the conquest of Greece, the Near East, and Egypt by Alexander the Great towards the end of the 4th century BCE, Greek art entered a new cosmopolitan age, when the wealth and exotic tastes of great foreign kingdoms brought new flair to Greek sculpture and architecture. One of the most dynamic examples of this Hellenistic art is the Nike of Samothrace, which was part of a large installation at a sanctuary on the island of Samothrace in the northern Aegean Sea. In its original setting, the Nike was alighting on the prow of a warship, signalling victory. The prow, carved out of stone, served as the base for the dramatic figure. The whole piece was set into a landscape with a running fountain suggesting the waves of the sea. This combination of landscape, art and drama was characteristic of the Hellenistic period. The figure herself calls to mind the earlier Nike of the 5th century BCE (fig. 162), whose movement caused her robes to drape and fold elegantly around her. Here, however, the viewer can almost feel the wind whipping her garment from all sides. The movement of the fabric, pulling simultaneously in both directions around her legs, gives the piece a dynamism not previously seen in sculpture.
29. Anonymous, Stele of the Priest-King Hunting Lions, late 4th millennium BCE. Ancient Near East. Basalt, height: 78 cm. Iraq Museum, Baghdad.
30. Anonymous, Female Figurine of Halaf, 6th millennium BCE. Ancient Near East, Syria. Terracotta, 8.2 × 5 × 5.4 cm. Musée du Louvre, Paris.
31. Anonymous, Statuette of a Priest-King, around 3300 BCE. Ancient Near East, Iraq. Limestone, 30.5 × 10.4 cm. Musée du Louvre, Paris.
32. Anonymous, Statuette of a Woman Praying, c. 3300–3100 BCE. Ancient Near East, Susa (Iran). Alabaster, 11 × 45 × 72 cm. Musée du Louvre, Paris.
33. Anonymous, Woman Wearing a Coat, Thinite period, 3100–2700 BCE. Ancient Egyptian. Hippopotamus ivory, height: 13.5 cm. Musée du Louvre, Paris.
34. Anonymous, Statue of King Khâsekhemouy, Dynasty II, 3185–2925 BCE. Ancient Egyptian, Hierakonpolis (Egypt). Limestone, height: 62 cm. The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford.
35. Anonymous, Monkey Statue, Reign of Narmer, Dynasty I, 3185–3125 BCE. Ancient Egyptian. Egyptian alabaster (calcite), height: 52 cm. Ägyptische Museum, Berlin.
36. Anonymous, The Lady of Warka, around 3300–3000 BCE. Ancient Near East, Uruk (Iraq). White marble or alabaster, height: 21.5 cm. Iraq Museum, Baghdad.
37. Anonymous, Perforated Plate with a Banqueting Scene, around 2700 BCE. Ancient Near East, Oval temple Khafaladjé, Iraq. Limestone, 32 × 29.5 cm. Iraq Museum, Baghdad.
38. Anonymous, Eshunna Couple Praying, around 2700 BCE. Ancient Near East, Square temple of the god of Verdure, Abu, Tell Asmar (Iraq). Gypsum, shell, black limestone and asphalt (adhesive and colour), height: 72 cm and 59 cm. Iraq Museum, Baghdad.
39. Anonymous, Triad of Menkaure, Dynasty IV, 2694–2563 BCE. Ancient Egyptian. Greywacke, height: 96 cm. Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, Cairo.
40. Anonymous, Menkaure and his Wife, Dynasty IV, 2694–2563 BCE. Ancient Egyptian, Temple in the valley of Menkaure, Giza, Egypt. Greywacke, 142.2 × 57.1 × 55.2 cm. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
41. Anonymous, The Seated Scribe, around 2620–2500 BCE. Ancient Egyptian, Saqqara, Egypt. Painted limestone, inlaid eyes of rock crystal, magnesite (magnesium carbonate), copper-arsenic alloy and wood, 53.7 × 44 × 35 cm. Musée du Louvre, Paris.
Inseparable from the ancient Egyptian civilisation, the profession of scribe gave rise to the creation of a specific kind of sculpture. Thus, these figures should not always be understood as portraits of scholar-officials. Indeed, as with the statue of Prince Setka, kept in the Louvre, some scribes are known to be representations of members of the royal family. This work, the model of which could not be identified, was discovered in 1850 at Saqqara, by the French archaeologist Auguste Mariette. The scribe, unusual in Egyptian sculpture, was frozen in action and this attitude seems to have been created to indicate the heir to the pharaoh Didoufri, mentioned above. Actually sitting cross-legged, the Seated Scribe was to hold in his right hand, as evidenced by the hole, the brush that allowed him to write on the papyrus that he holds on his lap with his left hand. The facial features are particularly well defined and their lack of charm is in marked contrast to the flabbiness of the abdomen, which suggests that the model should be a mature man. The inlay work, specificity of Egyptian sculpture, is remarkable here. The nipples of the man are simulated by wooden pegs. Fashioned from encrusted rock crystal, magnesite and copper, his eyes are undoubtedly the most striking feature. Like the Mona Lisa, the Louvre Scribe follows the observer with his piercing gaze, regardless of where he is admired from.
42. Anonymous, Man Coating a Jar with Clay, Dynasty V, 2563–2364 BCE. Ancient Egyptian, Tomb of Ptahshepses, Saqqara (Egypt). Painted limestone. Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, Cairo.
43. Anonymous, Prince Rahotep and his Wife, Nefret, around 2580 BCE. Ancient Egyptian. Painted limestone, height: 120 cm. Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, Cairo.
44. Anonymous, The Vizier Hemiunu, Dynasty IV, 2694–2563 BCE. Ancient Egyptian, Giza, Egypt. Painted limestone, height: 155.5 cm. Roemer – und Pelizaeus-Museum, Hildesheim.
45. Anonymous, The Great Sphinx, 2620–2500 BCE. Ancient Egyptian, Tanis, Egypt. Granite, 183 × 480 × 154 cm. Musée du Louvre, Paris.
46. Anonymous, Head of a Woman, Reign of Khufu, Dynasty IV, 2551–2528 BCE. Ancient Egyptian. Limestone, 23.5 × 13 × 19 cm. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
47. Anonymous, Female Head Wearing a Polos, around 2500–2400 BCE. Ancient Near East, Temple of Ishtar, Mari (Syria). Alabaster, eyes inlaid with shell, 14.8 × 12.6 × 8.8 cm. Musée du Louvre, Paris.
48. Anonymous, Perforated Plate with Scene of Worship, around 2450–2400 BCE. Ancient Near East. Limestone, 22 × 26 cm. The British Museum, London.
49. Anonymous, Ka-Aper, 2450–2350 BCE. Ancient Egyptian, Saqqara (Egypt). Wood, height: 109 cm. Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, Cairo.
50. Anonymous, Statue of Ur-Nansha, around 2450 BCE. Ancient Near East, Temple of Ninni-zaza, Mari (Syria). Gypsum, shell and lapis lazuli, bitumen (eyes). National Museum, Damascus.
51. Anonymous, Ebih He, the Superintendent, around 2400 BCE. Ancient Near East, Temple of Ishtar, Mari (Syria). Gypsum, lapis lazuli, shell, 52.5 × 20.6 × 30 cm. Musée du Louvre, Paris.
52. Anonymous,