Egyptian Alabaster Vase with Carinated Shoulders

Round-topped stela with decoration on two registers; the lunette, featuring a winged sun disk with pendant uraei; the main panel with a frieze in sunk relief depicting the pharaoh wearing the double crown, facing left offering the hieroglyphic symbol for 'fields'; a goddess stands behind him, possibly Isis, wearing a tight-fitting robe and sporting a tall two-plumed headdress, with one hand raised in praise; facing the pharaoh is the falcon-headed god, possibly Horus or Her-wer, wearing a double-crown, and behind him stands the ibis-headed Thoth wearing the Atef crown, both gods hold a was-sceptre; repaired, mounted on a custom-made stand. 19.45 kg total, 55 cm including stand



Acquired in the mid-1980s-1990s. Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent. Private collection, since the late 1990s. Accompanied by an academic report by Egyptologist Paul Whelan. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12200-222172.

The overall tripartite composition is comparable to numerous stelae of the Ptolemaic Period and can be dated to the 3rd-2nd century B.C. The decorative lunette and/or sky bands and bold sunk relief winged sun disc are characteristic of this period, as is the fringed detailing of the female’s garment. The offering of the ‘field’ symbol is also a frequent depiction of the stelae of this period, which can be understood as a ‘catch-all’ device representing an offering of all the produce from the fields. Such stelae were often produced as stock products to which clients would have their names and other details added. Therefore, the stela is likely an example of a stela awaiting a purchaser. After the purchase, the hieroglyphic labels would be added to the figurative tableau, and a dedicatory text would be carved into the plain rectangle in the lower part. Sometimes, however, it appears that a purchaser could not afford the additional expense of a professionally engraved inscription, and so would scratch a short dedication in the lower panel as seen, for example, in the stela for Horudja from the Delta site of Tanis and now in the Musée du Louvre (inv. no. AF 11682).

Depicted nude in a dynamic pose with his legs apart and the weight of the body upon his right leg, standing in front of a two storey structure, probably an oven; his left arm raised and right arm extended in front of his torso and resting on the edge of the structure; the oven painted pink at the top and white at the bottom with an offering receptacle at floor level. 232 grams, 15 cm



Ex Dr Daniel Marie Fouquet (1859-1914), Cairo. with Pierre Berge & Associes, Auction, Archaeology 29 November 2014, no.193. Accompanied by a French cultural export permit, no.161028. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D'Amato. Accompanied by a copy of the relevant pages in: Perdrizet, P., Les Terres Cuites Grecques d'Egypt de la Collection Fouquet, Nancy, 1921, where it is published. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.12000-211884.

The image of the ‘Eros Baker’ is part of a wide production of Roman terracotta imitating Greek models, although in somewhat crude way. In the Roman age, designs tended to be commonplace and were often indifferent copies of Greek originals. However, the production of terracotta in Hellenistic Egypt continued without interruption and the most subjects of these votive statuettes (in this case probably a baker invoking the blessing of the god upon his activity) were religious, Eros being one of the favourites.

Polished and with integral pierced suspension loop. 0.78 grams, 15 mm



From an early 20th century collection.

Amulets in the form of poppies were used to heal, alleviate pain, and ward off death. This type of amulet was also associated with Osiris, the Egyptian deity of agriculture, death, and the afterlife.