Head of Wesirwer, Priest of Montu in the Brooklyn Museum, March 2010

Head of Wesirwer, Priest of the God Montu

The fragmentary inscription on the dorsal pillar of this head contains a rebus that reveals the owner's name—Wesirwer ("Osiris Is Great")—and part of his title. An inscription on a statue in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo to which the head was originally attached (see photo) reveals that Wesirwer was a priest of the Theban god Montu. On the Cairo statue, Wesirwer holds figures of the Theban divine triad—Amun, king of the gods; Mut, his consort; and Khonsu, their child, a god of the moon. He sports an Achaemenid-, or Persian-, style garment, which had been introduced before Dynasty XXVII (circa 525–404 B.C.), a period of foreign occupation.

The Brooklyn fragment belongs to a group of green-stone heads that combine both conventional and naturalistic facial details. Wesirwer's egg-shaped skull and almond eyes are standard elements of fourth-century works, but the serene gaze is a naturalizing element perhaps evocative of Wesirwer's piety.

Medium: Schist

Place Found: Karnak, Egypt

Dates: ca. 380-342 B.C.E.

Dynasty: XXX Dynasty

Period: Late Period

Dimensions: 6 x 3 1/2 x 4 1/2 in. (15.2 x 8.9 x 11.4 cm)

Collections: Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

Museum Location: This item is on view in Egypt Reborn: Art for Eternity, 19th Dynasty to Roman Period, Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Gallery, 3rd Floor

Accession Number: 55.175

Credit Line: Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund

Text from: www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/3615/Head_o...