Egyptian Coptic Textile Fragment Group

In the form of a papyrus column, the upper platform pierced through for insertion of a bronze mirror, incised with lotus petals at the top of the shaft and at the base; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 482 grams total, 14.5 cm including stand



with Nicholas Wright, London, UK, 1969. Christie's, London, 14 April 2011, no.128. Accompanied by copies of the relevant Christie's catalogue pages. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12941-243535.

The papyrus stalk was used in the hieroglyphic script for the word 'wadj', meaning 'fresh', making it an appropriate talisman for the preservation of the body.

Presented in a striding pose with his left leg forward and his arms at his sides; wearing his emblem, the lotus-flower headdress from which two plumes emerge, and a menat on each side; dorsal pillar with hieroglyphs, beginning with the incantation: "Words spoken by Nefertum, son of Sekhmet...." 42.8 grams, 11.6 cm



From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s.

Nefertum is usually depicted as a young man wearing a headdress with a lotus flower or a crown featuring the flower. The god is often linked to beauty, healing, and the lotus flower, with his cult connected to the royal family and the cycle of rebirth. Nefertum’s imagery and symbolism associate him with themes of creation, renewal, and the sun; he symbolises the first sunlight and the pleasant scent of the Egyptian blue lotus flower, emerging from the primal waters within an Egyptian blue water lily.

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.