Bronze Statue of a Young Man from Ziphteh

Illustration

Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin
by
published on 17 June 2016
Bronze Statue of a Young Man from Ziphteh Download Full Size Image

In ancient Greece and Rome, bronze and marble statues adorned public palaces and the sanctuaries of gods. Over centuries, almost all the bronze statues were melted down for re-use. This is one of the very few surviving examples from Egypt. The figure is a Roman version of an earlier Greek statue. It is made of polished bronze. The eyes are silvered and the irises and pupils would have been of glass or semi-precious stone. The lips and nipples were inlaid with copper to give them a pinkish hue. The sculptor added some hair locks separately which gave them a three-dimensional quality. The statue was made of several pieces using the technique known as the indirect lost wax process. They were joined together by brazing; any imperfections were hammered out and the entire surface was polished. From Ziphteh, near ancient Athribis, Nile Delta, Egypt. 1st century BCE. (The British Museum, London)

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About the Author

Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin
Associate Professor of Neurology and lover of the Cradle of Civilization, Mesopotamia. I'm very interested in Mesopotamian history and always try to take photos of archaeological sites and artifacts in museums, both in Iraq and around the world.

Cite This Work

APA Style

Amin, O. S. M. (2016, June 17). Bronze Statue of a Young Man from Ziphteh. World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/image/5237/bronze-statue-of-a-young-man-from-ziphteh/

Chicago Style

Amin, Osama Shukir Muhammed. "Bronze Statue of a Young Man from Ziphteh." World History Encyclopedia. Last modified June 17, 2016. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/5237/bronze-statue-of-a-young-man-from-ziphteh/.

MLA Style

Amin, Osama Shukir Muhammed. "Bronze Statue of a Young Man from Ziphteh." World History Encyclopedia. World History Encyclopedia, 17 Jun 2016. Web. 24 Apr 2024.

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