LOT 0069

Large Egyptian Wooden Figure of a Man

OLD KINGDOM, 5TH-6TH DYNASTY, 2450-2182 B.C.

22 in. (1.46 kg total, 55.7 cm high including stand).

Of slender form, shown striding and wearing a kilt with a central tab, and a rounded wig covering the ears, composed of echeloned rectangular curls; the face with a broad mouth with finely outlined lips, rounded at the corners; the front of the kilt and portion of the advancing left leg preserved; the arms and the lower right leg missing, having been carved separately; with traces of polychrome.

Joseph Altounian (1889-1954) and Henriette Lorbet, Altounian-Lorbet Gallery, Mâcon, France.
Believed acquired at Sotheby’s, London: The MacGregor Collection of Egyptian Antiquities, 26 June–3 July 1922.
Acquired by the previous owner from Henriette Lorbet, January 4th, 1967.

This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.13232-250113.

Cf. Saleh, M, Sourouzian, H., The Egyptian Museum, Cairo: official catalogue, Mainz, 1987, no. 42, for the upper half of a similarly slim-waisted figure with a rounded wig and expressive features; Ziegler, C., Les statues égyptiennes de l'Ancien Empire, Paris, 1997, pp. 183-184, no. 51, for a near-complete example of a similar figure.

The statue stands as another admirable example of wooden sculpture from the early dynasties. Its highly realistic face depicts a young man, mirrored by the slender body, with a sober and elegant design. The statue was undoubtedly originally coated in stucco and colour. The striking figure, slightly asymmetrical, along with the serious mouth and haughty expression, gives this portrait a remarkably lively appearance.