Egyptian Block Statues

Fig. 1 - 30th Dynasty Block Statue

     These statues feature a very stylized portrayal of the human form, being mostly a cube with head, hands and feet sticking out. The oldest known example of such a statue is from Dynasty Twelve.

Fig. 2 - 18th Dynasty Block Statue

Fig. 3 - Detail of the Dynasty 18 Statue

     The simple shape of these statues provided plenty of space for writing. Block statues were very often set up in temples by local nobility to memorialize their good deeds. The example shown here in Figure 1 is from the Thirtieth Dynasty and was created for a man named Thanefer. The base and back of the statue have an inscription containing a dedication to the god Amen-Ra. This statue is currently in the collection of the J. P. Morgan Library in New York.

     An earlier example of a block statue is the one sculpted for Bekhenkhons in the Eighteenth Dynasty (figures 2 and 3). In this case the dedicatory inscription is on the leg area of the statue, rather than the base. Notice also that only the hands are shown in this statue (rather than the arms as in figure 1) and the legs are less clearly defined than in the later sculpture.