Female figure, 5″ high, Egypt,
ca. 1850–1640 B.C.
(Middle Kingdom, Dynasty 12-13)
Female figures of this type, often found with burials especially of the
Middle Kingdom, were in the past called “concubines.” Nowadays they
are understood in a more general sense as representations of the life
giving female powers of sexual attraction and giving birth, powers from
which the dead could derive a new life. As most representatives of the
type, this faience figure lacks the lower legs and has elaborate tattoos
all over its body. The figure also wears a girdle of cowrie shell
shaped beads and a long bead necklace crossed over the chest. The hair
is arranged in the so-called “Hathor” style–two thick tresses with
curled ends falling forward over the shoulders.
Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art