Head of a Man

between 200 and 150 BCE

Egyptian

On View

Egyptian: Daily Reverences, Level 1, West Wing

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About the Artwork

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Markings

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Provenance

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Exhibition History

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisonné

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Credit Line for Reproduction

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About the Artwork

The identity of the person represented by the Head of a Man is unknown because the inscription is lost; however, he lived during the Ptolemaic dynasty, which was founded by one of Alexander the Great's generals. The man was likely an important leader, perhaps a priest or a general, and had himself portrayed with strength and self-assurance.

Title Head of a Man

Artwork Date between 200 and 150 BCE

Artist ----------

Life Dates ----------

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. Egyptian

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. Egyptian

Medium Carved stone

Dimensions Overall (sculpture): 3 1/2 × 2 1/2 × 3 9/16 inches (8.9 × 6.4 × 9 cm) Mount (base): 2 3/4 × 2 3/8 × 2 1/2 inches (7 × 6 × 6.4 cm) Including base: 6 1/4 × 2 1/2 × 3 9/16 inches (15.9 × 6.4 × 9 cm)

Classification Sculpture

Department African Art

Credit City of Detroit Purchase

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 40.48

Markings

Inscriptions ------

Provenance

Howard Carter (London, England)

1940-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

For more information on provenance and its important function in the museum, please visit:

Provenance page

Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

We welcome your feedback for correction and/or improvement.

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Published References

Bulletin of the DIA 20, no. 5 (February 1941): p. 50.

Bothmer, Bernard V. "The signs of Age," Bulletin of the Museum of Fine Arts, vol. 49, no. 277 (October 1951): p. 74 [column 1, footnote 2].

Egyptian Sculpture of the Late Period 700 B.C. to A.D. 100. Exh. cat., Brooklyn Museum. Brooklyn, October 18, 1960-January 9, 1961. Reprint, 1973, pp. 143-144, no. 111, pl. 102-103, (fig. 274-275, 277-278) [as "Portrait Head with Hooked Nose"].

"Family Art Game," Detroit News/Detroit Free Press (April 18, 1982): p. 30 (ill.). [DIA Advertising Supplement].

"Family Art Game," Detroit Free Press (May 18, 1986): p. 28 (ill.). [DIA Advertising Supplement].

Cleopatra's Egypt: Age of the Ptolemies. Exh. cat., Brooklyn Museum, DIA, Kunsthalle der Hypo-Kulturstiftung. Brooklyn, 1988, cat. no. 00; p. 132, (ill.); color pl. VII; cat. no. 37.

ESLP. p. 142, 143-144, 150, 156, 165, 166; pl. 102-103, (fig. 74-275, 277-278); cat. no. 111.

Peck. 1981, pp. 65-7.

James, T. G. H. Howard Carter: the Path to Tutankhamun. London, 1982, p. 373.

Peck. 1983, pp. 4-5.

Peck. 1991b, pp. 17, 22 (ill.).

Peck. 1991a, pp. 16, 19, 68 (ill.).

Peck. 1991c, p. 81.

Carter. [illustration and caption] p. 177. [Listed in Carter's will as "Black basalt portrait Headof an Official, Saite, 3 1/2" high 15.0.0", p. 182].

Detroit, 1995, p. 103.

Henshaw, Julia P., ed. A Visitors Guide: The Detroit Institute of Arts. Detroit, 1995, p. 103 (ill.).

Romano, James F. In the Fullness of Time. Hallie Ford Museum of Art. 2002, p. 66.

Peck, William H. “Archaeology and the Detroit Institute of Arts,” Bulletin of the DIA 79, no. 1/2 (2005): 8, (fig. 6).

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