Ask the Scholar

This is a small statuette of Pharaoh Ramesses II and a goddess made of carnelian. Both the goddesses Hathor and Isis are mentioned in the inscription on the back pillar. The piece is inscribed in two columns of text on the back pillar and the cartouche of the Ramesses II inscribed under the base. The two figures stand against a wide back pillar, on a low base. The goddess stands on the proper left with her arm around the shoulders of the king. The right half of her face and her left foot have been broken away. She wears a low modius crown, tripartite wig and a sheath gown which is trimmed at the ankle and belted at the waist. The top of the king's head is level with the top of the crown of the goddess. He is depicted as a youth with a side lock and the index finger of his right hand raised to his lips. He wears a pleated mid-calf length kilt with a pendulous sash. Both figures are adorned with a uraeus, bracelets and armbands. Although the face is quite small, the typical smiling mouth of Ramesses II is visible.