Unknown Maker, Egyptian

The technique employed here is sunk relief, a method of stone carving used by the Egyptians to decorate temple walls. The depth of the sunk-relief carving would have created shadows in sunlight, allowing the details of the image to stand out far better than if they were painted or executed in raised relief. Here, the muscles of Ptolemy's torso and the shape of his face are clearly visible.

King Ptolemy II was of Macedonian rather than Egyptian descent, but this monument adheres to older Egyptian sculptural traditions, with the king's face shown in profile and his shoulders from the front. His body is an ideal of youth and strength, and he wears a traditional Egyptian crown. In his right hand he holds a sistrum, a rattle used in Egyptian ritual.