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Plaque Depicting a Ram

A work made of limestone.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of limestone.

Date:

Ptolemaic Period (332–30 BCE)

Artist:

Egyptian

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 original gridded surface remain in the top corners and along the bottom to emphasize the depth of carving. Egyptian artists utilized grids to maintain correct proportions in their work.

Status

On View, Gallery 50

Department

Arts of Africa

Culture

Ancient Egyptian

Title

Plaque Depicting a Ram

Place

Egypt (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

332 BCE–30 BCE

Medium

Limestone

Dimensions

17.2 × 25.8 × 2 cm (6 13/16 × 10 3/16 × 13/16 in.)

Credit Line

Museum Purchase Fund

Reference Number

1920.251

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

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https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/121768/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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