This object is made of stone. No one is quite sure what it...
This object is made of stone. No one is quite sure what it was used for.
The first reference to this object occurs in the 1913 sale catalogue of items belonging to Robert De Rustafjael (Sotheby Catalogue 20.1.1913). This item was later resold and purchased by Henry Wellcome at auction in May 1919 (Glendinings auction 5.5.1919, Lot 812). The figure measures 29 cm high and is hollow up to a third of its height. The drilling is not perfect suggesting that the item was made in antiquity. However, the hole in the top of the head appears more modern. There is a similar figure in the Berlin Museum made of ivory, but like our example, it is not known where it was found. The figurines seem to appear in wealthier graves but whether these persons were priestesses is unknown. It has been suggested that because this object is unusual it is a fake. We are not certain. On the one hand, there are no parallels in stone. On the other hand, the artefact does seem to be one of a pair. Another was sold at the same auction, whereabouts now unknown. This would suggest that if it is a fake it is a reasonably good one as the forger knew to make two, following the hippopotamus tusk examples which come in pairs. It is possible that the item is in part genuine but was embellished in more recent times.
