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LOT 0008
Egyptian Faience Sistrum Fragment with Hathor Head
LATE PERIOD, 664-332 B.C.
2 in. (44.4 grams, 50 mm).
Pale blue-green bifacial bust of Hathor with D-shaped face, characteristic banded hair with curled ends, cow's ears, broad collar of radiating segments; circular attachment point beneath for handle.
ProvenanceAcquired in the 1970s.
European private collection.
Cf. Schoske, S., Schönheit - Abglanz der Göttlichkeit. Kosmetik im Alten Ägypten, Munich, 1990, p.142, no.127, for a similar Hathor head element on a near complete sistrum.
FootnotesThis fragment is the central element of a highly decorative sistrum. The sistrum was a rattle-like instrument played exclusively by women in religious ceremonies. The sound produced by the sistrum was believed to drive away evil and soothe a god's anger. Hathor is the daughter of the sun god Re, and in her role as a mother goddess is often depicted as a cow or with bovine characteristics as here. Hathor is also associated with love, music and dancing, and the sistrum is one of her sacred symbols.
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AUCTIONS:
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Egyptian Faience Amulet of Montu, God of War
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £117
With disc headdress supported on bull's horns, short kilt, dorsal pillar pierced behind the head. 3.2 grams, 37 mm
Ex Cummings collection, UK, 1990s. -
Egyptian Limestone Relief with Bound Asiatic Captive
New Kingdom, 19th Dynasty, circa 1250 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £5,200
Sub-rectangular with keyhole-shaped aperture to the lower right edge; low-relief figure in profile wearing a tunic with circular neckline, bobbed hair swept behind the ears, sharp facial features with short goatee beard; bands of vertical fluting. 14.5 kg, 37.5 cm high
Acquired 1970s-1996. Property of a North American collector. London collection, 2016. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no. 11830-207550.
The features and hairstyle of the figure resemble closely those of Asiatic captives shown on the outer wall of the temple of Ramesses II at Abu Simbel, Egypt. It is likely that the Egyptian artists from the time of Thutmose III onwards had frequent opportunities to observe the foreigners who came, or were brought into Egypt. It is likely that the Egyptian artists were interested in differentiating the various peoples encountered by the armies on their campaigns northward during the New Kingdom. The remains of a circular aperture behind the figure probably indicates that the slab was re-used as a grindstone or a door pivot in ancient times. -
Egyptian Gold Frog Amulet
Late New Kingdom-Third Intermediate Period, 1070-900 B.C.Estimate: £500 - 700 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £250
In naturalistic crouching pose on an oval base; underside with incised hieroglyphs, possibly a falcon with sun disc behind atop a neb sign, writing 'Lord Ra-Horakhty'. 0.54 grams, 6 mm
From an early 20th century French collection.