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LOT 0490
Egyptian Faience Bead Necklace String
LATE PERIOD, 664-332 B.C.
39 3/4 in. (8.7 grams total, 101 cm long).
Composed of light blue tubular beads interspersed with darker coloured annular beads; restrung. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired on the UK art market, circa 1980.
Property of an East London, UK, collector.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
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AUCTIONS:
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Egyptian Schist Plate
Ptolemaic Period, 323-30 B.C.Estimate: £800 - 1,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £360
Discoid palette with rounded underside and flat base, dished central field, flat rim with four radiating trapezoidal projections. 450 grams, 16.4 cm
Acquired in the mid 1980s-1990s. Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent. Private collection, since the late 1990s. Accompanied by a copy of an Art Loss Register certificate no.S00038135. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Egyptian Hardstone Scarab
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £572
With detailed clypeus and head, raised ridge separating the wing case, resting on an oval base with plain underside. 10.1 grams, 27 mm
From the property of a London, UK, gentleman, 1970-2000s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
The scarab, which represented the dung beetle, was the most popular amulet in ancient Egypt for approximately two thousand years until the Ptolemaic Period when it gradually fell out of favour. The popularity of scarabs extended beyond the borders of Egypt, and they were also distributed and produced in other regions, such as Phoenicia and Israel. The beetle is named khepri, derived from the verb 'to come into existence', and was considered the embodiment of the creator god Khepri, who was self-engendered. The ancient Egyptians mistakenly believed that the young beetle emerging from the dung ball was the result of an act of self-creation. -
Egyptian Jasper Fly Amulet
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £208
Carved in the round resting on an oval base, striated body; pierced longitudinally. 0.88 grams, 14 mm
Ex London and Home Counties collection, UK, 1920-1940. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Egyptian artists often depicted fly whisks with pharaohs and officials, suggesting flies were just nuisances. In reality, Egyptians valued flies for their speed and persistence. Small fly amulets appeared around 3200 B.C. in Naqada II burials, gaining popularity and varying materials during the New Kingdom, including gold, silver, lapis lazuli, carnelian, amethyst, faience, and gemstones. These amulets were thought to protect against insect bites and troublesome creatures via apotropaic magic and possibly symbolised fecundity. Pharaohs awarded gold fly-shaped pendants to honour soldiers' bravery in battle.
