    
|
 |
  
Bronze Height: 21.5 cm 
Isis was always a goddess of great importance in Egypt, and during
the later periods of pharaonic rule she became especially so. Under
the Romans, her cult spread throughout the empire; she came to be
regarded as the most important goddess of all and is seen by some as
a natural prototype for the Christan image of the Madonna and Child.
Isis represented in particular the wifely and motherly virtues that
the Egyptians held dear; as the mother of Horus, she was also the
mother of Pharaoh, and therefore the guarantor of the royal
succession. This fine-quality image of Isis suckling Horus, cast by
the lost-wax method, was perhaps intended for dedication at a shrine
of the goddess by a pilgrim who hoped, by his gift, to secure divine
favour-here, perhaps, in view of the goddess's maternal associations,
in anticipation of, or thanks for, a painless birth.
|
All Rights Reserved, Copyright (c) 1996 KAJIMA CORPORATION