This magnificent bronze votive sculpture represents Isis, the bride of Osiris, the mother of Horus, the healer, the protector of women, the winged goddess able to grant immortality. The word, “Isis,” is actually the Greek version of her older Egyptian name, Aset or Eset, revealing that she remained a popular deity during the Ptolemaic period, associated with Demeter. Many centuries ago, this sculpture might have been found inside a temple, placed as an offering to the beloved goddess. She is depicted wrapped as a mummy, holding a crook and flail, imagery generally associated with her husband Osiris. These two attributes act as scepters symbolic of her divine authority over the forces of nature. Interestingly, she wears a false braided beard with a curved tip, a symbol of divinity. The legend of Osiris states that his brother Seth, overcome by jealousy, murdered him and tore his body into fourteen parts, scattering them across Egypt. Isis traversed the land and gathered all the parts of his body. She then cast a spell that resurrected her deceased husband for one night, during which their child, Horus, was conceived. Thus, Isis was one of the central figures of Egyptian religion, the healer, the giver of life. This gorgeous sculpture features a small hole in the top of her head where an attachment would have once been placed, perhaps the sun disk flanked by horns that is characteristic of Isis.