Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 0546
Egyptian Coptic Textile Fragment
CIRCA 5TH-6TH CENTURY A.D.
3 in. (11 grams total including package, 74 mm).
Central part of an orbiculus representing a six-petalled flower, S torsion, in red, yellow, olive green and blue wool. [No Reserve]
Provenance
Acquired 1970s-1996.
Property of a North American collector.
London collection, 2016.
Literature
Cf. Del Francia Barocas, L., Museo dell'Alto Medioevo, Roma, I materiali Copti, p.102, no.13, for similar textiles.
Footnotes
Similar figures are widely presented in Coptic textiles, repeating a pattern in which flowers are usually paired with bird figures. This decoration is typical of tunics, but it was also used in large-scale textiles intended for domestic or funerary furnishings.
CONDITIONVETTING:
TimeLine 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:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
RELATED LOTS
-
Egyptian Lapis Lazuli Wedjat Eye
Third Intermediate Period-Late Period, 1069-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £2,210
Sizeable and finely detailed Eye of Horus, wedjat, with both falcon and human elements, visible gold flecks in places (characteristic of this stone), and two suspension loops on the top. 18.8 grams, 46 mm
From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
This finely carved wedjat-eye amulet is a representation of the healed eye of the god Horus, featuring both human and falcon elements. The name wedjat in ancient Egyptian means ‘the one that is sound.’ According to Egyptian mythology, Horus' eye was wounded or taken by the god Seth and restored by Thoth. The wedjat-eye amulet was thought to protect its wearer and bestow the power of recovery and regeneration onto them. It was very popular and used by both the living and the dead. -
Egyptian Yellow Faience Bastet Cat Amulet
New Kingdom, circa 1550-1070 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £715
Figure of Bastet as a cat with pointed ears, seated on a rectangular base with a rounded end; suspension loop on the back, ear repaired. 2.51 grams, 26 mm
Ex London gallery and Belinda Elliston, a member of the Egyptian Exploration Society, 1940s onwards.
In ancient Egypt, the cat was venerated as the sacred animal of the goddess Bastet, whose principal cult centre was Bubastis in the Nile Delta. Although cats were once part of folk practice, their veneration as part of formal cults spread across Egypt during the Late Period. Bastet was closely linked to lion-headed goddesses like Sekhmet, Tefnut, and Pakhet, and the cat itself became associated with solar imagery: the Book of the Dead portrays the sun god as a Great Cat vanquishing Apophis beneath the sacred Ished Tree. The cat could also embody the Eye of the Sun or, more often in Bastet’s case, the Eye of the Moon. Mummified cats were frequently dedicated as votive offerings, and some of their feline-shaped coffins were adorned with finely crafted bronze heads to enhance their divine likeness. -
Romano-Egyptian Mosaic Glass Fragments
Circa 1st century A.D.Estimate: £100 - 140 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £50
Including geometric and other patterns. 18 grams total, 5-30 mm
Ex Gallery Mikazuki prior to 1984. Propery of a London, UK, gentleman.
