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LOT 0568
Egyptian Blue Faience Bastet Cat Amulet
NEW KINGDOM, CIRCA 1550-1070 B.C.
1 in. (3.25 grams, 28 mm).
Modelled seated on a tongue-shaped base, with simple facial detailing and suspension loop to the back.
ProvenanceEx London gallery and Belinda Elliston, a member of the Egyptian Exploration Society, 1940s onwards.
LiteratureCf. Andrews, C., Amulets of Ancient Egypt, London, 1994, item 29(c).
FootnotesIn 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.
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Egyptian Faience Amulet Group
Late-Ptolemaic Period, circa 664-30 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £650
Comprising: two amulets of Isis suckling infant Horus; Horus in falcon form; a papyrus column; a djed pillar; two amulets of Thoth depicted as an ibis-headed man; a circular plaque with head of Bes, and others. 29 grams total, 16-52 mm
From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s. -
Egyptian Wooden Funerary Shabti Figurine
New Kingdom, circa 1570-1070 B.C.Estimate: £1,000 - 1,400 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £540
Carved in the round as a mummiform figure, with a carefully modelled tripartite wig, a rounded face, large eyes, and a subtly simpering expression. 39 grams, 14.5 cm
Ex R. Liechti (1934-2010) Geneva, Switzerland, formed between 1950-1990s. with Liechti stock number 'E.825' to base. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12079-218221.
A shabti (also known as ushabti or shawabti) is a small funerary figurine found in ancient Egyptian tombs, from around 2000 BCE to 30 BCE. Its main purpose was to act as a servant for the deceased in the afterlife, carrying out manual tasks like farming or irrigation as directed by the gods. Shabtis were frequently inscribed with a magical formula from the Book of the Dead to ensure they would animate when summoned. -
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Egyptian Bronze Head of a Cat
Late-Ptolemaic Period, 664-30 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,820
The head of goddess Bastet modelled in the round with alert ears and eyes, ears pierced; hollow-formed. 40.4 grams, 33.6 mm high
Acquired in the mid 1990s. Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent. Private collection, since the late 1990s.
The feline's pierced ears likely once held earrings or other ornaments. It was probably attached to a statuette of a cat, whose body may have been crafted from wood. The cat was sacred to Bastet, a protective mother goddess and the daughter of the sun god Re. Amulets provided the wearer with the goddess's protection. Her name means ‘she of the bast [ointment jar],’ which may have contained a substance favoured by or exclusive to royalty. Originally, Bastet was depicted as a woman with the head of a lioness, but by the late New Kingdom, she was typically shown with a cat's head. She is sometimes portrayed with kittens, emphasising her maternal role as a fierce protector of her offspring.
