Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Neith Seated
(Ancient Egypt and Nubia )
Among the countless deities known from ancient Egypt, the goddess Neith is one of the earliest. This fine statuette of the goddess shows her seated on a throne that is now lost. Inlays of gold and pigment show the details of her bead-net dress, necklace, armlets and bracelets. On her head she wears the Red Crown of Lower Egypt, adorned on the back with a falcon that grasps a shen-ring, a sign of protection, in each of its talons. A falcon is also depicted on the goddess' back, wrapping its wings around her body in a protective embrace. Although Neith was worshipped throughout ancient Egyptian history, statues of her like this one were particularly popular during the 26th Dynasty when the ruling kings made Sais, her cult center, the country's capital.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Dikran Kelekian, New York and Paris [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1912, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 2013-2014 | Egypt’s Mysterious Book of the Faiyum. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
Geographies
Egypt (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 9 1/16 × W: 2 3/16 × D: 2 15/16 in. (23 × 5.5 × 7.5 cm); H with base: 9 13/16 × W: 2 7/16 × D: 4 13/16 in. (25 × 6.2 × 12.3 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1912
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
54.2111