What do the Figurines of ”Bird Ladies” in Predynastic Egypt represent?

Abstract

My wonder was piqued when I read the Brooklyn Museum’s description regarding Figures 1a and 1b:” The bird-like faces on two of these figurines probably represent human noses, the source of the breath of life [1].” Immediately I would describe the head as “inhuman” and “flamingolike”, so why did specialists in the field interpret it so differently.