. Pollitt proposes that, “It is the poet Anacreon, more than the man Anacreon, that is presented to the viewer.” The figure also takes on the guise of an athlete or heroic figure with the nude, muscular body. While Anacreon was a poet rather than an athlete, his body may have been depicted this way as an attempt to show pride in the accomplishments of the Greeks, a goal in artwork after the end of the Persian Wars. The original display of this work would have been on the Acropolis during the reign of Pericles, and the sculpture was displayed next to a sculpture of Pericles’ father Xanthippus. While there is no inscription on this sculpture identifying the figure as Anacreon, Pausanias, a Greek traveler and geographer, noted that this was a sculpture of Anacreon in his writings when he saw it on the Acropolis originally.
]]>
"Anacreon. Copenhagen, New Carlsberg Glyptotek (Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek)." History of Ancient Rome. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Mar. 2017.

Breckenridge, James D. "The Portrait in Greek Art." Likeness; a Conceptual History of Ancient Portraiture. Evanston: Northwestern UP, 1968. 90-93. Print.
 
Pollitt, J.J. "Chapter 3: Personality and Psychology in Portraiture." Art in the Hellenistic Age. Cambridge: Cambridge UPress, 2009. 60. Google Books. Web. 4 Mar. 2017.]]> The portrait “Senenmut and Neferura” depicts a man sitting on a stone block while holding a young girl on his lap. Both figures’ shoulders and hips are aligned and are front facing. The man’s feet, peeking out from the bottom of the robe, are next to each other and sitting against the stone block. They are both wrapped in a robe which obscures many of the details of their bodies giving the sculpture a solid, block-like appearance. Aside from the figures’ heads, Senemut’s hands and feet are the only visible body parts. Even so, his hands seem to melt into the fabric. His ankles and feet, however, follow the Egyptian traditional style. They are thick, block-like and lack a sense of naturalism or definition. The faces of each figure are idealized, so it is only through the incised inscriptions that the man and child have been identified as Senenmut and Neferura respectively. Senenmut is portrayed as a young man, with a smooth, calm face and wearing a headdress. Neferura’s face seems to be rendered in a nearly identical style. However, she also features some of the conventions of Egyptian youth. She has a sidelock, or a long piece of hair on the right side of her head, and she is holding her pointer finger against her mouth. This combined with her size signify that she is a child. The rest of her body is covered by a long robe that Senenmut is holding in his right hand while his left hand holds her securely. There are inscriptions listing Senenmut’s titles and association with the Pharaoh incised in hieroglyphics down the front of his robe, as well as along either side of the block next to his legs. The statue is polished giving it a generally smooth texture. However, the block on which the figures are sitting is slightly broken along both the front edge and top right corner.

Significance:
This portrait of Senenmut and Neferura depicts two important figures in Egypt’s history, both closely associated with famed Pharaoh, Hatshepsut. Senenmut was one of the highest-ranking officials during her reign, as well as the architect of her elaborate funerary temple. Neferura was her daughter. It appears that this statue is meant to emphasize the older male figure’s political position. The frontal, seated pose and overall style mimics portraits of earlier Pharaohs. Senenmut’s size alongside the fact that Neferura seems to melt into the robe makes Senenmut the clear focal point. Some scholars suggest that this pose is meant to show Senenmut as being protective over Neferura. Others suggest that the post is simply meant to emphasize his claim to political power. The incised inscriptions further emphasize Senenmut’s political position, naming him as the Chief Steward of Neferura. Another inscription states that this statue was commissioned by Hatshepsut herself, further linking the two. Interestingly, in this inscription, Hatshepsut is referred to as “The God’s Wife”. This suggests that the statue was commissioned before Hatshepsut named herself Pharaoh rather than co-regent of her step-son. Twenty years after Hatshepsut’s death, her step-son defaced her statues and removed any record of her from the Kingdom. However, her name remains intact on this statue. It has been suggested that this statue was buried in a cache before the period of destruction. The supposed cache from which this statue is said to have been found has been debated, however. Nonetheless, the subjects themselves, as well as the rare level of preservation of Hatshepsut’s name, makes this a fascinating example of Egyptian art.]]>
Smith, William Stevenson. The art and architecture of ancient Egypt. New Haven: Yale U Press, 1999. 126-127. Print.
]]> Description:

