William the Hippopotamus
Hippopotamus ("William")
May one see it?
Yes, receiving visitors
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Room111New York, United States
On public display.
- Checked
- 2 days ago
- In this state since
- Sep 26, 2026
- Source
- The museum's own collection data
About the sculpture
William is an Egyptian faience hippopotamus statuette from the Middle Kingdom, now in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, where it serves as an informal mascot for the museum. Found in a shaft associated with the Upper Egyptian tomb chapel of "The Steward, Senbi", in what is now Meir, William dates from c. 1961 BC – c. 1878 BC, during the reigns of Senusret I and Senusret II. This 20 cm (8 in) figurine in Egyptian faience, a clay-less material, has become popular not only for his endearing appearance, but also because his defining characteristics illustrate many of the most salient facets of craft production in ancient Egypt during this time.
Read on
William is only one of several objects associated with the tomb of "The Steward, Senbi", which were acquired by the Metropolitan Museum in 1917. According to the Museum's Bulletin from that year, this hippopotamus is a "particularly fine example of a type found, in common with various other animal forms, among the funerary furnishings of tombs of the Middle Kingdom" and also an exemplary piece of Egyptian faience. William may be seen in Gallery 111 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
Particulars
- Accession number
- 17.9.1
What it shows
In the catalog
Sources
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art: the museum's own open data · fetched 5 days ago
- Image: The Metropolitan Museum of Art — Open Access (CC0)
