67 the Great, had conquered the Persian Empire and thereby also gained control over Egypt. After his death in 323 BC, his general, Ptolemy, took over as ruler of Egypt. His daughter Arsinoë II married her brother, the king and Pharaoh Ptolemy II, in 279 BC, this being her third marriage. Even before her death in about 270 BC, she was probably already an object of cultic veneration, which included the erection of statues in the temples of Egypt. The statue discussed here arrived in Dresden in the early eighteenth century. Prior to that, it had been supplemented with additions so as to create a complete sculpture, and it had been inscribed with hieroglyphs on the back pillar (fig. 1). These “restorations”, thought at the time to date from antiquity, hardly make its interpretation any easier. In view of the 5 Ptolemaic queen and/or goddess? Early Ptolemaic Period, 332–c. 150 BCE Granodiorite H. 41, W. 19.5, D. 15.5 cm Acquired in Rome before 1733, reportedly from the collection of Giovanni Pietro Bellori Skulpturensammlung, Inv. no. Aeg 768 This statue fragment is made of granodiorite, which was quarried near Aswan on the southern border of Egypt. It represents a female body, extending from the area below the navel down to the bottom third of the lower legs. The left leg positioned in front due to the striding posture is a characteristic feature of Ancient Egyptian art. The two arms reach downwards and are held close to the body. The hands each hold an ankh sign, the hieroglyph for “life”. This sign is usually carried by the gods, who present it to the Pharaoh (cat. no. 11) or also to other people. Another typically Egyptian feature is the reinforcing bar on the back, known as a “back pillar”. There is also a bar between the legs, but here it may also represent a robe, because the figure is not naked. In addition to the base, which is lost, the back pillar is the other place where one might expect to find an inscription naming the deity or person depicted by the statue. However, the back pillar of this object does not bear any hieroglyphs executed in relief. Some incisions scratched into the uppermost area are probably part of an ancient or modern pseudo-hieroglyphic inscription. The elaborate smoothing of the surface of the hard stone, and the style of the statue, are the basis for dating it to the Ptolemaic Period. Comparison with similar pieces has led Sabine Albersmeier to conclude that it depicts Queen Arsinoë II. Other statues of this ruler are likewise made of granodiorite and bear the close-fitting robe and the ankh sign. However, it cannot be determined with certainty whether the statue was made during her lifetime or later, and its fragmentary condition means that the possibility cannot be ruled out that the statue represents a goddess. Arsinoë II was a member of the Ptolemaic Dynasty of Greek-speaking Pharaohs. The king of Macedonia, Alexander Fig. 1 Wilhelm Gottlieb Becker, Augusteum. Dresden’s antike Denkmäler enthaltend, Vol. I, Pl. 3, Leipzig 1804
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