Close-up of a bright blue ceramic hippopotamus figure with black painted eyes and lotus-like plants and reeds. Patches of golden brown around the face indicate wear.
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Unknown Maker, Egyptian

Hippopotamus
Now On View

Maker

Unknown Maker, Egyptian

Culture

Egyptian

Title

Hippopotamus

Period

Middle Kingdom

Year

2040-1638 BCE

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

faience

Dimensions

7.8 x 5.2 x 20.3 cm (3 1/16 x 2 1/16 x 8 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Museum Appropriation Fund

Object Number

29.119

Type

Publications

Exhibition History

Being and Believing in the Natural World
Perspectives from the Ancient Mediterranean, Asia, and Indigenous North America
Oct 22, 2022 – Jun 04, 2023

Label copy

Anubis protected and guided the dead. This wooden head was part of a larger statuette guarding a shrine or coffin.

A glass-like material associated with rebirth, Egyptian faience was often used to make grave goods, such as this hippo. Hippos were associated with the Nile River, considered the source of all life.

Amulets provided protection; they were worn during life and sewn into the mummy wrappings of the deceased. Shabtis were figures placed in tombs to perform labor in the afterlife. If the deceased is called upon to sow or irrigate the land, a shabti will answer, “Here I am” and do the work for them.

—GB

Ancient Egyptian Galleries
Jun 10, 2014

Label copy

The bright blue color of this hippo seemingly contrasts with the naturalistic modeling of its face and ears. By using blue glaze and covering the hippo's body with images of plant and animal life, the artist represented the animal in its habitat and evoked both the Nile River and the primeval waters of the god Nu, suggesting themes of life and rebirth. The Egyptians' wish for life after death may account for the inclusion of hippo statuettes in tombs of officials during the Middle Kingdom.

The placement of hippo figures in tombs, sometimes in direct contact with the mummy, required that the animal's dangerous aspects be negated so that the deceased would not be physically harmed. To ritually restrict this hippo's movement in the afterlife, its legs-now restored-were broken off.

Made For Eternity
Mar 15, 2013 – Dec 31, 2013

Label copy

The blue glaze on this hippopotamus figure seemingly contrasts with the naturalistic modeling of the face and ears, but it was purposefully employed to allude to the animal’s riverine habitat in the marshes of the Nile. In using this glaze and covering the hippo’s body with the images of plant and animal life, the artist symbolically represented the hippo immersed in the waters of the Nile and of Nu, the watery expanse of the primordial universe, which held the creative potential for life and rebirth. The Egyptians’ wish for life after death may account for the inclusion of hippos such as this one in the tombs of Egyptian officials during the latter part of the Middle Kingdom.

The placement of hippo figures in tombs, sometimes in direct contact with the mummy, required that the animal’s dangerous aspects be negated so that the deceased would not be physically harmed. To ritually restrict this hippo’s movement in the afterlife, its legs-now restored-were broken off during the funeral.

Gifts of the Nile
Ancient Egyptian Faience
Aug 26, 1998 – Jan 03, 1999

Image use

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Public Domain This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Unknown Maker, Egyptian
Hippopotamus, 2040-1638 BCE
Egyptian Faience
7.8 x 5.2 x 20.3 cm (3 1/16 x 2 1/16 x 8 inches)
Museum Appropriation Fund 29.119

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