Head of King Nectanebo I or II

myminifactory

This was part of a statue installed in a temple. Stylistic details suggest that it may have been created by Nectanebo I or II, who ruled as the principal kings of Egypt's final native dynasty. The king's nose and the protective cobra on his forehead were deliberately destroyed to invoke a curse against him. It is possible that this act of vandalism took place when Egypt, after 60 years of independence, was recaptured by the Persians during their 31st Dynasty. A new nose and cobra were later inserted into prepared slots. This may have happened shortly after Alexander the Great had conquered the Persian Empire under the early Ptolemaic rulers. To reinforce their claim to Egypt's throne, they restored, revitalized, and emulated the monuments of their ancestral predecessors.