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LOT 0512
Egyptian Ceremonial Mace Head
PREDYNASTIC PERIOD, 4TH MILLENNIUM B.C.
3 3/8 in. (322 grams total, 87 mm high including stand).
A spherical ceremonial stone mace head; centrally drilled; mounted on a custom-made display stand. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom an old UK collection.
From the private collection of Alf Baxendale (1941-2016) part 2, keen Egyptologist, member of the Egyptology Society, trustee of the Amarna Trust; thence by descent.
Accompanied by an identification display card.
Accompanied by a copy of his obituary published in Horizon, The Amarna Project and Amarna Trust newsletter, Issue 18, 2017, p.21, by Barry John Kemp, CBE, FBA, Professor Emeritus of Egyptology at the University of Cambridge and directing excavations at Amarna in Egypt.
Mace heads were prized to such a degree that they were carried by chieftains as sceptres.
CONDITIONTimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
AUCTIONS:
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Egyptian Faience Bead Necklace
Late Period, 664-525 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £111
A restrung necklace composed of glazed faience tubular beads; modern clasp. 8 grams, 47.5 cm long
From an early 20th century UK collection. -
Egyptian Carnelian Papyrus Amulet
New Kingdom, 19th Dynasty, 1296-1186 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £572
A carnelian amuletic papyrus stalk pendant, colour graduated along the stem. 2.4 grams, 29 mm
Private collection, acquired 1999. -
Egyptian Djed Pillar Amulet
7th-1st century B.C.Estimate: £2,500 - 3,500 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £1,250
A large finely-made wooden amuletic djed pillar; old collector's accession number 'E.436' to underside; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 106 grams, 17 cm high
with ink inscribed 'E.436' to base. Acquired in 1970. Ex private European collection. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.11602-199041.
The djed pillar symbolises stability and is usually understood to be the spine of the god Ptah although its origins are more probably in cult practices involving sheaves of reeds which were revered due to the general absence of trees from the Egyptian landscape. The djed later came to be symbolise Seker, the falcon god of Memphis and Ptah, the Memphite god of craftsmen, who carried a sceptre formed as a combination of the djed and the ankh. The cult of Ptah waned and gave way to that of Osiris so that by the New Kingdom (16th century B.C.), the djed had become associated with Osiris, part of whose cult included a ceremony for raising the djed representing Osiris's triumph over Seth.
