Previous 
Recumbent baboon
Egypt
Middle Kingdom , 2040-1782 BC
Light green faience with black details
Height 3 cm ( 1 1⁄8 in )
Width 6 cm ( 2 3⁄8 in )
Former private collection W.B. Germany, acquired between 1954 and 1959 in Egypt
F.D. Friedman: Gifts of the Nile, Ancient Egyptian Faience, Thames & Hudson, London 1998
W.C. Hayes: Sceptre of Egypt I, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York 1959
J. Bourriau & S. Quirke: Pharaohs and Mortals: Egyptian art in the Middle Kingdom, University Press Cambridge 1988
Share 
Print 
Call Us 
Enquire 
The baboon lies on a rectangular base plate with its head turned sideways. Its front legs are stretched forward. The body shapes are only hinted at. The base, eyes and ears of the baboon were highlighted in black, only traces remain.
The animal has been crafted in an informal and naturalistic style. This type of figure was probably intended as representation of the actual animal living in the household, most likely a treasured reminder of a person’s pet during their life, and thus included in the tomb as a keepsake.
