If you see this message, your browser is unable to view the answers through dynamic HTML. The answers to the questions are:

  1. Can you guess which role the ibis's beak refers to? (God of the moon, because the curve of the ibis's beak is like a crescent moon.)
  2. Is the Thoth sculpture symmetrical or asymmetrical? (Symmetrical.)
  3. Does the symmetry of the sculpture make it appear rigid or active? (Rigid.)
  4. Where is an ibis? (Head of an ibis takes the place of a human head on the sculpture.)
  5. Where has the artist used lines on this sculpture? (On Thoth's crown, wig, and loincloth.)
  6. How has the artist used incised lines to indicate the different areas and objects that make up the crown? (Varied the direction of the lines.)
  7. How might the way it was used have influenced its size? (Such statuettes had to be small to be portable.)
  8. What was Thoth's role in relation to the deceased? (As scribe, he recorded the results of the judgment that determined whether a person had led a good and honest life.)
  9. Why would Thoth be helpful to a spirit traveling to the Afterworld? (Once Thoth recorded a judgment, the spirit could enter the Afterworld.)
  10. Why is a 365-day year considered standard? (The earth travels a full rotation around the sun in 365 days.)
  11. Which of Thoth's godly roles came into play when he initiated the 365-day year? (Thoth the god of wisdom intervened on behalf of the lovers Nut and Geb; Thoth the measurer of time reconciled the Egyptian calendar with the earth's actual cycle.)
  12. What might he originally have held in his hands? (Although we can't know for sure, Thoth is usually portrayed with the attributes of his role as inventor of writing: a reed pen and a writing palette.)
Minneapolis Institute of Arts World Myths and Legends in Art Art by Theme
View All Art Compare and Contrast
Art by Culture
 


Thoth



Discussion Questions:

Thoth
Thoth
664-525 B.C. (26th Dynasty)
Bronze
Gift of Lily Place

Key Ideas
Story
Background
Discussion Questions

Look

  1. This sculpture represents Thoth as a man with the head of an ibis. Egyptians associated the ibis's long curved beak with one of Thoth's roles as god of the moon, god of wisdom, the measurer of time, and the inventor of writing and numbers.
    Can you guess which role the ibis's beak refers to? God of the moon, because the curve of the ibis's beak is like a crescent moon.
    Diagram of Thoth's profile

    Diagram of Thoth's profile



  2. SYMMETRY is a precisely balanced arrangement of forms on either side of an imaginary line through the center of an object. ASYMMETRY is an arrangement of forms that do not appear the same on either side of the imaginary center line.
    Is the Thoth sculpture symmetrical or asymmetrical? Symmetrical.
    Does the symmetry of the sculpture make it appear rigid or active? Rigid.

Detail of crown from Thoth

 

Detail of crown from Thoth

 

Roll over the image to see the line of symmetry from Thoth

The left side is symmetrical to the right side The right side is symmetrical to the left side
  1. An ATTRIBUTE is a distinctive symbolic feature that identifies a character. Find Thoth's attributes on his crown: a solar disk (top center of crown), serpents with smaller discs (on the far outsides of the crown), and ram horns (at the base of the crown).
    Where is an ibis? Head of an ibis takes the place of a human head on the sculpture.

    Roll over the image to see the incised lines from Thoth

    Incised lines with varied directions Incised lines with varied directions
  2. Where has the artist used lines on this sculpture? On Thoth's crown, wig, and loincloth.
    Look carefully at the crown.
    How has the artist used incised lines to indicate the different areas and objects that make up the crown? Varied the direction of the lines.

  3. Egyptian people left bronze figures like this one at temples or funeral sites to attract and please the deity represented. With this purpose in mind, how big do you think this is? Find an object of similar size to this sculpture-eight inches high.
    How might the way it was used have influenced its size? Such statuettes had to be small to be portable.

Think

  1. This sculpture is very small because it may have been left at a tomb to help the spirit of the deceased travel to the next world, the Afterworld.
    What was Thoth's role in relation to the deceased? As scribe, he recorded the results of the judgment that determined whether a person had led a good and honest life.
    Why would Thoth be helpful to a spirit traveling to the Afterworld? Once Thoth recorded a judgment, the spirit could enter the Afterworld.

  2. In Thoth's story, Thoth gives a gift of five days to the Egyptians, initiating the standard 365-day year.
    Why is a 365-day year considered standard? The earth travels a full rotation around the sun in 365 days.
    Which of Thoth's godly roles came into play when he initiated the 365-day year? Thoth the god of wisdom intervened on behalf of the lovers Nut and Geb; Thoth the measurer of time reconciled the Egyptian calendar with the earth's actual cycle.

  3. There are small holes in each of Thoth's hands that probably once held objects that are Thoth's ATTRIBUTES. Consider Thoth's roles: god of the moon, god of wisdom, the measurer of time, and the inventor of writing and numbers.
    What might he originally have held in his hands? Although we can't know for sure, Thoth is usually portrayed with the attributes of his role as inventor of writing: a reed pen and a writing palette.
Key Ideas Story Background Discussion Questions
 
 

 

Art by Culture | Art by Theme | View all Art | Compare & Contrast
Home | What is Myth? | Glossary | Further Reading | How to use this site | Downloadable Curriculum