Breaking the Noses on Egyptian Statues

Date: 

Thursday, September 26, 2019, 6:00pm

Location: 

Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street

breaking_the_egyptian_noses_on_statues.jpgWhy are the noses broken on Egyptian statues? Why were other sculpted body parts, including eyes, mouths, arms, and feet, purposely shattered in antiquity? Focusing on the ancient world of the pharaohs and on the Late Antique world that emerged following Egyptian conversion to Christianity, Edward Bleiberg will examine the patterns of damage inflicted on Egyptian images for personal, political, religious, and criminal reasons. He will also highlight how close inspection of statue damage can reveal who damaged the statue and why. 

Lecture. Free and open to the public. Presented by the Harvard Semitic Museum.