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LOT 0562
Egyptian Coptic Textile Fragment Group
CIRCA 6TH-7TH CENTURY A.D.
8 5/8 in. (49 grams total including package, 22 cm each).
Comprising the terminal part of a clavus in white and purple linen and wool, S torsion, borders embroidered with pilasters, the central scene representing eagles alternating with geometric elements; a large fragment of another clavus, ornamented with geometric patterns in red, green and yellow wool. [2, No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired 1970s-1996.
Property of a North American collector.
London collection, 2016.
Cf. Del Francia Barocas, L., Museo dell'Alto Medioevo, Roma, I materiali Copti, pp.162-163, for similar textiles.
FootnotesThe clavi are realised in tapestry technique, and the one with prominent figures has a rounded end. They were part of the decoration of a tunic, and the presence of the Imperial eagle, not a common pattern, could refer to a military tunic.
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AUCTIONS:
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Egyptian Faience Amulet Group
Late-Ptolemaic Period, circa 664-30 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £650
Comprising: two amulets of Isis suckling infant Horus; Horus in falcon form; a papyrus column; a djed pillar; two amulets of Thoth depicted as an ibis-headed man; a circular plaque with head of Bes, and others. 29 grams total, 16-52 mm
From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s. -
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Egyptian Marble Head of a Queen
Ptolemaic Period, 323-30 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,690
Modelled in the half-round in Hellenistic style with a stephane and centre-parted hair, serene facial features including hooded eyes and pert lips; mounted on a custom-made wooden display stand. 313 grams total, 10 cm high (14.3 cm high including stand)
Ex Hanna Saba collection, Ambassador to Egypt-USA-France (1909-1992). Private European collection. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D'Amato. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12083-218194.
The head is similar to various portraits of Ptolemaic queens, some of them identified as belonging to the famous Berenice II (246-222 B.C.), some others to Cleopatra VII Philopator (69-30 BC), the lover of Julius Caesar, the spouse of Mark Anthony and the last Queen of Egypt. The analogies with Berenike II’s portrait are noteworthy, especially with the portrait in the Cairo Museum (inv.JE 39517): the diadem and its position on the top of the head, similar physical features, and similar roundness of the cheeks. -
Egyptian Coptic Textile Fragment Group
Circa 4th-5th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £65
Comprising: an orbiculus in coarse linen and brown wool, S torsion, embroidered with the image of a stylised bird, surrounded by tondos ornamented with geometric embroidery, borders meander decorated; a similar fragment of double segmenta, embroidered with hares alternated to fishes. 9 grams total including package, 60-64 mm
Acquired 1970s-1996. Property of a North American collector. London collection, 2016.
The iconography of this fragment is called "Nilotic," as it depicts plant and human elements linked to life on the Nile River. These images are very recurrent on Coptic textiles. Weavers created patterns that allowed them to reproduce these motifs on any type of fabric (curtains, tassels, clothing).
