Loading, please wait...
LOT 0434
Egyptian Mixed Scarab Collection
2ND-1ST MILLENNIUM B.C.
3/8 - 3/4 in. (17.4 grams total, 10-20 mm).
Comprising (from left to right and top to bottom): 1) a scarab with an oval border containing the seated figure of a seated deity with arm raised in adoration before the sign partially resembling the hieroglyphic sign for a ‘thousand’, with the water and signs below; 2) a scarab with a faint oval border containing the honey bee and reed leaf symbols; 3) a scarab with an oval border containing the throne name of the 19th Dynasty pharaoh, Ramesses II (User-Maat-Re) atop a neb sign; 4) a scarab with indeterminate signs; 5) a scarab with an oval border containing the falcon god Ra-Horakhty standing atop a neb sign; 6) a scarab inscribed with numerous geometric designs that incorporate the name Amun-Re; 7) a plain scaraboid. [7]
ProvenanceFrom the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Cf. 2) Petrie, W.M.F., Button and Design Scarabs, London, 1925, pl. XXX, no. 1469, for a partially preserved rectangular seal with the same hieroglyphs; 3) Petrie, W.M.F., Scarabs and Cylinders with Names, London, 1917, pl. XLI, no. 98, for similar; 5) Petrie, W.M.F., Button and Design Scarabs, London, 1925, pl. XIX, nos. 1484 and 1487, for slight variations of this design; 6) Petrie, W.M.F., Scarabs and Cylinders with Names, London, 1917, pl. XIX, no. 1471, for a scarab with a similarly themed motif.
CONDITIONTimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
AUCTIONS:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
-
Egyptian Alabaster Bowl with Thickened Rim
3rd millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £156
Comprising a squat conical body with narrow foot, groove beneath the thickened rim. 177 grams, 82 mm
Acquired in the mid 1980s-1990s. Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent. Private collection, since the late 1990s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
One of the most prestigious materials the Egyptians extracted was alabaster, more correctly referred to as travertine or calcite-alabaster. From the 1st through 3rd Dynasties, stone vessels were very popular items to include in the burials of pharaohs and nobles. No fewer than 30,000 stone vessels were found in the labyrinthine galleries below Djoser’s Step Pyramid at Saqqara, and Egyptian alabaster was used to make hundreds of those vessels. -
Egyptian Predynastic Globular Flask
Naqada II, 3500-3150 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,040
A globular-shaped body with a disc base, short neck, and everted rim at the mouth; featuring a burnished red wash surface. 925 grams, 21 cm
Private collection. with Bonhams, London, 22 September 1998, no.130. European private collection. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Egyptian Hardstone Scarab
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £572
With detailed clypeus and head, raised ridge separating the wing case, resting on an oval base with plain underside. 10.1 grams, 27 mm
From the property of a London, UK, gentleman, 1970-2000s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
The scarab, which represented the dung beetle, was the most popular amulet in ancient Egypt for approximately two thousand years until the Ptolemaic Period when it gradually fell out of favour. The popularity of scarabs extended beyond the borders of Egypt, and they were also distributed and produced in other regions, such as Phoenicia and Israel. The beetle is named khepri, derived from the verb 'to come into existence', and was considered the embodiment of the creator god Khepri, who was self-engendered. The ancient Egyptians mistakenly believed that the young beetle emerging from the dung ball was the result of an act of self-creation.
