Egyptian Gilt Stucco Sphinx

A white limestone figure of the god Ptah with false beard, wearing an enveloping cloak and a broad wesekh-collar, holding the shaft of a was sceptre; serene, oval face with almond-shaped eyes and fleshy lips; remnants of dorsal pillar to reverse; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 1.39 kg total, 22.3 cm high including stand



Ex private Belgium collection, 1960s. with Vanderkindere Auctions, Brussels, Belgium, 26 February 2013, lot 261. English private collection. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.11605-199743. Accompanied by a scholarly note by Egyptologist Paul Whelan.

Ptah is attested from the beginning of ancient Egypt’s dynastic history and was a creator god, a god of craftsmen, and the patron deity of the Memphite region. The principal temple of the god was located in the city of Memphis. The fragmentary back pillar on this statuette indicates that it was most probably a temple offering, originally inscribed with an invocation to Ptah together with the donor’s name. Such votive figurines with back pillars naming the god and the dedicator occur in various materials, including faience and stone.

A limestone figure modelled in the half-round, lying naked on a rectangular bed, executed with semi-naturalistic anatomical detailing, voluminous coiffed hair and painted necklace, armbands and distinctive ornamental girdle at the waist; accompanied by a custom-made display stand. 109 grams total, 11.5 cm including stand

Fine condition.

with Secret Eye Gallery, New York City, 1977. with Arte Primitivo, New York, USA, 8 October, 2003, lot 66. Private collection of Professor Kenneth Graham, London, UK. Accompanied by an original Arte Primitivo catalogue page. Accompanied by a scholarly note by Egyptologist Paul Whelan.

This syncretic figure combines the Egyptian goddess Isis and the Greek goddess Aphrodite, a deity popular from the 3rd century B.C. into the Roman Period, who embodied aspects of fertility, marriage, and childbirth.

A carved limestone relief fragment depicting a squatting god Amun-Re, facing right wearing a headdress topped by two ostrich-feather plumes, a segmented mantle to the shoulders, knees drawn up supporting another ostrich plume; inked accession numbers to the reverse: '974.15', '69.10019'; accompanied by a custom-made display stand. 53 grams, 74 mm (84 grams total, 10.5 cm high including stand)



From a deceased American estate, acquired between 1970-1989. with Bonham's, London, Knightsbridge, 28 October 2009, lot 23 [Part]. Accompanied by a copy of the relevant Bonhams catalogue pages.