The portrait of “Lady Sennuwy” depicts a female figure seated on a stone block with her legs together and arms placed on her thighs. The right hand is clasped into a fist, holding a lotus blossom, the symbol of rebirth and the assurance of eternal life. The left hand of the figure rests with the palm flat on the thigh. The composition is frontal with the body of the figure shown in axial alignment. The figure wears a tightly fitted sheath dress that extends to her shins and emphasizes the elegant proportions of her feminine shape, particularly her narrow waist and full breasts. She is depicted as an idealized young woman: slender and eternally youthful. The face of the figure is carefully modelled into an expression of serenity; the face is delicate and refined so to express the inner personality of the subject through expressive realism common during the Middle Kingdom period. The deep gray granodiorite stone of the figure has been shaped and smoothed by the unknown artist, who scholars suggest was trained in a royal workshop. The polished nature of the stone indicates that the portrait was never painted. The smooth quality of the skin and placid expression mirror the symbolism of the lotus flower to suggest the sitter’s continuation into eternity. The wig worn by the figure is long and straight, falling to the breasts. The figure’s title and veneration in the presence of Osiris and other deities of the afterlife are listed in hieroglyphs in front of the feet and on the sides of the base where the figure sits.  

Significance:

As the wife of the provincial governor of Asyut, Lady Sennuwy had access to high quality materials and accomplished artists for her portrait representation, suggesting the incredible wealth and importance of the couple during the reign of Senwosret I in the Middle Kingdom. The portrait of Lady Sennuwy, along with a similar sculpture of her husband, Djefaihapi, was likely housed in a tomb chapel or sanctuary in their rock-cut tomb (the largest nonroyal tomb of the Middle Kingdom). Despite the suggestion of the original placement of the portraits, at the time of excavation in 1914, the two figures were found buried in Kerma, inside of the tumulus of a Nubian king. Scholars believe that three-hundred years after the creation of the statues, they were removed from their original context within the couples’ tomb in Asyut and exported to Nubia (Sudan). Though the reason for the statue’s exportation is still unknown, its importance as a funerary portrait remains significant. Many portraits of the Middle Kingdom work towards a fidelity to nature in the presentation of the human body, and the portrait of Lady Sennuwy is a wonderful example as it is beautiful in its proportion and attention to detail, particularly in the rendering of the facial features. The polished gray granodiorite used for the creation of the portrait was often utilized as a symbol in funerary portraiture to suggest new life, resurrection, and the resurrected god of the dead, Osiris, who is mentioned in the hieroglyphs on the figure’s base. The importance placed on rebirth and the eternal in the figure, from her youthful appearance, allusions to Osiris, and symbolization of the lotus flower, conveys the significance placed on the preservation of personal identity from the life of the sitter into the afterlife.

]]> "Ancient Egypt: Symbols of the Pharaoh." The British Museum, www.britishmuseum.org/PDF/Visit_Egypt_Symbols_KS2b.pdf.

Janson, H. W., and Anthony F. Janson. History of Art: The Western Tradition. 6th ed., Upper Saddle River, Pearson/Prentice-Hall, 2004. 59-60. Print.

Robins, Gay. The Art of Ancient Egypt. Rev. ed., Cambridge, Harvard UP, 2008. 24. Print.

"Statue of Lady Sennuwy." Museum of Fine Arts Boston, www.mfa.org/collections/object/statue-of-lady-sennuwy-141967. 

]]> The sculpture titled Senwosret III as a Sphinx is quite imposing and formidable. The material used to make the sculpture is gneiss. The structure of the sculpture includes the head of a human, in this case the head of the Pharaoh Senwosret III combined with the body of a lion. The front legs of this sphinx are missing. The rear legs are present. The head and face of the sculpture include the pharaonic headdress (nemes), part of a serpent (Uraeus) and a beard. The face of this sculpture has a fatigued and somber look. The sculpture has a very smooth texture. Yet, the stone has a striated look to it. As part of the striated appearance, there are horizontal and vertical lines running the length of the sculpture and its base. The sculpture has inscriptions underneath the beard.

