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LOT 0507
Egyptian Black Hardstone Scarab
LATE PERIOD, 664-332 B.C.
1 1/8 in. (17 grams, 29 mm).
Dark green hardstone with paler speckles; with a boldly carved head, clypeus, prothorax and elytra, and legs indicated at the sides; plain underside.
ProvenanceEx Irene Newman, Birdham, Chichester, West Sussex, England.
with Stride & Son Auctioneers, Chichester, West Sussex, England, 23 April 2015, no.1599 [Part].
Acquired by the present owner at the above sale.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Cf. Schulz, R., Seidel, M., Egyptian Art. The Walters Art Museum, Oakville, 2007, pl.18, cat. no. 126, for a similar example.
FootnotesThe scarab, which represented the dung beetle, was the most popular amulet in ancient Egypt for approximately two thousand years until the Ptolemaic Period when it gradually fell out of favour. The popularity of scarabs extended beyond the borders of Egypt, and they were also distributed and produced in other regions, such as Phoenicia and Israel. The beetle is named khepri, derived from the verb 'to come into existence', and was considered the embodiment of the creator god Khepri, who was self-engendered. The ancient Egyptians mistakenly believed that the young beetle emerging from the dung ball was the result of an act of self-creation.
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LOT 0507
Egyptian Black Hardstone Scarab
Estimate £350 - 450€410 - 520 (for guidance only)$470 - 610 (for guidance only)
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Egyptian Limestone Fragment
New Kingdom, 1550-1295 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,690
Architectural fragment with two dressed faces; incised design comprising: vertical border to the left; a band of hieroglyphic text at the top; an arch enclosing a seated figure in profile wearing a tripartite wig and collar with curved beard, head cone and frond above; curved linear element meeting the end of the beard; traces of white, blue, red-brown and other pigments; chamfered edge pierced in modern times for mounting. 190 grams, 10.8 cm
From the estate of a deceased American, acquired between 1970-1989. with Bonham's, London, Knightsbridge, 28 October 2009, no.23 [part]. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Egyptian Faience Amulet Representing Taweret
664-332 B.C.Estimate: £300 - 400 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £150
Modelled in the round on a rectangular base and with dorsal pillar pierced at the shoulder, the goddess in hippopotamus form with human torso and arms. 10.3 grams, 52 mm
Private collection, Carouge, Switzerland, assembled in the 1980s-1990s. Thence by descent to the collection of Mr S.P., since 2020. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Egyptian Bronze Cat Head with Incised Scarab
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £5,777
The head of goddess Bastet modelled in the round with alert ears and eyes, fine whisker detailing to the gently elongated muzzle, hair detailing to the inner edges of the ears and the lower outer edges pierced to accept separate earrings, incised scarab on the top of the head. 92.5 grams, 58 mm
Elizabeth Helene Demarest Osten Driesen (1892-1931). Given as a gift to her granddaughter, Lady Annabel Sutherland, by descent in the late 1960s. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12762-237137. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
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.
