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LOT 0026
Egyptian Bronze Seated Bastet Cat Amulet
LATE PERIOD, 664-332 B.C.
7/8 in. (5.76 grams, 21 mm).
Modelled seated on a tongue-shaped base, with simple facial detailing and a suspension loop to the back.
ProvenanceUK private collection before 2000.
London collection, acquired on the UK art market.
The goddess Bastet was believed to be the daughter of the sun god and was shown with the features of a lion up until about 1000 B.C., when she was first portrayed as a cat or human with a cat head. As the daughter of Ra, she was associated with the rage inherent in the sun god's eye, which was considered to be his instrument of vengeance. Her development into a cat goddess occurred during the New Kingdom, but did not fully develop until the Late Period. She was still associated with the destructive power of the sun and was shown on the prow of the solar boat, decapitating the evil serpent Apophis in the Book of the Dead. The maternal, protective and hunting characteristics of the cat are obvious in Bastet, and she was seen as a protector of pregnant women and young children. In the Pyramid Texts, she is invoked by the deceased king to act as his protector and to help him reach the sky to join the sun god; the king proclaims that Bastet is his mother and nurse. Like her counterpart, Sekhmet, Bastet has an aggressive side and, in a text from Karnak, Amenhotep II described his enemies being slaughtered like the victims of Bastet. The goddess had a shrine at Karnak, where she is known as the 'Lady of Asheru', which aligns her closely with the goddess Mut, the consort of Amun-Ra. Her most famous shrine was in the north-east Delta region, at Bubastis, and was known as Per-Bastet or 'the House of Bastet.' Herodotus describes the festival of Bastet as one of the most elaborate in all of Egypt and identifies her with the Greek Artemis. Cemeteries of cats have been excavated at Bubastis, and at Saqqara and Memphis.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0026
Egyptian Bronze Seated Bastet Cat Amulet
Estimate £500 - 700€580 - 810 (for guidance only)$680 - 950 (for guidance only)
Opening Bid
£250 (EUR 290; USD 338) +BP*
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Very Large Egyptian Expedition Lithograph of Elephantine Island
Early 19th century A.D.Estimate: £80 - 100 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £40
Proof etching on laid paper of plate 31 from Vol.I of Description de l'Égypte : ou, Recueil des observations et des recherches qui ont été faites en Égypte pendant l'expédition de l'armée française. entitled Ile d'Eléphantine et Syène. Plan général de l'Île d'Eléphantine, de Syène, et des carrières de granit exploitées par les Anciens Egyptiens. 223 grams, 105.5 x 69 cm
From the collection of a North American priest. Acquired between 1981-1996. Property of a North American collector.
Produced between February 1802 and 1830 on the orders of Napoleon Bonaparte; published between 1809 and 1828. Just 1,000 copies were distributed to various institutions, printed on laid paper with an 'Égypte ancienne et moderne' watermark. The book is subtitled Recueil des observations et des recherches qui ont été faites en Égypte pendant l’expédition de l’Armée française, publié par les ordres de Sa Majesté l’Empereur Napoléon le Grand (Gathering of observations and discoveries which were made in Egypt during the expedition of the French army, published on the orders of His Majesty the Emperor Napoleon the Great). It was the world's first encyclopedia devoted exclusively to the remains of ancient Egypt. The plates of this book are the first to present the archaeological sites of Thebes (Luxor). Elephantine Island holds archaeological remains that span the entire history of ancient Egypt. Syene is the Greek name for the ancient Egyptian city of Swennet, now known as Aswan. -
Egyptian Steatite Scarab with Cartouche
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Estimate: £60 - 80 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £5
With detailing to the carapace, mouth and legs, underside with cartouche, ankh and other symbols. 2.98 grams, 18 mm
From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s. -
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Egyptian Bronze Statuette of Young Horus
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Estimate: £700 - 900 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £350
Modelled in the round in striding pose with one arm resting along the body and the right hand raised to his mouth, wearing an elaborate side-lock of youth and Pschent crown fronted by uraeus; mounted on a display stand. 202 grams total, 12.8 cm including stand
with R.H. Blanchard's Egyptian Museum, Cairo, early 20th century. Private collection, London, UK. Accompanied by its original base, retaining the Blanchard label.
Harpocrates is the Greek equivalent of the Egyptian name Hor-pa-khered, which means 'Horus the Child'. This name refers to Horus as the divine infant of Isis and Osiris. Wearing an amulet of Harpocrates was believed to provide the same protection that Isis granted to her beloved son. Larger bronze statuettes, such as this, were probably votive offerings to Harpocrates, intended to secure his favour and protection.
