The Statue of Mentuhotep VI is a product of the Ancient Egyptian civilization and belongs to the late 13th dynasty, having been created in around 1675-1650 BC (“Graywacke statue of Meryankhre Mentuhotep VI”). The Strangford Apollo dates from around 500-490 BC and is a Greek work of art created during the Archaic period (“The Strangford Apollo”).
Both works of art are pieces of sculpture, depicting the male figure in quite naturalistic ways. Although they are products of two different civilizations and the first has been created more than one thousand years before the second, the statues share several similarities. They both have a frontal view and share a similar posture with their legs parted. Although both are naturalistic, none of them was intended to serve as an actual portrait of the person it depicted. Instead they are both idealized figures serving a specific purpose (“Graywacke statue of Meryankhre Mentuhotep VI” and “The Strangford Apollo”).
Although very similar at first sight, the statues also have great differences that show clearly the differences in the mentality and philosophy of their respective civilizations. To begin with the people depicted reflect the different functions of art for the two cultures. The Egyptian statue depicts a pharaoh, king of Egypt and a person endowed with supernatural qualities and revered as a deity (Frank, 223). On the contrary, the Strangford Apollo is a statue of a Kouros, which in Greek means young man (Frank, 227). So, despite its name which alludes to an ancient Greek god, this is probably the representation of an ordinary individual and not that of a god-like ruler, something that reflects the values of the Ancient Greek society and the role art had in it (Frank, 227). Another noticeable difference is the use of material. The Kouros is made of marble, while the Egyptian statue from greywacke. The Greek statue might have been a grave marker, as the kouroi sculptures usually fulfilled this function (“The Strangford Apollo”). The Egyptian statue also probably had a religious meaning, as it was found in the temple of Karnak, but one connected with the religious beliefs of Ancient Egyptians about the role of the pharaoh and the afterlife (“Graywacke statue of Meryankhre Mentuhotep VI”).
WORKS CITED
Frank, P. Prebles’ Artforms, 10th edition. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. 2011.
“Graywacke statue of Meryankhre Mentuhotep VI”. Highlights, The British Museum, Web, 9 November 2013 [http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/aes/g/graywacke_statue_of_meryankhre.aspx]
“The Strangford Apollo”. Highlights, The British Museum, Web, 8 November 2013
[http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/gr/t/the_strangford_apollo.aspx]
