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<em>Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion</em>, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_front_PS1.jpg)
Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_front_PS1.jpg)
<em>Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion</em>, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_front_PS1.jpg)

Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_front_PS1.jpg)

<em>Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion</em>, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.35.1311_NegB_bw.jpg)

Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.35.1311_NegB_bw.jpg)

<em>Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion</em>, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.35.1311_NegA_bw.jpg)

Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.35.1311_NegA_bw.jpg)

<em>Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion</em>, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_threequarterleft_PS1.jpg)

Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_threequarterleft_PS1.jpg)

<em>Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion</em>, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.35.1311_divinefelines_2013.jpg)

Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.35.1311_divinefelines_2013.jpg)

<em>Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion</em>, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.35.1311_emagic.jpg)

Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.35.1311_emagic.jpg)

<em>Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion</em>, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_threequarterright_PS1.jpg)

Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_threequarterright_PS1.jpg)

<em>Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion</em>, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_top_PS1.jpg)

Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_top_PS1.jpg)

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Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

In addition to channeling occasional storm water from temple roofs and walls, waterspouts such as this one were believed to have magical qualities. Akin to sphinxes, the leonine images symbolized power and guarded the structures they adorned.
MEDIUM Limestone
  • Place Made: Egypt
    • DATES 664–30 B.C.E.
    DYNASTY Dynasty 26, or later
    PERIOD Late Period to Ptolemaic Period
    DIMENSIONS 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm)  (show scale)
    COLLECTIONS Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art
    ACCESSION NUMBER 35.1311
    CREDIT LINE Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Sculptor's model of a head of a lion used as a gargoyle. The lion's head rests against a flat wall. Two roughly modeled feet stretch out below enclosing a trough. The modeling is fine and the piece is in excellent condition. This was evidently intended as a model of an architectural detail. This motif was used in Egyptian architecture as early as the ancient kingdom although this piece doubtless is not earlier than the Saite age and is probably later. Condition: One large chip on the left mane and a few chips on the back panel.
    EXHIBITIONS
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
    CAPTION Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_front_PS1.jpg)
    IMAGE front, 35.1311_front_PS1.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2006
    "CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
    RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY
    You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
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    <em>Waterspout in the Shape of a Lion</em>, 664–30 B.C.E. Limestone, 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 8 9/16 in. (19 x 11.5 x 21.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 35.1311. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 35.1311_front_PS1.jpg)

    TAGS

    Lion

    TAGS

    Lion

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