ХАРПОКРАТ С ЦАРСКИМИ АТРИБУТАМИ И ХАРПОКРАТ-ЭРОТ: ЕГИПЕТСКИЕ ТЕРРАКОТОВЫЕ СТАТУЭТКИ ИЗ СОБРАНИЯ ГМИИ ИМ. А. С. ПУШКИНА

Abstract

This article introduces five terracotta figurines acquired in Egypt by Vladimir S. Golenishchev and N. G. Ter-Mikaelyan and currently preserved at the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts. Three statuettes depict the child god Harpocrates with the attributes of royal power; two figurines demonstrate the identification of Harpocrates with the Greek god Eros. Most of the objects can be dated mainly to the Roman times, one is to be dated to the late Ptolemaic period. The places of finding or manufacturing of figurines are mostly unknown; however, according to a number of specific features, these could be towns of the Fayum Oasis, the Delta, and in one case — probably, Edfu. Terracotta figurines of Harpocrates with royal regalia are rare, especially in comparison with the wide-spread occurrence of terracottaе with Harpocrates holding a pot or cornucopia; all these data bring his functions as patron of fertility and defender of health to the fore. The presence of royal attributes seems to be a kind of secondary, partly decorative elements that only enhance the most popular aspects of terracotta images of Harpocrates. The type of figurines depicting Harpocrates sitting on a throne with the crown of the god Amun reproduces the iconography of small bronze sculpture. In other types of terracotta the royal attributes most frequently found are the double crown and — rarely — a nemes-headdress; the crown is usually surrounded by lotus buds, a favorite motive of Harpocrates’ iconography. The childish image of Harpocrates in the time of interaction between Eastern and Western cultures led to a natural synthesis of images of the child gods of Egyptian and Graeco-Roman worlds — Harpocrates and Eros. Apparently, such terracottaе, which had more Hellenistic than Egyptian features, were in demand by the population of different towns in Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt.