Kneeling Statue of Pepy I

Kneeling Statue of Pepy I

The kneeling Statue of Pepy I is a pretty statue, measuring 15.2 by 4.6 by 9 cm, pictures Pepi I offering wine in typical assaulted bowls, presumably to Hathor, whose name is mentioned in the inscription. It is made of schist, with eyes of alabaster and obsidian, inlaid in a copper encasing. A hole in the king's forehead indicates that the statue originally wore a uraeus, maybe made of a more valuable material. The king is represented kneeling, his torso slimly bent forward out of regard for the goddess. His face is depicted with a particular animation and face, wahereas the torso is more colored. An long cartouche, naming the king as the son of Hathor, is engrossed before his knees. The source of the statue, which is on march in the Brooklyn Museum, is unknown. The fact that Hathor is named in the lettering as well as Pepi's known involvement with this goddess's temple at Dendara both make it likely that this statue once supported in the temple of Hathor at Dendara. Indeed, assorted reliefs found throughout the Greek-Roman Period temple of Dendara show statues of Pepi I. More than 2000 years after his prevail, statues of Pepi I adoring Hathor would hence still be piece of her temple's inventory.