Statuette of Imhotep
Ptolemaic Period (305–30 BCE)
Medium
Copper alloy
Dimensions
12.5 × 3.8 × 6.5 cm (5 × 1 1/2 × 2 1/2 in.)
Classification
statuette
Department
Arts of Africa
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
120293
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Imhotep was the architect who designed the Stepped Pyramid of King Djoser (Dynasty 3, c.2687 BCE). Fifteen hundred years later, Imhotep was deified and revered as a god of healing and wisdom. As a sign of his learning, he holds an unrolled papyrus on his lap.
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....