Egyptian Amulet Collection

Comprising: an orbiculus in coarse linen and brown wool, S torsion, embroidered with a stylised figure; a fragment of a second orbiculus in red, green, white and black wool, crenellated borders. 11 grams total including package, 47-67 mm



Acquired 1970s-1996. Property of a North American collector. London collection, 2016.

The iconography of this fragment is called "Nilotic," as it depicts plant and human elements linked to life on the Nile River. These images are recurrent on Coptic textiles. Weavers created patterns that allowed them to reproduce these motifs on any type of fabric (curtains, tassels, clothing).

Flat and crescent-shaped with transverse piercings to the reverse; an end spacer for a multi-strand necklace. 24 grams, 82 mm wide



with Archaeologia, Switzerland, before 1983. Ex private North American collection. London private collection, 2016.

Modelled seated on a tongue-shaped base, with simple facial detailing and suspension loop to the back. 3.25 grams, 28 mm



Ex London gallery and Belinda Elliston, a member of the Egyptian Exploration Society, 1940s onwards.

In ancient Egypt, the cat was venerated as the sacred animal of the goddess Bastet, whose principal cult centre was Bubastis in the Nile Delta. Although cats were once part of folk practice, their veneration as part of formal cults spread across Egypt during the Late Period. Bastet was closely linked to lion-headed goddesses like Sekhmet, Tefnut, and Pakhet, and the cat itself became associated with solar imagery: the Book of the Dead portrays the sun god as a Great Cat vanquishing Apophis beneath the sacred Ished Tree. The cat could also embody the Eye of the Sun or, more often in Bastet’s case, the Eye of the Moon. Mummified cats were frequently dedicated as votive offerings, and some of their feline-shaped coffins were adorned with finely crafted bronze heads to enhance their divine likeness.