Where Is Head of Tutankhamun? Museum Location

Q: How big is the Head of Tutankhamun?

The surviving fragment is 17.2 cm (6.75 inches) tall. The original complete statue group would have been much larger, showing Tutankhamun standing before a god. The king's smaller scale indicated his subordinate relationship to the deity.

Q: What is Tutankhamun wearing?

The khepresh, commonly called the 'blue crown.' Despite its popular nickname ('war crown'), it was worn in many contexts. It was probably a leather helmet with metal disks sewn on, painted blue. This sculpture shows fine detail in the crown's surface pattern.

Q: Where can I see it?

It's in Gallery 121 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, in the Egyptian Art wing. The Met acquired it through the Rogers Fund in 1950.

Ancient Egyptian This indurated limestone fragment once belonged to a larger statue group showing the young pharaoh standing before a god. All that remains of the deity is a right hand touching the back of Tutankhamun's crown, a gesture signifying divine investiture of kingship. The king wears the khepresh, commonly called the "blue crown," likely a leather helmet with metal disks sewn onto it.

The sculpture dates to ca. 1336-1327 BCE, during Dynasty 18's post-Amarna period. It blends the naturalism of Akhenaten's artistic revolution with more traditional Egyptian conventions. Tutankhamun's figure was considerably smaller than the god's, following the standard Egyptian practice of hierarchical scaling.

It's on view in Gallery 121 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, acquired through the Rogers Fund in 1950.

The surviving fragment is 17.2 cm (6.75 inches) tall. The original complete statue group would have been much larger, showing Tutankhamun standing before a god. The king's smaller scale indicated his subordinate relationship to the deity.

The khepresh, commonly called the 'blue crown.' Despite its popular nickname ('war crown'), it was worn in many contexts. It was probably a leather helmet with metal disks sewn on, painted blue. This sculpture shows fine detail in the crown's surface pattern.

It's in Gallery 121 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, in the Egyptian Art wing. The Met acquired it through the Rogers Fund in 1950.

Head of Tutankhamun

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Where to See It

The Artist

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