Figurine of a man

Figurine of a man

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The earliest pieces of Egyptian sculpture represent men and women in formal poses. Figurines were made from mud or unbaked clay, ceramic, or ivory; details such as body hair, clothing, and tattoos were either incised or painted on the clay surface. This bearded man is made from the end portion of a hippo incisor. The features of his face and clothing were incised into the ivory and filled with a black paste like substance. Figurines are very rare in this period of Egyptian art and little is known about their use in the Predynastic cultures that created them.

Egyptian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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The Met collection of ancient Egyptian art consists of approximately 30,000 objects of artistic, historical, and cultural importance, dating from about 300,000 BCE to the 4th century CE. A signifcant percentage of the collection is derived from the Museum's three decades of archaeological work in Egypt, initiated in 1906 in response to increasing interest in the culture of ancient Egypt.