Female Figurines from the Mut Precinct: Context and Ritual Function

[Author's note: A lightly edited version of this dissertation was published in 2009 as Female Figurines from the Mut Precinct: Context and Ritual Function. Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis 240. Fribourg: Academic Press/Goettingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. ISBN 10: 3525534566/ISBN 13: 9783525534564 https://doi.org/10.5167/uzh-152360] This study concerns the ceramic female figurines excavated by Johns Hopkins at the Precinct of Mut in Luxor, Egypt between 2001 and 2004. The figures date from the New Kingdom to the Late Period (ca. 1550-332 BCE). Ceramic figurines are frequently overlooked by archaeologists, art historians, and social historians because they lack the aesthetic qualities usually associated with Egyptian art. However, the Hopkins-excavated figurines display features that mark them as standardized ritual objects. I argue that ceramic female figurines were produced in workshops, utilized by magician/physicians in healing rituals, and regularly snapped and discarded at the end of their effective ‘lives.’ This is a new, broader interpretation for objects that have previously been interpreted as toys, dolls, concubine figures, and - most recently - votive "fertility figurines.

The Ptolemaic Oinochoai: A Reassessment

[Unpublished; Main text last updated July 2014; URLs in footnotes updated July 2018 where possible] In reconsidering the multimedia nature, royal iconography, inscriptions, and pan-Mediterranean findspots of the Ptolemaic oinochoai, it is asserted here that the vessels served two primary and complementary functions during their object lives: they were vessels of propaganda and vessels of prestige. As vessels of propaganda, the faience oinochoai functioned as one of many material efforts initiated by the Ptolemies to radiate wealth and power throughout their sphere of influence. Based on the provenance of the “Queens’ Vases,” especially the extra-Alexandrian examples, and their overall adornment and iconography, the owners are here suggested to be the mobile, upper-class elite of the Ptolemaic court, a group including, but not limited to, the eponymous priests of Alexander and the deified Ptolemies and the priestesses of Arsinoe Philadelphus at Alexandria, a number of whom were also upper-level military officers or the daughters of military officers. As vessels of prestige, the oinochoai were likely gifted or otherwise supplied to these functionaries by the royal house, and then displayed and/or used in cult rituals during the owner’s lifetime, acting as visual signals of his or her proximity and loyalty to the Ptolemies. Finally, the vessels were buried with their owners as grave goods, thus ensuring that the prestige of the item was retained by the social group to which they were bestowe

The Ptolemaic Oinochoai: A Reassessment

[Unpublished; Main text last updated July 2014; URLs in footnotes updated July 2018 where possible] In reconsidering the multimedia nature, royal iconography, inscriptions, and pan-Mediterranean findspots of the Ptolemaic oinochoai, it is asserted here that the vessels served two primary and complementary functions during their object lives: they were vessels of propaganda and vessels of prestige. As vessels of propaganda, the faience oinochoai functioned as one of many material efforts initiated by the Ptolemies to radiate wealth and power throughout their sphere of influence. Based on the provenance of the “Queens’ Vases,” especially the extra-Alexandrian examples, and their overall adornment and iconography, the owners are here suggested to be the mobile, upper-class elite of the Ptolemaic court, a group including, but not limited to, the eponymous priests of Alexander and the deified Ptolemies and the priestesses of Arsinoe Philadelphus at Alexandria, a number of whom were also upper-level military officers or the daughters of military officers. As vessels of prestige, the oinochoai were likely gifted or otherwise supplied to these functionaries by the royal house, and then displayed and/or used in cult rituals during the owner’s lifetime, acting as visual signals of his or her proximity and loyalty to the Ptolemies. Finally, the vessels were buried with their owners as grave goods, thus ensuring that the prestige of the item was retained by the social group to which they were bestowe

