Statuette of a flutist

Unknown

ca. 4th century B.C. or later · Copper alloy · Egyptian Art

This small bronze statuette depicts a man standing on top of a base with his left leg forward. He wears a skull cap and a long straight garment wrapped at the front. The artist did not differentiate the hands from the instruments they are holding, but his raised hands clearly hold two flutes. His right hand is raised higher than the other, placing the flutes to his left, where he could breathe air into them to play them. As the man eternally plays his instruments, his figure alludes to significance of music and musicians in religious experience of the first millennium B.C.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 4th century B.C. or later

Medium

Copper alloy

Department

Egyptian Art

Credit line

Bequest of Nanette B. Kelekian, 2020