Brief Identification[]
The Head of a Priest sculpture or widely known as "The Boston Green Head" was made in 380-332 BCE during the Late Period of Ancient Egypt. The head was once apart of and broken off of a larger statue and was discovered by Auguste Mariette in 1857 on his commissioned expedition by France, to Egypt. The only hint to the identity of the man is his physical appearance like the shaved head, as priests in Ancient Egypt had shaved theirs for "ritual purity" [Berman, 7]. The piece can be found today at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston where it was obtained in 1904.
Technical Evaluation[]
Over the Course of the Egyptian Dynasty reign, a vast variety of stones found in the North African area were used in sculpting. Many sculptures and art Egyptians produced fashioned the likes of the widely abundant gold of the area as well as the use of colorful paints. ON the other hand, the Priest head is solely and elaborately sculpted stone to give a very life like feel. The sculpture gained the nickname, "The Boston Green Head" due to its dark greenish color. This appearance and nickname is thanks to the material the sculpture comes from. The material used in production was Greywacke. This stone was found in Egypt in the Wadi Hammamat Quarry in the Eastern Dessert, along the main routes from the Nile river to the Red Sea. The Egyptians sent thousands to this region on expeditions to harvest stone for statues [Berman, 5]. This sculpted head was made during the late period of Egyptian reign when the empire had well adapted stone, bronze and copper tools in their toolbox as opposed to the simple tools and laborious methods used by the early sculptors [Russman & Finn, 4]. The Boston Green Head contains a carving on the back end of the head, which is cut off after minimal hieroglyphs, but it goes along with a technique widely used in the late period. On larger surfaces and pieces, the space behind the carvings were employed for scriptures and reliefs [Russman & Finn, 7].
Local Historical Context[]
The Late Period of the Egyptian Empire refers to the last leg of its reign and was one where original Egyptian culture was still strong but had Persian leaders. These leaders though not of Egyptian blood identified themselves as Egyptian Kings. The late Period includes the 27th to the 31st dynasties in which Egypt was conquered by the Achaemenid Empire briefly and then again. The specific Dynasty this head sculpture was made in was during the time tables of the 29th -30th dynasties of Egypt where behind the likes of Nefaarud I, the first period of Achaemenid Empire rule was ended and put back into true Egyptian decent. Although the empire was lost for a little, the sculptures and art produced during the Achaemenid Empire rule were still Egyptian throughout. The Egyptian sculptures were made with intended purposes. As a society with such a liking to art and elaborateness, these sculptures were made for tombs, entryways, temples, public display, etc. In the Late Period sculptures found their way more so into temples rather than tombs, so this Priest like sculpture would most likely have been gracing a temple [Russman & Finn, 6]. As the full hieroglyph and its meaning is unidentifiable, the person as well as the true purpose of this sculpture is unable to be pinpointed. Of the few that are visible, they hold the image of a funerary diety worshipped. To its maker, who was a skilled artisan and member of the middle class, this piece was for religious purposes, possibly a temple worshipping said diety.
World-Historical Significance[]
Within the larger scheme of world history, this object is one that has survived a great lot, from damage (nose area and light spots around face) to time. It also was a an artifact discovered by the famous Mariette expedition that discovered the tombs of Apis Bulls and brought back some 6,000 artifacts to Paris. This piece is one that is representative of and provides a special element of history, the element of mystery. This piece fascinates people as it provides no context to who the man sculpted is and what the writing on the entire sculpture said or says. It is a very famous piece and due to its mystery has a very simple name just from the appearance. Originally discovered in 1857, it has been prized in the many places it has occupied. Mariette had brought it all the way back to France and gifted the head to its first owner outside of Egypt, Prince Plon-Plon of France, the Nephew of Napoleon. Plon-Plon kept the head inside his home in Paris [Berman, 10]. Later it was brought to Boston and graced the Ancient World Collection as it still does to this day.
Bibliography[]
Berman, Lawrence Michael. The Priest, the Prince, and the Pasha : The Life and Afterlife of an Ancient Egyptian Sculpture. Boston : MFA Publications,  Museum of Fine Arts, [2015], 2015.
Russmann, Edna R., and David Finn. Egyptian Sculpture : Cairo and Luxor. Austin : University of Texas Press, 1989., 1989.
Museum of Fine Arts Boston, "Head of a Priest (The Boston Green Head)" https://www.mfa.org/collections/object/head-of-a-priest-the-boston-green-head-131018
Museum of Fine Arts Boston, "The Secret History of the Boston Green Head" https://www.mfa.org/news/boston-green-head
Tehuti Research Foundation, "The Egyptian Knowledge of Metallurgy and Metal Working" https://egypt-tehuti.org/vibrant-ancient-egyptian-economy/egyptian-knowledge-metallurgy-metalworking/
Ancient History Encyclopedia, "Late Period of Ancient Egypt" https://www.ancient.eu/Late_Period_of_Ancient_Egypt/