As the consort of Osiris, mother to their son Horus and, symbolically, of the living king, Isis served as the ultimate protectress. She is often shown seated as the divine mother nursing a small human figure, her child Horus, in bronze or faience figurines. Here, she stands in human form, wearing a narrow sheath, hands extending into bird wings. Such a bronze figure would have originally been part of a sculptural group in which her outstretched wings protected another deity, possibly Osiris, whose figure is now lost. Sometimes she wears an identifying headdress of a throne; here, however, she is crowned with a sun disk between cow’s horns, a reference to the goddess Hathor, with whom she was closely associated. She also wears a modius headdress, composed of tightly packed upright serpents, and a proportionally large uraeus, the emblem of divine authority. The details of her hair, face, and broad collar are roughly finished but balanced by her elegant pose.
According to the genealogy developed by the priests of the temple at Heliopolis, Isis was the daughter of Geb and Nut, the earth and sky gods. Her written hieroglyphic name includes an image of a throne, alluding to her role in the transmission of kingship. As the wife of Osiris, she used her cunning and powerful magic to reassemble the body parts of her husband after his corpse was dismembered and spread across Egypt by her evil brother Seth. According to Egyptian religious belief, as she searched for the body parts, Isis adopted birdlike forms such as wings that resemble kites, as in this statuette.
There was a profusion of bronze deity figurines produced during the Late to Roman periods in Egypt, and these were often dedicated in major Egyptian shrines or temples as votive offerings. While many examples exist in museums and collections, few come from scientifically excavated contexts.
Provenance
With Rabi Gallery, London, 1968; purchased by Hans Cohn 1968. Gift to LACMA 1992.
Publication
Thomas, Nancy, and Constantina Oldknow, eds. By Judgment of the Eye: The Varya and Hans Cohn Collection. Los Angeles: Hans Cohn, 1991, 15657.