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LOT 0017
Egyptian Jasper Lion-Headed Cobra Amulet in Gold Frame
6TH CENTURY B.C.
3/4 in. (2 grams, 18 mm).
The S-curved body resting on a tongue-shaped based, detailed hood, and delicate details to the head of a lioness; wrapped in a gold frame with suspension loop.
ProvenancePrivate collection of Mr K.A.
Private collection, Europe, 26 June 2009.
Cf. Reisner, G.A., Catalogue général des antiquités égyptiennes du Musée du Caire, Nos.12528-13595, Vol. II, Amulets, Cairo, 1958, p.115 (no. CG13434) and pl.XVII, for a similar example in opaque red glass.
FootnotesThis amulet likely represents a goddess, either Sekhmet or Wadjet. Sekhmet is typically depicted as a lioness or lion-headed woman, while Wadjet appears in the form of a cobra. The lion-headed cobra form can be an allusion to the uraeus, worn on the crowns of royalty and deities for protection.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0017
Egyptian Jasper Lion-Headed Cobra Amulet in Gold Frame
Estimate £2,000 - 3,000€2,320 - 3,480 (for guidance only)$2,700 - 4,050 (for guidance only)
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Egyptian Multi-Stranded Faience Mummy Bead Necklace
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
Multi-stranded designer necklace composed of beads of mainly annular and tubular types. 21 grams, 72 cm long
Acquired before 1979. From the private collection of Mr F.A., South Kensington, London, UK; thence by descent 2014.
For thousands of years, artisans in Egypt created vibrant ceramics to echo the beauty of rare jewels. These ornaments were created with almost every material, colour, and texture imaginable and they come from across Egypt and beyond: vibrant blue lapis lazuli from Afghanistan, glossy black obsidian from Turkey, and aqua-green turquoise from the Sinai. They were worn in life and, after death, they served as precious ornamentation for mummies. -
Egyptian Silver Fly Amulet
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £98
D-shaped in section with two triangular wings and robbed body with pellet eyes. 1.07 grams, 16 mm
From an early 20th century collection.
Small fly amulets first appeared in burials during the Naqada II Period, c. 3200 B.C. These amulets grew in popularity and the materials used to make them expanded during the New Kingdom. They are crafted from a variety of materials such as gold, silver, lapis lazuli, carnelian, amethyst, faience, and bone. These amulets were thought to protect against insect bites and to ward off troublesome flying creatures through apotropaic magic. Some believe they may have even been intended to symbolise the fly’s fecundity. Additionally, pharaohs would bestow gold fly-shaped pendants as military awards to honour the bravery and fly-like persistence of soldiers in battle. -
Egyptian Faience Bull-Headed Shabti from the Serapeum at Saqqara
New Kingdom, Ramesside Period, 1295-1069 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,250
Pale faience figurine representing a bull-headed mummy adorned with a tripartite wig and human arms crossed over the chest with hands holding a pick and a hoe; only the lower legs and feet missing; the opening part of a central panel of hieroglyphic inscription reads: Wsir ͗ ḥp, 'the Osiris Apis'; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 152 grams total, 15 cm including stand
Probably found at the Serapeum at Saqqara in the 19th century. From the private collection of the late Mr M.S.C., Norfolk, UK, formed 1950s-1960s. Accompanied by an academic report by Egyptologist Paul Whelan.
While most shabtis served as substitutes or servants of the deceased and were placed in the tomb, some, like this example, were votive objects deposited in places of great sanctity. Virtually all known Apis shabtis come from excavations in the Serapeum catacombs led by Auguste Mariette from 1850 to 1853. They all belong to activity dating to the 19th and 20th Dynasties (circa 1295-1069 BC) and were unearthed in various chambers where they had been placed as votive offerings to honour the deified Apis bulls.