Significance:
This is a very important sculpture. This sphinx represents one of the great pharaohs of the 12th Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom. One of the most amazing aspects of this sculpture is its surface. The surface is simply majestic. There is an incredible level of precision in the carving. The multicolored gneiss stone looks stunning up close. The carving of the gneiss length wise complements the colors of the stone. They combine to create a sense of movement. A significant fact about the gneiss is that it came from Nubia, meaning that it came from outside of Egypt. That tells us that the Egyptians had access to their neighbors' resources. One of the most powerful aspects of the sphinx is its tail. The tail gives the sculpture a fearsome quality. I genuinely fear that the tail of the sphinx is going to move. There is a feeling of life in this sculpture. A part of that feeling of life in the sculpture is in the face of the sculpture. Whilst the faces of Old Kingdom pharaonic sculptures had a very imposing look, the Middle Kingdom faces become somewhat distressed and drained. This has to do with the worry that the pharaohs were experiencing at the time. The dawn of the reality of the pharaoh's responsibilities are show in their faces of the sculpture.


]]> http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/search_the_collection_database/term_details.aspx?bioId=25514

"The MET" Website:
http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/544186

Google Arts and Culture Website:
https://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/beta/asset/head-of-a-sphinx-of-senwosret-iii/9gHsiUAq-4V7Xg

Academic Article Found Online: Habachi, Labib. "The Gneiss Sphinx of Sesostris III: Counterpart and Provenance," The University of Chicago Press," Vol 19/20, 1984/1985, pp. 11-16

"Middle Kingdom of Egypt." Ancient History Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2017.]]> ]]> The "Seated Scribe" depicts a male figure sitting cross-legged with his hands in his lap. The figure is seated on a semi-circular base with his shoulders erect and his head angled forward and eyes looking ahead. His right hand is in the process of unrolling papyrus that is resting on the fabric of his kilt. His left hand is posed in the writing position, resting on top of the papyrus. Missing from this hand is a reed pen, that has broken off and been lost. He has dark, red skin with a black, painted hairline that has chipped away with time. His large ears are the third of the length of his head, larger than normal human proportions but still human-like. His arched eyebrows frame his magnesite -inset eyes that are thickly outlined with copper. His thin lips are centered around his square jaw, and his facial expression is attentive but relaxed. His body is padded with extra fat, with extra rolls resting on his belly. His muscle tone is weak, his shoulders slope and his arms appear fleshy.

Significance:
This statue, found near the step-pyramid of King Djoser in Saqqara, Egypt gives modern viewers a glimpse of life at the height of the Old Kingdom. The scribe is depicted at work, in a very informal manner, and shown as more natural and human like- compared to pharaohs. He is not depicted as youthful and powerful, as was typical of royals. This is because while important and necessary to the function of Egyptian society, the scribe himself is not a royal. The fact that this statue exists is a testament to the scribe’s position in the social hierarchy. This statue would have been created as a funerary statue, or a ka statue. The Ka, or the “life-spark” was something only royals and nobles had, again speaking to the status of the scribe depicted. But because he is not a divine figure, he does not have the typical conventions of a pharaoh statue. The pose itself, while informal, is a typical “scribe pose”, with strong frontality as he is seated and poised to write. The face is more individualized, with the thin lips and large ears, the seated scribe could potentially portray a specific individual. While the face is more personalized, it is unknown who this scribe could be. The excavation documents were lost, and the specific location of origin is still unknown because of looting and pillaging. Some art historians believe that this figure could be “Pehernefer”, a scribe from the fourth dynasty who has been depicted with thin lips and large ears. He is also more commonly identified as “Kai”. An inscribed statue of a scribe named Kai was found in the same area of Saqqara. Many art historians contend this is the identity of the seated scribe, because the techniques used to inlay the eyes in both statues are nearly identical. Regardless of his identity, the significance of the seated scribe is apparent in the twenty-first century.
]]>
"Lourve" website: http://musee.louvre.fr/oal/scribe/indexEN.html

