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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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LOT 0008
Egyptian Faience Sistrum Fragment with Hathor Head
Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,170
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Egypto-Phoenician Rock Crystal Scaraboid with Winged Sphinx
Circa 900-700 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £182
With detailed carapace and mouth parts, underside with intaglio winged sphinx sitting on a baseline with pellets beneath; supplied with a museum-quality impression. 2.85 grams, 16 mm
Ex London, UK, gallery, 1971. -
Romano-Egyptian Terracotta Figure of Eros
1st-2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £5,850
Depicted nude in a dynamic pose with his legs apart and the weight of the body upon his right leg, standing in front of a two storey structure, probably an oven; his left arm raised and right arm extended in front of his torso and resting on the edge of the structure; the oven painted pink at the top and white at the bottom with an offering receptacle at floor level. 232 grams, 15 cm
Ex Dr Daniel Marie Fouquet (1859-1914), Cairo. with Pierre Berge & Associes, Auction, Archaeology 29 November 2014, no.193. Accompanied by a French cultural export permit, no.161028. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D'Amato. Accompanied by a copy of the relevant pages in: Perdrizet, P., Les Terres Cuites Grecques d'Egypt de la Collection Fouquet, Nancy, 1921, where it is published. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.12000-211884.
The image of the ‘Eros Baker’ is part of a wide production of Roman terracotta imitating Greek models, although in somewhat crude way. In the Roman age, designs tended to be commonplace and were often indifferent copies of Greek originals. However, the production of terracotta in Hellenistic Egypt continued without interruption and the most subjects of these votive statuettes (in this case probably a baker invoking the blessing of the god upon his activity) were religious, Eros being one of the favourites. -
Egyptian Bronze Horus Falcon on Shrine-Shaped Base
Late Period-Ptolemaic Period, 664-31 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £4,680
Naturalistically modelled falcon with incised feathers and detailing; standing on a shrine-shaped rectangular box with slightly battered sides and cornice moulding; inked note on the inside of each long side 'E.311' and 'Collection R.L.' respectively. 521 grams, 15 cm
Collected between the 1950s-1990s. Ex Roger Liechti (1934-2010) collection, Geneva, Switzerland. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.12133-211848.
This box almost certainly once contained the mummified remains of a falcon. The falcon was principally identified with the sun-god Horus, and associated with the living king. Numerous falcon cults existed throughout Egypt, but the most spectacular was found at Saqqara, where many thousands of birds were mummified and buried in an extensive complex of underground galleries.