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About this Brooklyn Icon
The Brooklyn Museum is commemorating its 200th anniversary by spotlighting 200 standout objects in its encyclopedic collection.
This dramatic terra-cotta female figurine is one of the Museum’s oldest objects. Its level of preservation is remarkable. Although a few other examples of such figurines exist, this is the only one that is fully intact.
The statuette was excavated in 1907, found in a tomb at the site of El Ma’marîya in southern Egypt by Henri de Morgan, who was working on behalf of the Brooklyn Museum. The woman’s face is distinctive, and her emphasized nose accentuates the importance of breath. Her chest is bare, and her arms are raised over her head, hands pointed inward in a pose of praise. Her arms might mimic the horns of cattle, important animals in early Egypt. Her abbreviated legs are joined together and painted white to represent a fine skirt.
A true masterpiece of Egyptian art, the statue’s subject is an enigma. Perhaps it represents a divinity or a mortal woman performing lost rituals.
Object Label
These three figurines represent two women and a man. They resemble the group painted on the Jar with Boat Design in a nearby case. In the scene on the jar, the larger female figure with upraised arms appears to be celebrating a ritual in the presence of the two smaller figures.
The bird-like faces on two of these figurines probably represent human noses, the source of the breath of life. The dark patch on the larger female’s head and the white paint on the male’s head and shoulders represent hair, also a human trait. All three figurines wear white skirts, indicating high-status individuals.
Caption
Female Figure, ca. 3500–3400 B.C.E.. Clay, pigment, 11 1/2 x 5 1/2 x 2 1/4 in. (29.2 x 14 x 5.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 07.447.505. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 07.447.505_front_SL3.jpg)
Tags
Title
Female Figure
Date
ca. 3500–3400 B.C.E.
Period
Predynastic Period, Naqada IIa Period
Geography
Place excavated: El Ma’marîya, Egypt
Medium
Clay, pigment
Classification
Dimensions
11 1/2 x 5 1/2 x 2 1/4 in. (29.2 x 14 x 5.7 cm)
Credit Line
Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
Accession Number
07.447.505
Rights
Creative Commons-BY
You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
Frequent Art Questions
What is she doing?
Interesting question as scholars still debate to this day what exactly she is doing. The symbolism, function, and identity of the figure are not certain. However, similar female figures painted on Predynastic vessels appear to be goddesses, because they are always larger than the male "priests" shown with them. She could also represent a priestess or a goddess dancing or performing ritualized mourning at a funeral.Interesting, thanks!You're welcome!Are these figures representations of gods or normal people?
We're not sure. Scholars still debate to this day what exactly she is doing. The symbolism, function, and identity of the figure are not certain. However, similar female figures painted on Predynastic vessels appear to be goddesses, because they are always larger than the male "priests" shown with them. She could also represent a priestess or a goddess dancing or performing ritualized mourning at a funeral.How ancient is this?
This figurine is one of the most ancient objects on view at the Brooklyn Museum. She is dated almost 3000 years earlier than the Fayum Portrait you photographed meaning she is about 5000 years old. Nicknamed "Bird Lady" for her beak-like nose, we don't know the exact purpose of this figurine or who it represents. This particular example was found in a tomb. There is a nearby jar that shows a similar figure amongst smaller male figures.Where was the "bird lady" excavated?
She was excavated at a site called Ma'mariya which is in southern or "Upper" Egypt. The Brooklyn Museum supported excavations there in the early years of the 20th century.When and on what object was the first eye appear in Egyptian art?
At the same time that the Bird Lady was made, Egyptians were already putting eyes on human figures in their art. It started as early as 6000 years ago. The way this figure is stylized just emphasize other traits, these eyes weren't important here.Does the bird lady has an animal head, a beak? What do you think the significance of her bird face is?
"Bird Lady" is actually just a nickname because her face looks beak-like, but the figure is not interpreted as having an animal head. Scholars speculate that this could be an emphasized nose. We know that the Egyptians thought it was important for sculptures to have noses so they could breathe when a soul was living in them.The arm gesture is like the one on the pot shown nearby, but on the pot the face is just a filled in circle. Do you think the similar hand gestures could show that this was a priestess? Is she performing a ritual of mourning? And does the water and boat scene inform the gestures as to what is happening?
There are multiple figurines and drawings that show a woman with upraised arms like this. Scholars do speculate that she could be a goddess, priestess, or dancer. Did you notice the size difference between the woman and the other figures around her on the pot? What does that suggest to you about her activity?Perhaps she is the principle person in the scene, according to hieratic scale she is the most important figure.Yes, according to the hierarchy of scale she is the most important person in the scene on the pot.Was the Predynastic Period before the Osiris stories?
The Osiris story was likely formulated in the Predynastic period. Location-wise, Osiris became most closely tied to Abydos and the tale of the legendary king likely spread from there. Early rulers were also buried at Abydos. It's possible they were from Abydos, but the association with Osiris may have impacted that decision.Is she in an abbreviated style, is the combining of her legs beneath her skirt intentional? There are grooves that suggest fingers.
