Egyptian Glass Eye Pair

A carved wood shabti figure modelled mummiform with arms folded across the chest and wearing a tripartite wig, painted detailing to the front and rear of the body; remains of polychrome pigmentation. 46 grams, 19 cm high



Acquired early 1990s. Ex private American collection; thence by descent. Private Swiss collection since 1998.

Many crude wooden shabtis of this type were found at Gurob and Sedment; they range from having minimal decoration and no inscription to being entirely painted and inscribed.

An Egyptian or Graeco-Roman hardstone female sphinx modelled in the round, sitting on a sub-rectangular base, her hair tied in a bun on the top of her head, circular socket to the top face behind the head; mounted on a custom-made antique wooden display base. 74 grams total, 50 mm long including base

Fine condition.

From Saqqara in the late 1960s. With John Cummings, Lincolnshire, UK, 1990s. Acquired 20 May 1997. Property of a South Oxfordshire private collector. Accompanied by an original invoice no.6469 dated 20 May 1997. Accompanied by a scholarly note by Egyptologist Paul Whelan.

This type of sphinx amulet is quite rare in Egypt, for instance, the vast output and variety of amulets identified from the Late Period industrial-scale workshops at Naukratis does not include three-dimensional winged sphinxes, only their image impressed in scarabs, suggesting that this example may have been an import and/or once the possession of a Greek person in Egypt.

A pale green glazed composition figure of Thoth in ibis-head form, plain dorsal pillar, pleated kilt, tripartite wig; old collector's inked accession number 'E.1000' to the reverse; repaired. 44.7 grams, 88 mm high



Ex Roger Liechti collection, Geneva, Switzerland. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.11595-199013.

One of the most prominent of the ancient Egyptian gods, Thoth was associated with writing, magic and wisdom, and was credited with founding a number of branches of knowledge including law, religion and science. He is believed to have been self-created or grown from the seed of Horus from the forehead of Set. As the son of the gods of order and chaos, he was also the god of equilibrium. As such, he was considered a just and infallible judge. Worshipped from the Pre-Dynastic to the Ptolemaic Period, Thoth was one of the longest, continuously worshipped gods from any civilisation. Thoth's Egyptian name was Djehuty (also dhwty) meaning ‘He Who is Like the Ibis’, a sacred bird in ancient Egypt as well as a popular pet associated with wisdom.