Plaque Depicting a Ram
Ptolemaic Period (332–30 BCE)
Medium
Limestone
Dimensions
17.2 × 25.8 × 2 cm (6 13/16 × 10 3/16 × 13/16 in.)
Classification
plaque (flat object)
Department
Arts of Africa
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
121768
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
The two sets of horns on this exemplary portrayal of a ram reflect ancient Egyptian sculptors’ simultaneous close observation of nature and strict adherence to artistic tradition. The elongated corkscrew horns atop the ram’s head belong to a species that was already long extinct when this plaque was carved. Rather than abandoning the conventional representation of this animal, artists added a set of curved horns to reflect the appearance of contemporary rams. On similar plaques portions of the o...
About the Artist
Ancient Egyptian
Ancient Egyptian artists, a collective of highly skilled artisans spanning over three millennia from the Predynastic period (c. 6000–3150 BC) to the Roman era (30 BC–4th century AD), produced some of humanity's most enduring masterpieces. These anonymous craftsmen, often organized in state-sponsored workshops, lived in dedicated communities like Deir el-Medina near Luxor during the New Kingdom (c....