Archaeologists working at the Gisr el-Mudir enclosure in Saqqara, Egypt, discovered an unusual limestone statue left behind by grave robbers. Unearthed in 2021 but detailed only recently by Zahi Hawass and Sarah Abdoh in the Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, the statue depicts a nobleman, his wife, and their young daughter. The daughter is carved in bas-relief rather than fully in the round, a stylistic departure from typical Old Kingdom family statuary.
The statue is significant because it represents the only known example of artistic experimentation in family statuary from Egypt’s Old Kingdom. Its unconventional carving technique offers new insight into the artistic innovations of the period, while the family scene memorializes the values and beliefs surrounding the afterlife in ancient Egyptian culture.