E44

Egyptian limestone concubine

A limestone plaque carved in relief with a figure of a naked concubine standing within a portico or temple entrance.

Plaques such as this were popular during the New Kingdom through to Ptolemaic Period, they always depict a nude female though sometimes they include a couch or pillow and on occasions also a figure of a child.

Their exact significance is not known but it must be assumed that these plaques represented fertility in one form or another.

Egypt, Late Dynastic Period, 730-332 BC

A few surface chips but generally in good condition

Size: 14 x 8.6 cms

Provenance: Ex. private collection, Cheshire, UK.