Bronze Statuette of the Seated Imhotep

Culture: Egyptian

Period: Ptolemaic period, 332-30 B.C.

Material: Bronze

Dimensions: 12 cm high

Price: Sold

Ref: 1373

Provenance: From the private collction Joseph Laissuis (1900-1969), president of the Jules Verne Society and professor for metallography.

Condition: Intact

Description: Massive bronze statuette of the deified Imhotep. The creator of the first stone pyramid at the beginning of the 3rd dynasty (2650-2600 B.C.) with inlaid eyes made of silver and glass pupils. He wears a tight-fitting cap and holds an open papyrus roll on his lap. From the New Kingdom onwards, the achievements of the former Old Kingdom architect and builder were so revered that Imhotep became the personified patron of writing and wisdom. When this statuette was created during the Ptolemaic period, he had already achieved divine status, with his own mythology and cult. Imhotep was also invoked for his intercession during illness and sterility and was later equated by the Greeks with their own god of medicine, Asclepius. For this type see the statuette in the Metropolitan Museum of Art with Accession Number 26.7.852a, b. Mounted.