Block statue of Mersuptah

Unknown

ca. 945–712 B.C. or earlier · Quartzite · Egyptian Art

This block statue depicts the “Overseer of Works in the Temple of Ptah,” Mersuptah, whose name and title are included in the hieroglyphic text inscribed across the front of his legs and feet. He is in a squatting position, indicated by his hands resting on his knees just below his face. The lack of definition in his legs and feet gives the impression that he is enveloped in a cloak. He wears a layered wig, with the division between the upper and lower sections indicated by the thinly carved line that runs from his temples to his shoulders. The dating of Mersuptah's block statue is contested, with suggestions falling between the late New Kingdom and the Third Intermediate Period.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 945–712 B.C. or earlier

Medium

Quartzite

Department

Egyptian Art

Credit line

Gift of Mrs. S. W. Straus, 1925