This amulet was designed to be suspended by a cord passing through the hole above its back. This type of hippopotamus figurine is distinctive because it depicted pregnant females hippopotami. This last observation is evident from the swollen belly that nearly touches the ground; most hippopotamus statuettes do not display this feature.

Throughout the Predynastic Period (ca. 4400-3100 B.C.), representations of hippopotami were placed in tombs and other ritual contexts such as temples and shrines. This animal was feared and as a result became the subject of hunting scenes.

In general the hippopotamus, particularly the male of the species, was regarded by the ancient Egyptians as a representative of chaos because he often trampled and destroyed crops and threatened navigation. As a result, the hippopotamus was greatly feared because the ancient Egyptians believed that their journey to the Hereafter on the nocturnal counterpart of the Nile River would be thwarted by the hippopotamus just as this mammal threatened boats on the Nile in real life.

In other cases, however, as in this case of this amulet, hippopotami were depicted pregnant and so would have most probably served as fertility symbols.

For a summary of the animal and the Egyptian attitudes toward it, see: Ian Shaw and Paul Nicholson, British Museum Dictionary of Ancient Egypt (London 1995), pages 129-130.

References: hippopotamus amulets of a similar form are known from New York (Metropolitan Museum of Art 07.228.62 and 23.2.30); a strikingly similar cosmetic palette can be found in Boston (Museum of Fine Arts 03.1477).