Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures

The block statue is a statue type characterized by the squatting posture of the person represented. It was invented in Egypt in the early 12th Dynasty and became from the New Kingdom to the Late Period the most common statue type for non-royal persons in Egyptian temples. Over time subtypes emerged presenting the squatting person with, for example, a stela, a naos, or a small statue in front of the legs.