"Smart History" website: https://smarthistory.org/seated-scribe/

"Khan Academy" website: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ancient-art-civilizations/egypt-art/predynastic-old-kingdom/v/the-seated-scribe-c-2620-2500-b-c-e

"Ancient History Encyclopedia" website: http://www.ancient.eu/timeline/pharaoh/]]> The pair statue of King Menkaure and the mysterious woman next him has raised a large amount of questions for many years. The deeply dark colored statue depicts the king standing in an upright striding position, beside a woman to his left. Only the top half of the statue has been polished. The two figures are vertically supported by a large slab of stone that is connected to their backsides. They are similar in size, but the king is slightly taller. They have a very strong frontal axis to their posture, and this piece was most likely intended to only be viewed from the front. The king’s right arm is slightly further retracted than his left, and his left foot is placed in front of his body, creating a sense of stepping forward. The king's hands are clenched in fists holding enigmatic cylindrical objects. The woman beside him also has her left foot placed slightly in front of her right, however, her stance is not as prominent as the king’s. The king’s body and facial features are depicted in an idealized youthful rendering, signaling that this is truly from the Old Kingdom time period. He is wearing a traditional nemes headdress, false beard, and 3-piece kilt. The woman is dressed in a common, plain Egyptian dress and Egyptian wig. The woman's dress hangs to just above her ankles and is close-fitting. Her right arm is wrapped around his back and her right hand is placed on his waist. Her left hand is placed on his left bicep in a very supporting pose.

Significance:
The true mystery behind this work of art comes from the woman that is next to him.
Based on her pose, it is clear that she is protective of him and serves as the secondary figure of the statue. An uncommon aspect about this woman is the fact that her left foot is placed in front of her right, along with King Menkaure. This is extremely significant because during this time, this was a pose that was strictly limited to males, or divine entities. Many experts still debate whether or not she is his queen, his mother, or a goddess that is watching over him. It is almost impossible to tell who the woman is for sure because the base of the statue was never inscribed. This piece was considered unfinished because there are key details missing from the woman’s wig, the king’s nemes headdress, and the lack of polish applied to the bottom half of the sculpture. It is assumed that this piece was never finished due to the king’s sudden death and the immediate need to place the piece into his temple. Although there are no written indications of whom the woman may be, based on her size and her gesture towards the king, many have generally assumed that she is woman of royalty, making it most likely that she is an innovative depiction of the queen.]]>
Museum of Fine Arts Website:
http://www.mfa.org/collections/object/king-menkaura-mycerinus-and-queen-230

Egypt and Beyond Book:

Lesko, Leonard H. Egypt and Beyond: Essays Presented to Leonard H. Lesko. Edited by Stephen E. Thompson and Peter Der Manuelian, Manuelian Design, 2008. Pg. 109-117]]> The funerary statue titled Khafre Enthroned is a portrait of the Pharaoh Khafre seated upon a throne. The sculpture is luminous, streaked, and dark in color, due to the polished gneiss stone from which it was carved. Because of the luminous quality of the stone, it is believed that this work was not painted. The figure is carved in a stiff, frontal position with his head facing forward and his arms close to his body. His arms rest atop his thighs, and his right hand is forming a fist while his left lies flat against his thigh. The figure’s limbs are pressed tightly to his body and there is no negative space in the work. His face is smooth and serene, showing little expression. He wears a nemes headdress, pleated kilt called a shendyt, and a false beard in traditional royal costume. The body of the figure is smooth and muscular with his chest and arms bare, but has suffered some damage in the left forearm and calf. The figure sits rigidly upright against the back of the throne, while a falcon, the god Horus, sits behind the figure at the back of the throne, wrapping his wings around the Pharaoh’s head. The throne he sits on is carved in light relief, depicting sedge and papyrus plants on the sides. Two lions form the legs of the throne, flanking the Pharaoh on either side.

