Egyptian Faience Shu Amulet

Modelled with a rounded wig and sidelock; painted black detailing to the eyes, lips, collar and agricultural tools held in the crossed hands; painted vertical panel to lower body with hieroglyphic legend; repaired. 146 grams, 13.8 cm



Acquired on the UK art market, 1990s. Private collection, New York, USA.

Bearing a portion of Chapter 17, a spell written in late hieratic script executed in black ink on woven linen, consistent with funerary bandages of the Graeco-Roman period; the inscription identifies the owner as a woman named Ta-sherit-n-ta-ihet, with her mother named Iset-(m-)khebit; as is typical for funerary manuscripts of this period, the father’s name is not recorded. 5.08 grams, 22 cm wide



Found inside an 18th-century Bible and believed to be a souvenir acquired in the 19th century. From the private collection of a North American lady. An academically identified and unpublished fragment, offering potential for further scholarly study and publication. Accompanied by a report in progress dated 28 April 2026 by Holly Lund.

Spell 17 is among the most important and widely transmitted compositions in the Book of the Dead, concerned with cosmology, divine knowledge, and the transformation of the deceased in the afterlife. Even in fragmentary form, such texts provide valuable insight into funerary belief and scribal practice during the later phases of ancient Egyptian religion. This description was prepared using information provided by Dr Ann-Katrin Gill, Academic Assistant at the Egyptological Institute, University of Leipzig, and a separate assessment by Steve Vinson, Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures at Indiana University Bloomington. The linen fragment may derive from a nineteenth-century mummy unwrapping, a practise widely attested in this period.

Modelled in the round in crouching pose on a rectangular base; the bard modelled in hanks with curled ends, the eyes recessed to accept inserts, mouth gaping; lion-mask amulet to the chest on a thong; socket to reverse; chipped. 942 grams, 18.5 cm



Acquire on the UK art market, 1990s. Private collection, New York, USA. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13294-255443.

From the New Kingdom onwards, Bes became one of ancient Egypt's most popular apotropaic deities. Despite his somewhat fearsome appearance, Bes served as the patron and protector of pregnant women and children and was also believed to shield them from snakes.