Course: Ancient Mediterranean + Europe > Unit 4
Lesson 3: Middle Kingdom and Second Intermediate PeriodHippopotamus
Met curator Isabel Stünkel on precaution in Hippopotamus dating from Egypt’s Middle Kingdom, c. 1961–1878 B.C.E.
This well-formed statuette of a hippopotamus (popularly called "William") demonstrates the Egyptian artist's appreciation for the natural world. It was molded in faience, a ceramic material made of ground quartz. Beneath the blue-green glaze, the body was painted with the outlines of river plants, symbolizing the marshes in which the animal lived.
The seemingly benign appearance that this figurine presents is deceptive. To the ancient Egyptians, the hippopotamus was one of the most dangerous animals in their world. The huge creatures were a hazard for small fishing boats and other rivercraft. The beast might also be encountered on the waterways in the journey to the afterlife. As such, the hippopotamus was a force of nature that needed to be propitiated and controlled, both in this life and the next. This example was one of a pair found in a shaft associated with the tomb chapel of the steward Senbi II at Meir, an Upper Egyptian site about thirty miles south of modern Asyut. Three of its legs have been restored because they were purposely broken to prevent the creature from harming the deceased. The hippo was part of Senbi's burial equipment, which included a canopic box (also in the Metropolitan Museum), a coffin, and numerous models of boats and food production.
View this work on metmuseum.org.
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- If they believe the legs were broken on purpose, why reproduce the three other legs instead of allowing it to be the way it was meant to be in the tomb?(6 votes)
- Maybe they came up with the theory that the legs were broken on purpose after they had reproduced the legs and they didn't want to break them again for fear of damaging it.
Or they thought that it would look better with four legs because that is how it was originally made.(2 votes)
- Haha! I don't know why it tickles me so much that such an unlikely statue would be an "unofficial mascot." Why is this piece, in particular, of such importance?(3 votes)
- Maybe reproductions sell well in the gift shop and maybe since it is a very nice work of art and could attract visitors are part of the reason they made "William" their mascot.(1 vote)
- I thought the hippo represented the goddess Taweret? And I thought she was protective and kind. Yes she could be dangerous but only if you threaten her babies...
I thought the Lotus flower represented goddesses such as Isis or Hathor?
I thought the blue color represented goddesses as it represents water which is life giving?(2 votes)- Regarding Tawaret, you're right https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taweret
Regarding Lotus and Hathor, you're also right "The goddess Hathor was also depicted holding the blue lotus symbol as her sacred flower. http://www.landofpyramids.org/lotus-symbol.htm(1 vote)
- At1:46the narrator mentions how the "Egyptians believed the [hippopotamus] depictions could magically come to life," and potentially "harm it's owner in the tomb." Would the act of placing this sculpture in the tomb act be some form of a punishment toward the individual buried there then?(1 vote)
- I don't think so. Remember, at1:50she says that the hippopotamus had positive qualities too.(2 votes)
- Is that the original paint, or did the museum repaint the hippopotamus ?(1 vote)
- The blue is original. It is faience, not paint.(2 votes)
- so first, why don't the go deeper into the "dark side of the hippo"? second, why did they make the hippo?(1 vote)
- I'm amazed by how vibrant that blue color is. How does faience/quartz preserve so well?(2 votes)
- no one said they were buried in layers and layers of rock and ash like pompeii.(0 votes)