Osiride Statue of King Mentuhotep III, re-inscribed for King Merenptah

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The imposing stance of this life-sized statue of Mentuhotep III reveals a strong connection to Osiris through its arms folded across the chest. The king's body is encased in a snug, mummy-like garment from which only his hands protrude, with a knee-length robe barely visible underneath. Holes through the hands indicate that he once held the crook and flail scepters that served as symbols of both the reigning monarch and the god of the afterlife. Traces of the long, curved beard of the gods may also be visible on his chest above his crossed arms. Originally standing in the temple of the warrior god Montu at Armant in southern Egypt, this statue was one of six such figures that were ceremonially buried beneath the floor when the temple was rebuilt during the Greco-Roman period. Although no longer needed in the new building, nearly two millennia later they were still considered too sacred to destroy. The inscription running down the center is misleading because it identifies the king as the Nineteenth Dynasty pharaoh Merenptah. However, this text was inscribed centuries after the statue was erected, possibly during a renovation undertaken by Merenptah. Most of the other figures of Mentuhotep discovered with this statue are uninscribed. Provenance: from Armant, temple of Montu. In 1937, excavated by the Sir Robert Mond Expedition of the Egypt Exploration Society; in 1938, given to the MFA as a recognition of a contribution of $3,796 to the Robert Mond Expedition of the Egypt Exploration Society (Accession Date: September 8, 1938). Photography and photogrammetry were done by Zhejiang University.