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Source Description
This miniature carved stone profile depicts a left-facing Egyptian king. The inlay was once part of a larger scene, with a cutaway on the king’s head clearly leaving room for an Egyptian crown and the neckline for a traditional broad collar. It is skillfully carved and made from red jasper, a semiprecious stone. The naturalistic handling of the cheeks and mouth date this inlay to the Ptolemaic period. An inlay such as this would have been set into a chest, throne, or even a royal coffin.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
142646
label
Inlay: Head of a King
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
142646
contentType
object
title
Inlay: Head of a King
description
This miniature carved stone profile depicts a left-facing Egyptian king. The inlay was once part of a larger scene, with a cutaway on the king’s head clearly leaving room for an Egyptian crown and the neckline for a traditional broad collar. It is skillfully carved and made from red jasper, a semiprecious stone. The naturalistic handling of the cheeks and mouth date this inlay to the Ptolemaic period. An inlay such as this would have been set into a chest, throne, or even a royal coffin.
date
380–246 BCE
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60740028
genreSpecific
Glyptic
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 4.4 x 3.2 x 1.8 cm (1 3/4 x 1 1/4 x 11/16 in.)
cul
Egypt, Greco-Roman period (332 BCE–395 CE), Ptolemaic dynasty (305–30 BCE)
accession
1966.37
Source extras
tec
red jasper
tombstone
Inlay: Head of a King, 380–246 BCE. Egypt, Greco-Roman period (332 BCE–395 CE), Ptolemaic dynasty (305–30 BCE). Red jasper; overall: 4.4 x 3.2 x 1.8 cm (1 3/4 x 1 1/4 x 11/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, James Parmelee Fund, 1966.370
collection
Egypt - Ptolemaic Dynasty
didYouKnow
Most Egyptian inlays are made of glass or faience, a type of ceramic, not precious or semiprecious stone like jasper.
citations
citation
“Annual Report for 1966.” <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em> 54, no. 6 (1967): 159–97.
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced: p.165
citation
“Recent Important Acquisitions: MADE BY PUBLIC AND PRIVATE COLLECTIONS IN THE UNITED STATES AND ABROAD.” <em>Journal of Glass Studies</em> 10 (1968): 180–90.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 180, Mentioned: p. 181
citation
Cooney, John D. “Intaglios, Cameos, and Related Works.” <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em> 55, no. 4 (April 1968): 113–119.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 117-118. Reproduced: p. 117
citation
Berman, Lawrence M., and Kenneth J. Bohač.<em> Catalogue of Egyptian Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art.</em> Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1999
page_number
Reproduced: p. 494; Mentioned: p. 494-5
creditline
James Parmelee Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 07:19:15.531000
sourceId
142646
dept
Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern Art
coll
Egypt - Ptolemaic Dynasty
med
red jasper
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
8767e7f53f57d1a5