Egyptian Faience Lotus Flower Amulet

Modelled seated on a tongue-shaped base, with simple facial detailing and a suspension loop to the back. 0.54 grams, 8 mm



Ex French art market, 1920s.

The goddess Bastet was believed to be the daughter of the sun god and was shown with the features of a lion up until about 1000 B.C., when she was first portrayed as a cat or human with a cat head. As the daughter of Ra, she was associated with the rage inherent in the sun god's eye, which was considered to be his instrument of vengeance. Her development into a cat goddess occurred during the New Kingdom, but did not fully develop until the Late Period. She was still associated with the destructive power of the sun and was shown on the prow of the solar boat, decapitating the evil serpent Apophis in the Book of the Dead. The maternal, protective and hunting characteristics of the cat are obvious in Bastet, and she was seen as a protector of pregnant women and young children. In the Pyramid Texts, she is invoked by the deceased king to act as his protector and to help him reach the sky to join the sun god; the king proclaims that Bastet is his mother and nurse. Like her counterpart, Sekhmet, Bastet has an aggressive side and, in a text from Karnak, Amenhotep II described his enemies being slaughtered like the victims of Bastet. The goddess had a shrine at Karnak, where she is known as the 'Lady of Asheru', which aligns her closely with the goddess Mut, the consort of Amun-Ra. Her most famous shrine was in the north-east Delta region, at Bubastis, and was known as Per-Bastet or 'the House of Bastet.' Herodotus describes the festival of Bastet as one of the most elaborate in all of Egypt and identifies her with the Greek Artemis. Cemeteries of cats have been excavated at Bubastis, and at Saqqara and Memphis.

Comprising the torso and legs clad in an ankle-length robe and seated on a rectangular-section seat with stepped base and short, curved backrest and rear dorsal pillar; the left hand carved with the palm resting along the thigh; the right hand similarly placed but with the hand gripping a folded piece of cloth of which the ends are draped over the lower thigh above the knee; traces of an old label to reverse. 4.1 kg, 18.7 cm



Private collection, Europe. with Bonhams & Brooks, 8th November 2001, no.265. Private collection, Europe. Accompanied by copies of the relevant Bonhams & Brooks catalogue pages. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12584-232097.

The official would have been shown wearing a longer cloak-like garment rather than a waist-height kilt, as the line of the folded edge is visible above where a waistband would typically be.

Carved architectural block fragment comprising: a shallow niche with arched top and parallel sides, with concentric mouldings to create a reveal and ledge below to accept offerings; horizontal tiered base; attachment sockets for two figurines (absent) flanking the niche; to left, a column modelled in the half-round with two parallel vertical stems, shallow roundel to the base and stylised foliage at the top; pediment above with scooped profile; above each figurine recess an incised initial, 'A' and 'M'; facing surface keyed for plaster finish. 57.55 kg, 49 cm



From the estate and private collection of Matthew Upham (1962-2025), an antiques trader from Budleigh Salterton, Devon, UK. Acquired at an estate sale at auction. Property of a Cambridgeshire, UK, gentleman. 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. 13297-255939.

In the Christian Roman Empire, the stelae in the form of aedicula, which could be funerary monuments with crosses or the images of the deceased, or devotional niches with images of saints, appear to be independent sculptures. These stelae consisted of a rectangular body surmounted by a circular arch or trapezoidal structure. At the centre of the niche, the deceased was often depicted full-length, in a praying position (orans). Devotional stelae were also placed inside a church or shrine, with images of the Virgin and Child, or saints.