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LOT 0475
Egyptian Blue Glazed Bastet Amulet
NEW KINGDOM, 18TH DYNASTY, CIRCA 1504-1452 B.C.
1 1/2 in. (2.01 grams, 17.59 mm).
Modelled resting on a rectangular base, with fur-texture detailing and hieroglyph to the underside. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom an old Suffolk, UK, collection.
Acquired in the UK before 1980.
From the personal collection of Derek Rogers, Suffolk, UK.
Cf. Andrews, C., Amulets of Ancient Egypt, London, 1994, item 29(c), for type.
FootnotesThe 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 New Kingdom, she was typically depicted with a cat's head. She is sometimes shown with kittens, emphasising her maternal role as a fierce protector of offspring.
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Egyptian Faience Mummy Bead Mask with Scarab and Four Sons of Horus
Ptolemaic Period, 332-30 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £316
A netted beadwork panel of annular and tubular glazed composition beads in blues, greens, black, cream and red-brown colours, depicting a mummy face mask with false beard, a scarab with extended wings below, the 'Four Sons of Horus’ beneath the scarab, joined together with areas of open netting of tubular beads; restrung with some later beads. 58 grams, 25.5 cm
Ex Mariaud de Serres, Paris, France, 1980-1990s. From a London, UK, collection.
Winged scarabs were often used as funerary amulets and believed to symbolise the deceased's rebirth and regeneration. The Four Sons of Horus were deities responsible for protecting the deceased's internal organs. Here, on the left, is the baboon-headed Hapy, protector of the lungs, then the human-headed Imsety, protector of the liver, followed by the falcon-headed Qebehsenuef, who protects the intestines and, finally, the jackal-headed Duamutef on the right (note his erect ears are indicated), who protected the stomach. These internal organs were often placed in canopic jars with the head of the respective Son of Horus. Amulets depicting these deities were placed within the mummy wrappings. -
Egyptian Faience Beaded Mummy Mask
Ptolemaic Period, 332-30 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
Restrung netted beadwork panel of annular and tubular glazed composition beads in blues, greens, black, cream and red-brown colours, depicting a mummy face mask with false beard. 67 grams, 16 cm
Ex Mariaud de Serres, Paris, France, 1990s. From a London, UK, collection. -
Egyptian Wooden Head of an Ibis
Late Period-Ptolemaic Period, circa 664-30 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,300
Naturalistically carved ibis head from a composite statuette, with carefully detailed beak and eyes; traces of gesso and gilding remain; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 116 grams total, 18.5 cm wide
American private collection, New York, acquired in London before 2000.
The ibis was sacred to the god Thoth, who was revered for his association with knowledge, writing, and healing. The god also acted as the recorder of the final judgment, which determined whether the deceased had lived a life of virtue. Vast numbers of ibises were mummified in religious centres such as Saqqara and Tuna el-Gebel, where they were offerings to the god and interred in extensive catacombs.
