Resumen de The Sartorial Choices of Sobekneferu: Louvre Statue E 27135
This paper explores the items of dress worn by King Sobekneferu on statue E 27135 in the Musée du Louvre. This statue is unique in comparison to her other known statues because it is the only one where she wears both feminine and masculine dress items. Sobekneferu’s combination of dress items coalesces in an ensemble that shapes, performs and displays her gender, divinity, communality, profession and class simultaneously. Through an analysis of her sartorial choices, we can better understand how Sobekneferu satisfied both her individual identity and her group identity in interacting with her subjects. This paper demonstrates how her dress had the power to communicate and inform the public through its materiality. Sobekneferu’s sartorial choices enabled her to craft visibly an authoritative image of herself as king. This image responded to the gendered expectation of kingship which was invoked through the masculinity her statue produced.
