He was an Egyptian architect, scribe, soldier and sage who was a courtier of the pharaoh Amenhotep III.
Also called Huy, he was born in the 15th century BC, perhaps around 1460-1435 BCE, in the city of Athribis in the Nile Delta. Talented and attached to the cult of Thoth, the god of wisdom and writing, he was chosen to serve in the palace as royal scribe for military affairs, perhaps even as military commander.
In this position, he was in charge of digging canals and erecting the two gigantic statues, known as the "Colossi of Memnon", located at the entrance to the funerary temple of Amenhotep III on the west bank of Thebes. He is also responsible for part of Soleb's Temple of Amun.
Tradition, which also attributes to him the writing of books of magic, retains him as a man of great wisdom, who made an excellent reputation for himself during his life. He is, along with Imhotep, the great scholar of Egyptian antiquity.
Amenhotep III's prime minister was a versatile man (vizier, prime minister, general, director of human resources, scribe, architect, doctor, and theologian) and of great culture.
He probably died at an advanced age, around 1380-1356 BCE.
The man was old, the expression, serious and serious, breathes intelligence. We are faced with a wise man who meditates and whose life experience seems to have sculpted his features... The eyes, although dark circles, remain attentive and the gaze is interested, almost inspired. The face is perfectly symmetrical and this impression of symmetry is accentuated by the wavy wig that frames it.
The hair is separated by a central parting that covers part of the forehead, starts behind the ears leaving them completely free, then falls back in a point, on each side at the base of the neck.
The nose that had been broken has become "camard since an ancient restoration" says Georges Legrain - which means that it is flat and crushed -. The mouth with its hemmed and closed lips is perfectly drawn, almost sensual. He is definitely Black African.
He is squatting with both hands placed flat on his knees, in the attitude of prayer (Photos in comments section). The chest is marked and a high loincloth is tied just below; Its light texture lets the hollow of the navel shine through. "The garment consists of a fine fringed fabric that covers the body from below the pectorals. It crosses on the belly, fastens itself, and the fold of fabric which serves as a tie, appears under the right breast."
On the front of the statue, there is an inscription that comes in eleven lines of hieroglyphics, oriented towards the reader. They teach "after biographical notes praising the merits of the great personage that Amenhotep, eighty years old at the time this work was sculpted, hoped to reach the extreme old age of one hundred and ten years".
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