Winged goddess pectoral

Winged goddess pectoral

Nubian

Napatan Period, reign of Piankhy (Piye)

743–712 B.C.

Description

Amulets like this one were found in the burials of early Napatan queens. Made of blue-green glazed faience, they depict a nude, winged, lion-headed goddess crowned with a sun disc and uraeus. The wings bend sharply downward, and on each arm is a uraeus crowned with horns and a sun disc. The identity of he goddess is uncertain. A hieroglyphic inscription runs down the back.

Provenance

From el-Kurru, Ku 51 (unidentified queen of Piankhy). 1919: excavated by the Harvard University–Boston Museum of Fine Arts Expedition; assigned to the MFA in the division of finds by the government of Sudan.

Dimensions

Height x width: 8.5 x 6.2 cm

Accession Number

24.616

Medium or Technique

Faience

http://www.mfa.org/node/9458