Illustrative model — an approximation, not a scan of the original object.
c. 1870 – 1831 BCE
Statue of Senusret III
Twelfth Dynasty.
- Material
- Dark hard stone (granodiorite)
- Findspot
- Temple of Mentuhotep II, Deir el-Bahari
- Discovery
- Found with a group of the king’s statues at the temple of Mentuhotep II during the Egypt Exploration Fund excavations in the early twentieth century.
- Held by
- The British Museum, London
- Inventory number
- EA 684
The king stands with his hands flat on the front of his kilt in an attitude of devotion. His face is serious, with heavy eyelids and deep lines around the mouth.
These statues were set around the temple of Mentuhotep II, as if Senusret III were honouring the predecessor who had reunited the land.
This statue is one of a group of Senusret III statues that stood around the base of Mentuhotep II’s temple at Deir el-Bahari; no two are exactly alike.
- The British Museum, London “Statue of Senusret III, EA 684” britishmuseum.org
Does the weary face record the king’s real features, or express an image of a king bearing the burdens of rule? Scholars disagree.
Scholarly note: Most agree it is a deliberate artistic choice rather than simple realism.
- The British Museum, London “Statue of Senusret III, EA 684” britishmuseum.org
- Ian Shaw (ed.) (2000) “The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt” Oxford University Press