I would say that the style is quite abbreviated given the lack of facial features. However, the skirt would conceal the separation of her legs in reality, so nothing is really lost there. It is definitely a stylistic choice rather than a lack of skill.Is her skirt an indicator of status?
Long white skirts like this are pretty unusual on Egyptian art of the Predynastic period. Therefore, we can assume that it held some kind of special meaning.Is there a difference between figurines and statues?
The differences between statue, statuette, figurine, et cetera are all relatively arbitrary. The different terms don't mean anything in regards to the use of the object. Usually, statuettes and figurines are on a smaller scale.Does terracotta mean it was once buried in a tomb or it's an object used for rituals?
Terracotta refers to the material that the "Bird Lady" is made out of. It's pretty similar to the clay that pots were made out of at the same time.This particular figurine was found in a grave. We do not know if this or similar figurines had an application to the living. Scholars speculate that, in a funerary context, these figurines were somehow associated with rituals necessary for rebirth into the afterlife.Thank you!Why does this sculpture have two left hands? The thumbs appear to be cut off. Given the places where they are cut off it appears as though the figure has two left hands!
Hmm, it looks to me like the both missing thumbs would have been facing forward, which would, in fact, make her hands backwards, but still two different hands.Okay! Our professor and classmates brought it up but now looking at it, it does look like the hands are just backwards.It is pretty curious! From later Egyptian art, we do know that the priority was showing a complete figure rather than a realistically arranged one.Thanks!I noticed that this figure is also located on a terracotta pot in a different display. Could the statue have represented or provided some spiritual passage or company to the afterlife? The Egyptians valued the Nile and water highly in their lives. By having this stuck in the ground, could it have represented the end of the current life and the beginning of a new one?
The truth is, this figure predates writing and doesn't exactly match anything from later periods. So, we don't positively know the answer!That being said, taking into consideration the hierarchical scale of the figures on the pot and the fact that upraised arms are a sign of worship in the pharaonic period, scholars suggest that she represents a goddess or priestess. It is also worth mentioning that the this particular figurine was found buried with someone.Good to know. Thanks!I thought how extraordinary that the arms of this piece are intact. Do you know more about how and where it was found?
It is rather extraordinary isn't it, especially considering the piece is over 5500 years old! In fact, this figurine was found during the Brooklyn Museum's first archaeological expedition in Egypt. It was found in the context of a burial, along with other fragmentary grave goods, in around 1906.This figure was excavated at a site called Ma'mariya in Upper Egypt (southern Egypt). In the early 20th century, the Brooklyn Museum conducted excavations in the area.Is it known if it was made particularly for the burial or for some other ceremony?
While this and other figurines like it have been found in association with burials, we don't know for certain if they were made for burials specifically or some other purpose. Based on later traditions, one can speculate that the figurine was somehow connected to the mortuary ritual or the rebirth of the deceased.Thank youWhat process is used to determine the age of a piece like this?
Several processes can go into dating a sculpture like this. One would be contextual, if the object has similarities to objects in text or archaeological finds elsewhere. Another way to date the object would be by linking it to the layer of earth in which it was found, and dating that layer of earth. Sometimes other objects in a grave can be dated more easily, other times, a sculpture like this can be dated using radiometric dating.Interesting. I wouldn't have thought about earth layer dating.Taking stock of layers of earth and dating contextually (especially based on pottery) is actually very common in archaeology. You can imagine that more technologically advanced methods would not have been available to early archaeologists, though some form of radiometric dating was available by 1905!What kingdom and dynasty does the Female Figure come from?
The Female Figure long predates any "kingdom" or "dynasty" in the Egyptian sense, before there were pharaohs, or pyramids, before Egypt was even a unified country. Scholars refer to this, broadly, as the Predynastic Period.This particular figure dates to a time that scholars call the Naqada II period which refers to a particular period in the material culture of southern Egypt around 3500 BCE.What does Naqada IIa mean?
This is a term that scholars use to refer to the material culture from a particular time period before the beginning of the Old Kingdom, the beginning of ancient Egypt as we most commonly know it. It was named Naqada after the site where this material culture was first identified. Some other terms you may see when looking at the material culture of very early Egypt are Badarian, Merimda, and Buto-Maadi, all named for places and each referring to a different material culture.And what does that “IIa” at the end mean?Each of these periods/cultures are broken up into even more narrow time periods. They’re usually divided up based on changes in pottery shapes or other visual markers. This sculpture matches others that were made in the first part of the second period of the Naqada culture.Ok! Thank you.This is my favorite piece in the Egyptian collection. Could have been created yesterday. So powerful!
This is indeed a really special piece! This figurine is the oldest object on view in the museum right now, it comes from a burial dated to about 5,500 years ago.A few sculptures like this are known from that time period, and this one is the most in tact!Thank you!
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