Egyptian Painted Terracotta Bowl

Mummiform type wearing a lappet wig, with arms crossed and hands holding hoes; the wig, facial details, and hoes are highlighted in black; three horizontal lines of hieroglyphic text on the lower body, giving the owner's name and an abbreviated version of the shabti spell; mounted on a stand. 192 grams total, 13 cm including stand



Ex E.B.W. Chappelors collection, July 1958. From the private collection of Peter Clayton, FCILIP, Dip, Arch, FSA, FRNS, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, UK; formed since the late 1950s. Accompanied by an old handwritten information card by Peter Clayton, collection no.42.

Barrel-shaped in profile, with a rounded base, broad shoulder and flared mouth, and two integral lateral loop handles; a single line of incised hieroglyphic text around the shoulder. 420 grams, 37 cm



Formerly in a private collection, Beirut, Lebanon, 1990s. Swiss private collection, acquired from Mr H., Geneva, 2010. Accompanied by a copy of an Art Loss Register certificate, no.S00059830 This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13221-249178.

In the Phoenician necropolises of Andalusia, the deceased's ashes were enclosed in luxurious alabaster urns of Egyptian manufacture. At Almuñécar, for example, some urns in the Phoenician necropolis preserved inscriptions and emblems of various Egyptian pharaohs, who ruled the Nile region between the 16th and 8th centuries B.C. Alabaster vessels of this type, originally containing fine wines, have been discovered, albeit in smaller numbers, in the royal palaces of Assur and Samaria in the East, as part of war booty or gifts exchanged between royal houses.

Formless mummiform shape (head missing), with the lower portions of a lappet wig, schematically represented arms and hands, a collar, and an inscription added in black, with traces of green pigment; the inscription, including two cartouches, reads: 'The illuminated one, the Osiris, Lord of the Two Lands Neb-Maat-Re, beloved of Amun, Master of Appearances, Ramesses', sḥḏ wsı͗r nb tꜢwy (nb-mꜢꜤt-rꜤ mry ı͗mn) nb ḫꜤw (rꜤ-ms.sw). 431 grams, 14.7 cm



Acquired March 1977. From the private collection of Peter Clayton, FCILIP, Dip, Arch, FSA, FRNS, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, UK; formed since the late 1950s. Accompanied by an old handwritten information card by Peter Clayton, collection no.126.

This rather rudimentary, peg-like shabti is characteristic of those for Ramesses IV, VI, and VII, as well as of non-royal figurines of the 20th Dynasty. Because of their virtually featureless appearance, which relies entirely on painted details, this shabti type has been referred to as 'à contours perdus' ('with lost outlines').