God Horus (Harpocrates)

Egypt

644–30 BCE

Bronze with green patina

Minneapolis Institute of Art

When the Greeks established dominion over ancient Egypt in 332 BCE, they adopted many of the Egyptian gods—and renamed them. Their new name for the god Horus-the-Child was Harpocrates, and this depiction of him dates from that era of Greek rule, called the Hellenistic period. It shows typical markers of childhood, including the god’s nudity, the side braid, and a finger in his mouth. As a matter of fact, the position of the hand to the lower lip or chin was the physical representation of the hieroglyph for “child.” Gallery G250 The William Hood Dunwoody Fund