Crystal Eyes in AE

During the Old Kingdom particularly, although also seen in the 12th and 13th dynasties, there
have been several instances of crystal lenses being used for statues of the deceased. The
following comprise the majority of these human statues, as well as the figurine of a cat.

Rahotep and Nofret


Cairo Museum CG3 and CG4

The painted limestone statues of Rahotep and Nofret were found at Meidum in the mastaba
of Rahotep during A Mariettes excavations of 1871. They are dated to the 4th Dynasty,
during the reign of King Sneferu (ca. 2575-2551 BCE)


Rahotep (CG3) Height: 121cm
Photograph J on Bodsworth

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Detail of Rahoteps eyes

The large eyes are inlaid with quartz and rock crystal and are outlined with heavy black
eye-paint
1



Nofret (CG4) Height: 122cm
Photograph J on Bodsworth


Detail of Nofrets eyes. The eyes in Nofrets statue have a quartz orb and are inset with iris
made of amethyst.

The inset eyes are slightly narrower than those of Rahotep.
2


1
Tiradritti, p.62
2
Tiradritti, p.77
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Seated male figure Cairo


Cairo Museum, J E 30273 (CG 35)

This painted limestone statue portrays a male figure seated on a cube-shaped throne with a
projecting front step on which the feet rest. It was found at Saqqara during the Egyptian
Antiquities Service excavations of 1893, and dated to c. 2450 BCE.

The mans rounded face is tilted slightly upwards and possesses a great and intense
luminosity. The large inset eyes are outlined with rims of copper representing the lines of
eye-paint and topped by relief eyebrows The sculpture was discovered at Saqqara, not
far from the statue of a scribe (CG 36)
3




Detail of eyes


3
Tiradritti, p.77
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Seated scribe Cairo


Cairo Museum J E3072 (CG 36)
Photograph J on Bodsworth
Height: 51cm, width: 41cm, depth: 31cm

This painted limestone statue, on a black-painted rectangular base, represents a scribe
seated on the ground with his legs crossed. A partially unrolled papyrus scroll, held in his left
hand, rests on his crossed legs. The right hand, intended to grip a stylus, is poised over the
open papyrus in the act of writing.

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The statue was found in the Saqqara necropolis by the Antiquities Service excavations in
1893 and is dated to ca. 2450 BCE.

The man is wearing a black flaring wig that leaves the lobes of his ears exposed and
elegantly frames his strong facial features. His countenance is rather rounded and he has a
broad forehead. Two large, inset eyes are outlined by a thick rim of copper representing
eye-paint and are surmounted by eyebrows in relief..
4



Detail of the Scribes eyes


Ka-aper





Cairo Museum, CG 34
Height: 112cm

Ka-aper was a high-ranking official during the
reign of King Userkaf. His statue, made from
sycamore wood, was found at Saqqara, in
Mastaba C8, during A Mariettes excavations
in 1860. The statue is dated to the Fifth
Dynasty, ca. 2465-2458 BCE).

The high, smooth forehead is interrupted
by eyebrows in slight relief that arch over
striking eyes. These are outlined in copper
to imitate the lines of eye-paint and are inlaid
with rock crystal.
5


It is said that the eyes are inlaid with
alabaster, with perfectly ground and polished
plano-convex rock crystal lenses in the
centre forming the irises. The pupils are
black dots painted behind the lenses.




4
Tiradritti, p.77
5
Tiradritti, p.74
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Photograph J on Bodsworth

A side view of Ka-aper's face, showing the convexity of the crystal lens


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Kaemked












Cairo Museum, CG119
6

Height: 43cm

This kneeling statue of Statue of Kaemked, a
priest of the Treasurer (Werime) is of
plastered and painted limestone. It was
found in the necropolis of Saqqara in the
tomb of the Treasurer (No. 62), during A
Mariettes excavations in 1860. The statue
has been dated to the second half of the 5th
Dynasty.

His thin face has rather prominent
features: inset eyes decorated with eye-paint
represented by a thick copper outline
7




Detail of one of the eyes of Kaemked

6
Note: this is not a true crystal lens example; however, it is included to show the intricate obsidian insets and the
copper outline of the eyes
7
Tiradritti, page 80
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Kapunisut Kai


Cairo Museum
Photograph J on Bodsworth

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Seated statue of a scribe found in the Western cemetery at Giza and dated to the 5th
Dynasty. On display during the Hidden Treasures exhibition, Cairo Museum, 2003. The
scribe is seated with his son (hand to mouth) and a female which could either be his
daughter or wife.



