This expertly carved high-relief scene depicts three male figures with short hairstyles, each wearing a short kilt tied at the waist; the left and central figures carry a small furnace by curved handles, preparing to smelt copper; the central figure also holds a metal poker in his free hand; the figure on the left supports a large container at chest level with one hand; finely rendered hieroglyphic inscriptions in front of each figure record a dialogue among the three metalworkers; the leftmost figure, facing the others, declares “Ptah could not have done better”; the central figure responds with three lines of text “Ptah loves him to pour (into) the brazier of the flame”; the inscription before the rightmost figure reads “copper of the baskets”; together, the second and third texts may be interpreted as “Ptah would love him to pour copper from the baskets into the furnace”; the composition likely formed part of a larger scene illustrating metalworking activities; supplied with a custom-made stand.

PROVENANCE:
with Toufic Arakji, Hamburg, by circa 1980.
Private collection, acquired from the above, circa 1980-1994.
with Sotheby’s, New York, Antiquities and Islamic Art, 8 June 1994, no.23.
Private collection, 1994-2010, acquired at the above sale.
with David Aaron, London, UK, 2010-2011.
with Daniel Katz Gallery, London, UK.
UK private collection.
Accompanied by an academic report by Egyptologist Sylvie Caroff.
Accompanied by a copy of an Art Loss Register certificate no.S00142449.
This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

LITERATURE:
For a comparable scene, see Hayes, W.C., The Scepter of Egypt, vol. I, p. 98, where a similar composition is described from the tomb of Re-em-kuy.

FOOTNOTES:
The mention of Ptah – patron god of craftsmen – links this piece to Memphis, suggesting it came from the tomb of a high-ranking official or priest.