Statue cube. Ancient Egypt. Third Intermediate... Lot n° 68

Cube statue. Ancient Egypt. Third Intermediate Period. Lower Epoch, 1070-323 BC. Granite. Private collection K.Himmelein, Frankfurt, Germany. It has an old label of the collection on the base. Measurements: 14.5 cm. high. The cubic statue was an Egyptian style of statuary that appeared at the beginning of the Middle Kingdom (c. 2040 - 1795 BC), and had a long life, as shown by the statue of Uahibra, governor of Upper Egypt during the Late Period. As can be seen in the present piece, it depicts a seated person, almost always a male, with his knees bent and together and his arms crossed above his knees. He often wore a long robe, so that only the head and feet identified a human being in the cube. This type of statue was a kind of memorial. Because of its hexahedron shape it had five surfaces to write on. The upper surface was dedicated to the presentation of the deceased, and the head was carved on it. In the course of its evolution it acquired more human elements, such as arms and, eventually, legs. There are also some examples of a fusion between the cube and the statue, such as a seated scribe on whose lap is a papyrus that serves as a cube.