Ancient Egypt, Middle Kingdom, 11th to 13th Dynasty, ca. 2130 to 1650 BCE. This is a remarkably well-preserved wooden torso from a tomb attendant figure, made to represent a boatman, with articulating arms and painted details. Tenon pegs in the shoulders secure the separate arms via drilled sockets and the arms can be raised or positioned to hold a pair of oars. Once carved, the surface was covered in a layer of gesso and painted with black, white, tan, and other hues to indicate skin hair and clothing - here the black and white of the classic cap-styled coiffure and thick kohl rimmed eyes are discernable. Archaeologists typically find two ships in almost all tombs that have models from the Middle Kingdom period, and those ships are usually staffed by boatmen like this one - created to as servants for the afterlife, ready to row the deceased upon the eternal Nile, as actual boatmen would have done in real life. Size: 5" L x 2" W (12.7 cm x 5.1 cm); 6.75" H (17.1 cm) on included custom stand.

Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection; ex-MacMurray College, Jacksonville, Illinois, USA, originally collected by Professor Wallace M. Stearns (member of the Egyptian Exploration fund in 1914) in the 1930s

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Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.

#169730

Fragment of a larger piece as shown. Glue adhesive infill to stabilize a fissure on right side near shoulder and tenon peg. Arms are removable. Surface abrasions and chips as shown. Losses to gesso, but good remains of pigments on face and head.