The statue is a black basalt figure acquired by the CMA in 1991. The museum voluntarily recognizes the statue as the property of Libya. For a period of time, the Department of Antiquities has generously lent the work to the museum.
The Ptolemaic figure was taken from a Libyan museum during World War II
According to a 1950 record, the artifact was uncovered in 1937–1939 excavations but likely lost in 1941, when the Ptolemais Museum was destroyed during British occupation. According to the museum’s object listing, the sculpture was in Lucerne, Switzerland by 1960 and entered the collection of Lawrence and Barbara Fleischman in New York in 1966. In 1991, the couple donated the artifact to the CMA.
