LATE PERIOD, 664-332 B.C.

Onuris was an Egyptian god of war and hunting. His cult was focused in Abydos in Upper Egypt, particularly in the city of Thinis, and he was later associated with Ares by the Greeks and Romans (see p. 118 in R.W. Wilkinson, The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt). Onuris is often shown wearing a kilt and feathered headdress with his right arm raised in the act of slaying an animal or enemy, as seen here, or alternatively, holding a rope presumably used to capture his prey. This particularly fine example is accentuated with gold inlay for the eyes, brows and chinstrap. For a related example in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, not preserving its spear, see no. 34 in P.E. Newberry and H.R. Hall, Catalogue of an Exhibition of Ancient Egyptian Art.