Significance:
Both the idealized nature of the figure and the symbols within the sculpture help to illustrate the Pharaoh’s kingly and divine status. This sculpture comes from the valley temple of Khafre, a pillared hall in which twenty-three statues of the seated king were arranged. This suggests ritualistic context for this sculpture due to its placement as one of many other sculptures depicting the king in a similar way. The material used in this sculpture is gneiss, which is difficult to work with and is found in Nubia, just south of Egypt, suggesting the king’s control of other lands. The sculptor may have chosen this material because of its luminous and glowing quality in the sunlight. Some historians believe these intense optical properties of the stone can be associated with the cult of Horus, adding a divine element to the work. Horus himself is depicted in the sculpture, sitting behind Khafre’s head as a protector. The relief in the side of the throne depicts papyrus leaves and perhaps a sedge plant, signifying Khafre’s rule over both Upper and Lower Egypt and the union of these two lands. The King himself is rendered as smooth and idealized in the traditional Old Kingdom canon. His musculature is defined and his face is peaceful and refined. He is posed in a typical position of a king, and wears traditional royal garb. His formulaic pose, clothing, and facial rendering suggest that the sculptor was less focused on likeness and rather on using motifs and traditions in order to convey power and status. ]]> Art History. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2014. 57-58. Print.

Saleh, Mohamed, and Hourig Sourouzian. The Egyptian Museum, Cairo: Official Catalog. Mainz: P. Von Zabern, 1987. 31. Print.

Arnold, Dieter. "Old Kingdom Statues In Their Architectural Setting." Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids:. By John P. O'Neill and James P. Allen. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1999. 42. Print.

Janson, H. W., and Penelope J. E. Davies. "Chapter Three: Egyptian Art." Janson's History of Art: The Western Tradition. New York: Learning Solutions, 2011. 59. Print.
 
]]> The portrait of Ka-Aper is a standing statue of a somewhat heavy-set male, with a full neck and close cut hair. His features are constant throughout his body, his heavy-set body is accompanied by a fuller/wider nose and full lips. His eyes are inlaid with rock crystal and lined with copper. His head and face are rounder, and have softer features. He is in an upright position with his left foot extended slightly ahead of his right foot; this shows that there is motion within the figure. However, the figure is still compact, despite the movement in the figure, the appendages are still close to the sides of his body and center of gravity. The statue’s right arm is by its side and left arm is up holding a staff or cane, of some sort. His right hand can also be seen curled into a fist, with negative space in the middle (where something cylindrical could have been). It is at the arms, in which you can see that the figure was not carved from a single piece of sycamore, rather the body was made separately from the two arms and assembled at a later stage. The areas where the arms are attached are denoted by the two pin-like structures on the upper torso, where the shoulders are. Furthermore, the feet of the statue are also worth mentioning, with their careful detail. Each toe is carved into the foot and subsequently, each toenail is carved into each toe. Along with the physical features of the body, there are other aspects of the statue that should be addressed. First off, is the garment in which Ka-Aper is clothed; he is shown in a kilt with a large (emphasized) knot around his waist. Secondly, there is wear and tear on the statue. There is splitting of the wood, which show the age of the statue, and you can see a patch on his face, where the statue was probably broken and repaired.

Significance:
The artist’s depiction of the person and creation of the statue represents a number of things. The attire, staff, and body type are representative of a priest. His fuller body also represents that it illustrates someone who is of a higher socio-economic standing. In some cultures a fuller body showed that one was wealthier because they had access to enough food and resources. This feature, along with the detail in the face of the statue can also lead one to believe that it is probably a good representation of how the individual really looked at the time. The typical representation of the male body is to have it idealized and have sharp features. The statue of Ka-Aper does not follow this norm, he is seen with a full neck, full lips, large abdomen, and round head. The face strays from the usual sharp and narrow facial features of statues at the time. The facial features of this statue are softer than is usually seen (refer to the statue of Menkaure Dyad). It is not likely an idealism or a generalization. The alternative title of the statue is also significant; Sheikh el-Beled. The reason the statue is called this is because when it was discovered the people believed it to amazingly resemble their local elder. This is another reason it is believed that the statue is a realistic depiction of Ka-Aper, the statue actually resembles a real life human being, rather than an idealized representation of someone. Another unusual aspect of the statue is the material it is made from: sycamore. Statues are usually made from harder materials like stone but in this case the artist chose to use wood. He might have done this to further individualize the statue and/or because sycamore was relatively easy to obtain in Egypt at the time. The positioning of the appendages are also remarkable. The right arm and right leg are both extended, this gives the statue motion, which is not typical of statues during the 5th century. Statues in the 5th century tended to be compact and extremely grounded (again refer to the statue of Menkaure Dyad).
]]> http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/image-idx?id=S-UMDVRC1IC-X-D06-101380%5DD06-101380


