Harvard Art Museums > 1983.96: Temple Relief of Queen Arsinoe II Architectural Elements Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Temple Relief of Queen Arsinoe II , 1983.96,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Dec 16, 2024, https://hvrd.art/o/289668. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Gallery Text After the death of Alexander of Macedon, who conquered Egypt in 332 BCE, control of the country fell to one his generals, Ptolemy, who established the Ptolemaic dynasty. Alexandria, Egypt’s newly founded city, became an important intellectual center. Its arts followed Greek concepts, while architecture and sculpture elsewhere in the country largely adhered to established Egyptian norms. Accordingly, the visual representation of Egypt’s Macedonian rulers includes both Greek-style royal images and traditional images of the pharaoh. On this relief fragment from a temple, the deified Queen Arsinoë II (c. 316–270 BCE), sister and wife of King Ptolemy II (r. 283/282– 246 BCE), wears a vulture headdress and a headgear consisting of the red crown of Lower Egypt and divine attributes, such as ram and bovine horns and a sun disk. Conception and style of the relief are entirely Egyptian, but Arsinoë’s profile resembles that of her Greek portrait on coins. Identification and Creation Object Number 1983.96 Title Temple Relief of Queen Arsinoe II Other Titles Alternate Title: Relief of Queen Arsinoë II as Hathor Classification Architectural Elements Work Type architectural element Date after 270 BCE Places Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Africa, Egypt (Ancient) Period Ptolemaic period Culture Egyptian Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/289668 Location Location Level 3, Room 3740, Ancient Mediterranean and Middle Eastern Art, Ancient Egypt: Art for Eternity View this object's location on our interactive map Physical Descriptions Medium Limestone, with red ocher, charcoal black, and Egyptian blue on chalk Technique Carved Dimensions 42.5 cm h x 57.7 cm w x 7.5 cm d (16 3/4 x 22 11/16 x 2 15/16 in.) Inscriptions and Marks inscription: Daughter of Amun and Beloved of the gods; (At left) . . . mother of Apis Provenance Recorded Ownership History Henri and Helene Kamer, (Gallerie Kamer, New York and Paris), 1967. Ex collection J. Roux, 1974. Robert J. Myers, New York, 1974. Ex collection James Alsdorf, Chicago, 1981. Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Lindenbaum, New York, 1981; gift to the Fogg Art Museum, 1983. Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Samuel H. Lindenbaum Accession Year 1983 Object Number 1983.96 Division Asian and Mediterranean Art Contact am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Publication History Recent Acquisitions 1967, Galerie Kamer, 1967, auct. cat. (New York City, NY), n/a Ancient Art, Meyers/Adams Auction 8, auct. cat. (New York, NY, Oct-10-1974), 133 Reines Ptolemaiques et Traditions Egyptiennes by Jan Quaegebeur, Das ptolemaische Agypten (Mainz, 1978), 259, note 105 Robert Bianchi, Cleopatra's Egypt: Age of the Ptolemies: Age of the Ptolemies, exh. cat. (Brooklyn, NY, 1988), cat. 65, p.169 Michel Chauveau, La Gloire d'Alexandrie, exh. cat. (Paris, 1998), cat. 42, p.81 Stephan Wolohojian, ed., Harvard Art Museum/Handbook (Cambridge, Massachusetts, 2008) Jeffrey Spier, Timothy Potts, and Sara E. Cole, ed., Beyond the Nile: Egypt and the Classical World, exh. cat. (Los Angeles, 2018), pp. 173-174, no. 105 Exhibition History Cleopatra's Egypt: Age of the Ptolemies, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, 10/07/1988 - 01/02/1989; Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, 02/15/1989 - 05/01/1989; Kunsthalle der Hypo-Kulturstiftung, Munich, 06/08/1989 - 09/10/1989 La Gloire d'Alexandrie, Musée du Petit Palais, 05/06/1998 - 07/26/1998 Gods in Color: Painted Sculpture of Classical Antiquity, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 09/22/2007 - 01/20/2008 Landmarks of World Art and Architecture, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 09/04/2012 - 01/19/2013 32Q: 3740 Egyptian, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/16/2014 - 11/28/2017; Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/29/2018 - 01/01/2050 Beyond the Nile: Egypt and the Classical World, J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, 03/27/2018 - 09/09/2018 Subjects and Contexts Google Art Project Verification Level This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
