The hippo wearing its river

Lotus plants carry a river habitat across a blue body.

Blue Egyptian faience hippopotamus decorated with dark lotus plants — Complete image · The Metropolitan Museum of ArtOpen full-resolution image

Look closer

Let your eye lead the way.

Follow the lotus forms across the body.
Look at the legs alongside the museum’s explanation of their restoration.
Notice how the blue surface and dark plant outlines work together.

The story behind the object

The hippo seems to wear its own river. Lotus plants spread over the blue faience body; the Met connects these flowers with regeneration. An animal that can look charming in a museum also belonged to an ancient burial context.

Three legs have been restored. The museum says they were probably deliberately broken to prevent the creature harming the deceased. That “probably” matters: it is an interpretation, not a witnessed event.

Original source & provenance

Institutional title: Hippopotamus (“William”)
Maker / origin: Egypt, Middle Kingdom, Dynasty 12
Date: ca. 1961–1878 BCE
Material: Faience
Collection / accession: The Metropolitan Museum of Art · 17.9.1

Findspot: Meir, Senbi II tomb context. “William” is a twentieth-century nickname, not an ancient name. Image reuse makes no claim about physical ownership, export or trade.

View at the museum

Image & reproduction rights

The Met identifies this image as public domain under its Open Access CC0 programme. Collection research dated 2026-11-01. Credit: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession 17.9.1.

The complete master is 2899 × 3870 pixels. The smaller display copies preserve the whole image; no invented detail has been added. This is not a print-quality promise, museum endorsement or worldwide clearance of non-copyright restrictions.

Met Open Access terms · Original museum image

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