Head of a Colossal Statue of Amenhotep IV
By STAN PARCHIN
May 4, 2010
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| Egyptian, New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, Amarna Period (ca. 1353-1348 B.C.). Head of Colossal Statue of Amenhotep IV. Sandstone. H. 148 cm; W. 84 cm; D. 55 cm. Karnak, Precinct of the Aten (Gempaaten). Egyptian Museum, Cairo. |
When Pharaoh Amenhotep III (r. 1390-1353 B.C.) died, New Kingdom Egypt was a vast and wealthy empire. The rule of his son Amenhotep IV (r. 1353-1336 B.C.) spanned from the Nile River's Fifth Cataract (waterfall) in the Sudan to northern Syria. Prosperity from tribute and trade poured into the king's treasuries, allowing him to experiment with fresh religious and artistic ideas. During his reign's first five years, the monotheistic monarch later known as Akhenaten constructed at least four gigantic temples at Karnak, each structure dedicated to the Aten or solar disk. The Head of a Colossal Statue of Amenhotep IV (ca. 1353-1348 B.C.) in the special exhibition Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs is from the Gempaaten, one of the abstract deity's temples. The fragmentary sculpture reflects radical changes in ancient Egyptian art and the king's preoccupation with the present rather than eternity.
Amenhotep IV's Statues at Karnak
Some 28 colossal sandstone figures of Amenhotep IV were erected in front of square pillars about six feet apart in a peristyle or colonnaded hall east of the Amun Precinct at Karnak. Most stood in the Osiris position with their arms crossed over their chests and carrying the crook and flail, thus identifying the king with the Egyptian god of the dead and rebirth. The statues wore many different types of crowns, perhaps suggesting various aspects of the Aten. The daily shifting of the sun's rays in the Gempaaten constantly changed the monumental statues' impressive and imposing appearance.
The Head of a Colossal Statue of Amenhotep IV is carved in the exaggerated style of royal portraiture from the early years of the pharaoh's reign. Probably executed by the chief sculptor Bek, the expressionistic likeness of the king features his characteristic elongated face, narrow slanted eyes with heavy upper lids protruding sharply outward, long bulbous nose, large V-shaped mouth with thick lips and penchant chin. In this work, one of the earliest sculptures in the round of the enigmatic ruler, Amenhotep IV wears the royal striped nemes headdress surmounted by four ostrich feathers of the goddess Maat, representing order, truth and stability. The tall plumes also symbolize Shu, the god of air and son of the Heliopolitan creator-god Atum.
The androgynous effigies of Amenhotep IV had prominent breasts, pendulous stomachs, wide hips, large buttocks and inflated thighs. In the absence of the pharaoh's remains, these statues raised pathologists' suspicions that he suffered from an endocrine disorder. Scientific testing of a mummy recently identified as that of Akhenaten revealed that the king was not afflicted by any such illness. The willful distortions of the king's body in sculpture were most likely intended to set him apart from his mortal subjects in art as well as in life.
Sources
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Freed, Rita E., Yvonne J. Markowitz, Sue H. D'Auria, et al. Pharaohs of the Sun: Akhenaten, Nefertiti, Tutankhamen (exh. cat.). Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 1999, 16-59, 208.
Hawass, Zahi. Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs (exh. cat.). Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, 2005, 110-111.
_____, et al. Tutankhamun: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs (exh. cat.). Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, 2008, 144-145.
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