Egyptian Glass Eye Pair

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 glazed composition scarab with detailed serrated legs and with a-n-r, nub and nefer signs around a cartouche containing the incomplete name of Thutmose III to the underside; set in a later gold mount for suspension. 2.34 grams, 18 mm

Fine condition.

Acquired 1969-1999. London collection of the late Mr S.M., thence by descent.

The sign groups surrounding the cartouche are indicative of Asiatic scarab production of the Second Intermediate Period, where the craftsmen did not understand the meaning of hieroglyphs and used them for purely decorative reasons. This suggests that either the beetle and sun-disc signs in the cartouche are unintentionally similar to those of Thutmose III, or that this is a later scarab with an inaccurately rendered name of the king

A carved carnelian amuletic pendant of the cat goddess Bastet, sitting on a rectangular base, suspension loop behind the shoulders. 1.82 grams, 16 mm



Acquired 1980s. Private collection of L.H., Staffordshire, UK. Property of a Sussex, UK, teacher.