Menkaure and Khamerernebty

The artist of the statue pictured is unknown.  The sculpture was discovered in Gizeh, Egypt at Menkaure’s pyramid.  The statue was made in the fourth Dynasty, ca. 2490-2472.  It is currently at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

The statue is sculpted of stone.  It portrays Pharaoh Menkaure and his queen, Khamerernebty side by side.  He is standing with his left foot forward.  His hands are balled into fists with his thumbs pointing forward.  Khamerernebty is in a similar position but her arms are around Menkaure’s waist and arm.  Both these positions symbolize marriage.

This statue is an excellent example of Old Kingdom art.  It is one of the greatest intact statues that show what Old Kingdom sculptors thought.  The artists of the period may have considered the couple’s marriage a strong political symbol, and captured their alliance in stone.  The piece seems to imply that the Queen was elevated to the status of Pharaoh. She is roughly the same height as the Ruler and stands with him, even touching him with an embrace. This was a prime position for a woman in the ancient times to hold since Pharaoh was believed to be a god on Earth.

When I lived in Boston, I visited the Museum of Fine Arts many times and I have seen this statue in real life.  I really love how the statue itself is a piece of simple carved stone, but it contains so much symbol and power.

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Citation:

Gardner, Helen, Fred S. Kleiner, Christin J. Mamiya, and Richard G. Tansey. “Pharaohs and the Afterlife: The Art of Ancient Egypt.” Gardner’s Art Through the Ages: The Western Perspective. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2003. 55. Print.