This alabaster statue from the serdâb (statue chamber) depicts the tomb owner in a standing posture. He is wearing the curly wig and the short kilt with pleated ends which wraps around the body and ends with a diagonal overlap at the front. This garment of high-ranking men has its origins perhaps in a simple wrap-around kilt, the ends of which were tucked in at the belt with a fold, so as to give the wearer more freedom of movement. The tailors imitated these folds by a refined pleating. The arms are hanging down and the clenched fists clutch the stone core, visible only from the front, the meaning of which is still debated. The muscular appearance of the man is emphasized by this posture. Ba-baef, rather than the name's former reading as Baef-ba, is represented in the typical manner of the Old Kingdom. He is standing erect, with an athletic build with broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and powerful muscles. His frontal gaze is directed slightly upward.
The Nomarch and Overseer of all Works of the King, Babaef
Bibliography
Katalog "Ägyptische und moderne Skulptur. Aufbruch und Dauer", München (1986) 52, Abb. 3.
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Junker, H., Giza 7 (1944), 152-156, Abb. 64, Taf. 30-31.
Junker, H., Vorläufiger Bericht über die dritte Grabung bei den Pyramiden von Gizeh vom 3. Januar bis 23. April 1914, in: Anzeiger der Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien (AnzAWW) 14 (1914) 39[3], 45, Taf. 11a.
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