Head From a Shabti (Funerary Figurine) of Queen Tiye
New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, Reign of Akhenaten (about 1352–1336 BCE)
Medium
Travertine (Egyptian alabaster) with traces of pigment
Dimensions
7.6 × 5.8 × 2.6 cm (3 × 2 1/4 × 1 in.)
Classification
ushabti
Department
Arts of Africa
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
120294
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
The form of the crown, full lips, down-turned edges of the mouth and almond-shaped eyes identify this fragment as Queen Tiye. She was the influential wife of pharaoh Amunhotep III. This head may originally have come from a statuette made during the reign of her son, Akhenaten.
About the Artist
Ancient Egyptian
Ancient Egyptian artists, a collective of highly skilled artisans spanning over three millennia from the Predynastic period (c. 6000–3150 BC) to the Roman era (30 BC–4th century AD), produced some of humanity's most enduring masterpieces. These anonymous craftsmen, often organized in state-sponsored workshops, lived in dedicated communities like Deir el-Medina near Luxor during the New Kingdom (c....