Gessoed and Painted Wood, Height 30 cm
Valley of the Kings, KV62
Discovered by Howard Carter (1922)
XVIIIth Dynasty, Reign of Tutankhamun (1333-1323 B.C.)

This small wooden head was found by Howard Carter beneath the rubble of KV62's passageway, apparently discarded by either the ancient robbers or the personnel responsible for the burial's restoration. The former is the most probable.

The base of the piece was carved separately from the rest and is likely attached by means of a peg (not visible). Painted blue, it is represenative of the water from which the lotus flower emerges. The petals of the flower are incised in the gesso covering the wood rather than into the wood, itself, and are painted with subtle striations representing the natural texture of the flower. Lotuses were particularly symbolic of rebirth due to their nightly closing and submersion beneath the surface of the water, only to reappear at dawn. It was thought that the sun god Re was born from the flower come morning, having traversed the underworld the previous night.

In the face of Re are to be recognized the straight, slightly upturned nose and full, sensuous mouth of Tutankhaten. Amarna influence is to be seen elsewhere, most notably in the prince's elongated skull, large pierced ears, and the subtle folds of flesh on his neck.

The face has been painted brick red and has a slight sheen, causing the wood showing through the damaged areas of gesso to appear more naturalistic in tone and texture. The mouth is painted slightly darker than the rest of the face, and seems to be smiling slightly despite the lines of black attempting to draw the corners downward. The eyebrows, cosmetic lines, and pupils are painted black, the whites of the eyes graced by a touch of red at their corners. Detailed stipling indicates hairgrowth on the boy's oblong skull, a feature he shares with his half-sisters.

In spite of its naturalistic execution, the sculpture is still highly stylized, and it is tempting to date it to the tale-end of the Amarna period, perhaps to the very beginning of Tutankhaten's reign. There were, however, many objects in Tutankhamun's tomb that bore a like degree of the 'Amarna touch,' so it is not implausible that the artists of Akhetaten continued their craft at Thebes. If indeed completed while Tutankhaten was still a prince, it is unknown why the little head would have journeyed from Akhetaten to Thebes. By contrast, its inclusion in the tomb has a clearer, more symbolic purpose. Poised for rebirth, the cherubic features look forward with innocence and anticipation to all that is to be in the next life and those that follow.