Cleveland Museum of Art

Votive Head of a King

Date

305–246 BCE

Medium

limestone

Culture

Egypt, Greco-Roman period (332 BCE–395 CE), reign of Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285–246 BCE)

Department

Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

The browband, part of a royal headdress, identifies this fine head as a king. Curiously this head is in limestone, one of very few in this medium. They are fairly common in plaster. This one, apparently in imitation of its plaster prototypes, has been hollowed out; the gouging marks are still clearly visible. The portrait type is most closely associated with Ptolemy II. An exact date, however, is speculative at best as features like this occur as early as Dynasty 29. The purpose of this sculpture is not known; it is assumed that this and others like it were votive offerings in honor of the king.

The authoritative record is held by Cleveland Museum of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.