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LOT 0012
Egyptian Bronze Figure of Isis and Horus
LATE PERIOD, 664-332 B.C.
2 5/8 in. (73.4 grams, 68 mm).
Isis enthroned wearing a cow's horn headdress with a solar disc fronted by uraeus, suckling the infant Horus on her lap; Horus with a side-lock of youth.
ProvenanceAcquired in the mid 1980s-1990s.
Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent.
Private collection, since the late 1990s.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Cf. Fazzini, R. A., Egypt: Dynasty XXII-XXV. Iconography of Religions, Section 16, Egypt 10, Leiden, 1988, p. 12, et 33 with pl. 23, for similar statuette.
FootnotesIn ancient Egyptian mythology, Isis was the sister-wife of Osiris and the mother of the sky god Horus. She is associated with aspects of fertility and motherhood and is often depicted in various artworks seated in a nursing pose with her son Horus on her lap, as here.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0012
Egyptian Bronze Figure of Isis and Horus
Estimate £1,000 - 1,400€1,160 - 1,620 (for guidance only)$1,350 - 1,890 (for guidance only)
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Large Egyptian Faience Heart Scarab
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £169
Green-glazed with anatomical detailing, pierced through the outer edge. 48 grams, 73 mm
From an early 20th century collection London and Home counties, UK. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
The heart scarab served to protect the individual by silencing the heart so it would not testify against its owner. Many heart scarabs, especially those intended for elite burials, were mounted with outstretched wings—symbols of divine protection and rebirth. These wings echoed the iconography of protective deities like Isis and Nephthys, enhancing the amulet’s power to safeguard the soul on its journey to eternal life. The pierced holes on the side of this example were likely for the attachment of such wings. -
Egyptian Plaque with Fertility Figure
Late-Ptolemaic Period, 664-31 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £910
Carved rectangular plaque with central recess, carved image of a nude female modelled in the half-round with a deeply striated bag wig, arms by her side; traces of red and black pigment on the body; mounted on a custom-made stand. 502 grams total, 17.1 cm including stand
From a central London collection, formed 1980-2000. From the private collection of Mr David Barker, London, UK; thence by descent. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
The rectangular limestone plaque almost certainly represents a shrine. Such plaques first appeared in Lower Egypt and became widespread in the Late Period and Ptolemaic era. They may have developed from earlier female figurines depicted on beds and are usually associated with the female goddesses Isis and Hathor, both powerful protectors of women and childbirth and associated with fertility. -
Egyptian Green Glazed Faience Figure of Somtous
Late Period, circa 664-332 B.C.Estimate: £1,000 - 1,400 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £500
Modelled in the round, the nude seated figure of the child Somtous, with one hand to his lips and a prominent sidelock, emerging from a lotus flower; mounted on a custom-made stand. 39.7 grams total, 68 mm including stand
with Noriuchi Horiuchi, Tokyo, Japan. Private collection, London, UK, acquired from the above in 1993. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
The earliest attestations of the cult of Somtous, known as Sematawy in ancient Egyptian, date back to the New Kingdom, although it became particularly popular during the Late Period. Associated with Horus (Horsomtous), the symbol of the child emerging from the lotus represented the (re)birth of the sun god. Thus, Somtous was regarded as a life-giving amuletic symbol, sometimes even referred to as 'Sematawy the child who gives life.'