Female Figurines from the Mut Precinct: Context and Ritual Function

This study concerns the ceramic female figurines excavated by Johns Hopkins at the Precinct of Mut in Luxor, Egypt between 2001 and 2004. The figurines date from the New Kingdom to the Late Period (ca. 1550-332 BCE). Ceramic figurines are frequently overlooked by archaeologists, art historians, and social historians because they lack the aesthetic qualities usually associated with Egyptian art. However, the Hopkins-excavated figurines display features that mark them as standardized ritual objects. I argue that ceramic female figurines were produced in workshops, utilized by magician/physicians in healing rituals, and regularly snapped and discarded at the end of their effective . This is a new, broader interpretations for objects that have previously been considered as toys, dolls, concubine figures, and – most recently – votive Chapter 1 presents a brief history of the Mut Precinct and summarizes the work of John Hopkins at the site. It also addresses the current state of figurine studies in Egyptology, including a critique of the theory. Finally, I present a typology for the Mut Precinct figurines. Chapter 2 is a detailed study of the materials and manufacture of ceramic female figurines. I suggest that the figurines were manufactured by craftsmen in state-sponsored workshops, and that the red hue of many figures signals that the objects were malevolent and ultimately to be destroyed. Chapter 3 presents translations and commentary for magico-medical spells calling for female figures of clay, which demonstrate how female figurines functioned in magical rituals. Chapter 3 also discussed a new term for Finally, a survey of magico-medical texts calling for other types of clay figurines is presented, highlighting the widespread use of such figures. Chapter 4 reviews the salient conclusions of the study, and discusses the use of ceramic female figurines at the Mut Precinct specifically. This new interpretations of Egyptian female figurines broadens our understanding of objects often called and placed in the realm of women by demonstrating that ceramic female figurines were manufactured and acquired by men, and manipulated to heal a variety of patients. This study will undoubtedly encourage future studies of archaeological finds in concert with magico-medical texts

Votive Practices

The ancient Egyptian practice of dedicating small objects to deities as a means of establishing a lasting, personal relationship between deity and donor is well known. The dedication of votive objects in sacred areas such as temples, shrines, and cemeteries was an optional practice for which there is sporadic archaeological evidence. Large deposits of Early Dynastic and Old Kingdom votive offerings have been recovered from numerous sites throughout Egypt. There is no clear Middle Kingdom evidence that people were allowed to dedicate votive offerings in state-run temples, but the practice seems to have remained part of popular religion and is most visible in funerary contexts. During the New Kingdom, it became permissible for individuals to set up stelae or leave small votive objects in the outer areas of state temples or in special shrines. Most of the small votive offerings were made to Hathor, or related goddesses. In the Late and Ptolemaic Periods many stelae, ritual objects, and figures of deities were dedicated in sacred areas, often in relation to animal cults. The majority of votive objects seem to have been made in temple workshops for cult purposes. Most of the offerings fall into three main categories: representations of deities, objects used in the temple cult, or objects associated with human fertility. Both women and men dedicated votive objects to reinforce prayers or to perpetuate their involvement in a divine cult. It is rarely possible to be certain exactly why a particular object was offered or where it was originally displayed. Old votive objects remained sacred and were buried or dumped within temple precincts

Votive Practices

The ancient Egyptian practice of dedicating small objects to deities as a means of establishing a lasting, personal relationship between deity and donor is well known. The dedication of votive objects in sacred areas such as temples, shrines, and cemeteries was an optional practice for which there is sporadic archaeological evidence. Large deposits of Early Dynastic and Old Kingdom votive offerings have been recovered from numerous sites throughout Egypt. There is no clear Middle Kingdom evidence that people were allowed to dedicate votive offerings in state-run temples, but the practice seems to have remained part of popular religion and is most visible in funerary contexts. During the New Kingdom, it became permissible for individuals to set up stelae or leave small votive objects in the outer areas of state temples or in special shrines. Most of the small votive offerings were made to Hathor, or related goddesses. In the Late and Ptolemaic Periods many stelae, ritual objects, and figures of deities were dedicated in sacred areas, often in relation to animal cults. The majority of votive objects seem to have been made in temple workshops for cult purposes. Most of the offerings fall into three main categories: representations of deities, objects used in the temple cult, or objects associated with human fertility. Both women and men dedicated votive objects to reinforce prayers or to perpetuate their involvement in a divine cult. It is rarely possible to be certain exactly why a particular object was offered or where it was originally displayed. Old votive objects remained sacred and were buried or dumped within temple precincts

May 2017 Meeting

Notes from the May Meetin