Detail of the inlaid (crystal) eyes with copper surrounds
Photograph J on Bodsworth


"The Kapunisut Kai statue was discovered by [Zahi] Hawass in 1992 in the Worker's
Cemetery at Giza. It is illustrated in the Exhibition catalogue but there is no description of the
piece and no mention of the eyes (Hidden Treasures of the Egyptian Museum - One
Hundred Masterpieces from the Centennial Exhibition (p.13). It is also illustrated in Hawass's
"The Treasures from the Pyramids" (p.223). But again without any discussion of the piece
itself or the eyes."
8





8
Personal correspondence from J on Bodsworth, 8 J an 2004
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Louvre scribe


Muse National du Louvre, Paris E3023
Photograph J on Bodsworth

The Seated Scribe is considered one of the masterpieces of Egyptian art. Of painted
limestone, this statue was found in a tomb at Saqqara, dating to the 5th Dynasty (ca. 2563-
2423 BCE). He is thought to have been a governor of a province. The statue is very
geometric but at the same time very realistic, especially in the gaze of the eyes, which are
opaque white with quartz cornea, rock crystal iris, and ebony pupils; the eyes are set in
bronze.

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Mitri


Cairo Museum, J E93165


The statue of Mitri, as a scribe, is of stucco and painted wood. It was found at Saqqara, in
the mastaba of Mitri, during the Antiquities Service Excavations (1925-1926). The mastaba
has been dated to the late 5th Dynasty or the early 6th Dynasty.

The splendid eyes are outlined with thin copper rims, the white is made of limestone while
the iris is a dark stone
9




9
Tiradritti, p.84
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Detail of the eyes and copper outline
Photograph J on Bodsworth, November 2003


Cat with crystal eyes


Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Dated to 1991-1783 BCE, Dynasty 12.
Egyptian alabaster (calcite)
Height: 11.4cm Close-up

The cat first appears in paintings and reliefs at the end of the Old Kingdom, and this cosmetic
jar is the earliest-known three-dimensional representation of the animal in Egyptian art. The
sculptor demonstrates a keen understanding of the creature's physical traits, giving the
animal the alert, tense look of a hunter rather than the elegant aloofness seen in later
representations. The rock-crystal eyes, lined with copper, enhance the impression of
readiness.
10



10
Text from the website of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
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King Awibre Hor


Cairo Museum, J E30948 (CG 259)
Photograph J on Bodsworth
Height of statue: 170cm, height of shrine: 207cm

Wooden statue with traces of gold leaf of the ka of King Awibre Hor within a shrine. The
statue was found at Dahshur, in the vicinity of the pyramid of Amenemhat III, during the J de
Morgans excavations of 1894. It is dated to ca. 1700 BCE.

The kings oval face is particularly refined, with inlaid eyes outlined with bronze
11


11
Tiradritti, p.135
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It has been stated that the irises of his eyes are perfectly ground and polished piano-convex
rock crystal lenses. This would appear to be the last time
12
[that has been found] that crystal
lenses were used for statues and perhaps the knowledge was lost during and/or after the
invasion of the Hyksos in 1648 BCE.
13



Detail of the eyes

Much has been made of the different colouring of the eyes, which may be the by-product of
either the photographic technique or the lighting in the Museum. However, in most of the
crystal eyes, there does not appear to be a separate iris, but the effect of the iris is
produced by a disc of resin placed behind the cornea and dimly seen through the surface of
the back of the disk. Although sometimes the iris appears grey or blue or pale brown, it is
often an optical effect caused when the resin detaches (due to shrinkage) from the crystal.
When the resin is in complete contact with the quartz, the eyes appear brown.



12
Perhaps with the possible exception of the eyes of the cheetah found in the tomb of Tutankhamun
13
Temple, Robert, The Crystal Sun
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References
Temple, Robert, The Crystal Sun, Century/Random House, London, 2000
Tiradritti, Francesco (ed.), The Cairo Museum Masterpieces of Egyptian Art, Thames &
Hudson, London, 1999
J on Bodsworth
http://www.egyptarchive.co.uk
Egyptian Museum, Cairo
http://www.egyptianmuseum.gov.eg/
Muse National du Louvre, Paris
http://www.louvre.fr/louvrea.htm
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
http://www.metmuseum.org/

Note: For further (technical) information, the following two articles are suggested:
Enoch, J ay M., First known lenses originating in Egypt about 4600 years ago, Documenta
Ophthalmologica, Volume 99, Issue 3, pp. 303-314, 1999
Enoch, J .M., and Lakshminarayanan, V.: Duplication of Unique Optical Effects of Ancient
Egyptian Lenses from the IV/V Dynasties: Lenses Fabricated ca. 2620-2400 BCE or ca.
4500 BP, Ophthalmic Physiol. Optics 20(2): pp. 126-130, 2000


Compiled by Diane Allan
May 2005