“Statue of Sheikh el-balad representing Ka-aper.” n.d. Web. 14 Feb. 2017.
http://www.globalegyptianmuseum.org/detail.aspx?id=14910

“Statue of Ka-aper.” n.d. Web. 14 Feb. 2017.
http://egyptopia.com/Statue+of+Ka-aper+The+Egyptian+Museum_30_382_47_en.html]]> The portrait of "Hemiunu Seated" depicts a male figure, seated on a block of stone with his legs together and both hands resting on his thighs. His left hand rests flat, palm downward, while his right hand (restored from fragments after damage by tomb robbers) is curled in a fist and holds an enigmatic cylindrical object that at least one scholar has interpreted as a folded piece of cloth. The fingernails and knuckle wrinkles of both hands are finely rendered. The figure wears a short kilt knotted at the waist. His legs and arms are full and fleshy, as is his torso, which features large breasts, a heavy belly with a crushed navel, and rolls of fat along his back. The hair on the figure's head is close-cropped and smooth, imitating the texture of his skin. The figure has a sagging chin, and a thin, closed mouth. The figure's eyes and nose, both heavily damaged by looters, have been restored by modern conservators with the help of a relief fragment now in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. The eyes may have originally been crafted from rock crystal with gold casings. With the restorations in place, the statue's face is demonstrably serene. The shoulders and hips are in axial alignment, and the figure is frontal (looking straight ahead), giving the overall portrait a block-like appearance. The sitter's titles (including "priest of Bastet" and "overseer of Scribes") are listed in hieroglyphs on the upper surface of the block beneath his feet. The characters are carved in sunken relief and filled with colored paste. Traces of color on other parts the statue indicate that it was once painted.

Significance:
As rendered by the ancient artist, this portrait of Hemiunu clearly conveys the sitter's high social status as the grand vizier to the pharaoh Khufu, and as the purported architect of the Great Pyramid at Giza. His pose, facial serenity, and youthful features echo pharaonic portraits, while his fleshy body indicates that he was wealthy and well-fed. It has been noted by scholars that the rolls of fat on Hemiunu's torso are characteristic of a person of much larger size, suggesting that these elements were added as markers of status rather than as accurate reflections of the sitter's physical body. This incongruity aside, Hemiunu's face and body still give the impression of a specific individual rather than a generic "type," situating it among other relatively "realistic" productions of the Old Kingdom such as Ankh-haf. As discovered in 1912, the portrait was secreted away in a serdab in Hemiunu's mastaba tomb (among the largest constructed at Giza) where it could be inhabited by the ka of the deceased. Despite this ancient attempt to protect the statue, tomb robbers later broke into the chamber and damaged Hemiunu's portrait - a lamentable, yet all-too-common fate of many examples of Egyptian funerary art. ]]> Likeness: A Conceptual History of Ancient Portraiture, 1968, p. 35.

Museum Publication (in print and online): Allen, James P. et al. Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids. Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1999, pp. 229-231.

Academic article found online: Fischer, H. G. "An Elusive Shape Within the Fisted Hands of Egyptian Statues," Metropolitan Museum Journal 10, 1975, pp. 9-21.

"Archaeology at Random" website: https://archaeologyatrandom.wordpress.com/hemiunu/]]>