Egyptian hippopotamus figurine
- Title:
- Egyptian hippopotamus figurine
- Collection:
- Cornell Cast Collection
- Creator:
- Unknown
- Photographer:
- Mihaloew, Andreya
- Date:
- ca. 1890-1900
ca. 4000-2800 BCE
2014 (image)
- Site:
- Egypt (original)
- Location:
- White Hall (showcase outside room 409), Cornell University
Egypt (original) - ID Number:
- CCC_0832
- Accession Number:
- possibly among Sage nos. 6-17
769 - File Name:
- CCC_0832.tif
- Culture:
- Egyptian
- Style/Period:
- Predynastic or Early Dynastic (?)
- Work Type:
- casts (sculpture)
- Materials/Techniques:
- plaster cast (sculpture)
possibly limestone or terracotta sculpture in the round (original) - Subject:
- Hippopotamus
- Image View Type:
- overall
- Image View Description:
- from three-quarters
- Measurement:
- 6 x 8.5 x 4 (centimeters, height x width x diameter)
- Description:
- This is a cast of an Egyptian figurine of a hippopotamus. The figure is small and plump with a proportionally large head and a squared nose. The animal's front legs are fused into one, as are its hind legs. The cast has been painted in tones of yellow, gray, white, and muted red. Hippopotamus figurines of blue faience were popular tomb offerings in the Middle Kingdom, but this appears to be cast from a much earlier original, possibly of limestone or terracotta, and possibly dating to Predynastic or Early Dynastic times. The original from which this cast was taken remains to be identified.
- Notes:
- Items in the Cornell Cast Collection are meant for inventory and reference purposes. Metadata may not be complete in all cases.
- Bibliography:
- Guillemette Andreu, Marie-Hélène Rutschowscaya, and Christiane Ziegler, Ancient Egypt at the Louvre (Paris: Hachette Littératures, 1997), 88-89
- Repository:
- Cornell University
- Collecting Program:
- Cornell Collections of Antiquities
- Format:
- Image
- Rights:
- The images in the Cornell Collection of Antiquities: Casts are protected by copyright, and the copyright holders are their creators, generally Cornell University Library, Annetta Alexandridis, and Verity Platt. This collection of plaster casts owned by Cornell University was photographed by Cornell University Library, Alexandridis, Platt, and Andreya L. Mihaloew from 2010-2015, with funding from a Digital Collections in Arts and Sciences Grant to Annetta Alexandridis. Cornell is providing access to the materials for research and personal use. The written permission of any copyright and other rights holders is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use that extends beyond what is authorized by fair use and other statutory exemptions. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item. Please contact Annetta Alexandridis and Verity Platt for more information about this collection, or to request permission to use these images.