Egyptian Mummy Bead Earring Pair

Carved in the round as an amuletic baboon figure with a solar disc headdress, ribbed suspension loop behind the neck. 6.21 grams, 33 mm



Private collection, acquired in the late 1980s-early 1990s; thence by descent. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13180-249315.

Amulets of squatting baboons were often associated with Thoth, the patron deity of scribes.

Modelled in the round on a sledge attached by ventral and pectoral fins, a forked tail, a dorsal ridge, and a tapering nose, featuring recessed circular eyes filled with enamel, a horned sun disc headdress fronted by a uraeus, and a suspension loop behind; a few hieroglyphs of a dedication remain visible on the underside of the sledge, which may be interpreted as ‘….the great give life (to)…’ (…t wr rdi͗ Ꜥnḫ t….); presumably, 'the great' followed the name of a deity, now lost. 585 grams, 17 cm



Acquired from Gallery Reiner, Paris, France, 1981. Private collection, Europe. Accompanied by a copy of French passport no.150583 dated 29 November 2013. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12375-226676.

The Medjed, a type of elephant-snout fish (Mormyrus kannume), was revered in ancient Egyptian religion, particularly in Per-Medjed, better known by its Greek name, Oxyrhynchus Polis. This version of the name, meaning "city of the sharp-nosed," reflects the fish's distinctive appearance as depicted in Egyptian art. These fish were believed to have consumed the penis of Osiris, the god who was dismembered and scattered by his brother Seth. As sacred creatures, figurines of the Medjed were often adorned with a horned sun-disc headdress worn by the goddesses Hathor and Isis, suggesting a close association with both. Some figurines, like this example, featured suspension loops, allowing them to be worn as pendant amulets.

Rectangular plaque with a ledge along the lower edge, featuring the half-round figures of Ptah, Amun-Ra, and Ra-Horakhty; each invoked in offering formulae written in three vertical columns on the back; a fragmentary suspension loop at the rear; mounted on a wooden display stand. 88.8 grams total, 85 mm including stand



From a deceased American estate, 1970-1989. with Bonhams, London, 28 October 2009, no.81. Private collection, Europe. Accompanied by a copy of an Art Loss Register certificate, no.S00066707. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13190-249206.