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LOT 0400
Egyptian Sandstone Offering Table Fragment
LATE PERIOD-PTOLEMAIC PERIOD, 664-30 B.C.
8 1/2 in. (1.62 kg, 21.5 cm).
Fragment of a rectangular offering table with incised drainage channels forming a segmented surface, creating a spout at the top end and feeding channels around a central raised panel, bearing incised depictions of two circular loaves flanked by beer jugs; the underside dressed. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired in April 1963.
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 identification card written by Peter Clayton.
Offering tables shaped like the hieroglyphic sign for a mat with a loaf of bread, meaning “offering,” were common throughout much of dynastic history and were essential to the funerary cult. They were usually placed near the deceased's tomb, in an offering niche or chapel. If the cult ceased to function, the carved images of food and drink on the table served as magical substitutes, ensuring the continued sustenance and survival of the deceased's ka, or spirit.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0400
Egyptian Sandstone Offering Table Fragment
Estimate £300 - 400€350 - 460 (for guidance only)$410 - 540 (for guidance only)
Opening Bid
£5 (EUR 6; USD 7) +BP*
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Egyptian Wooden Bread Model on 19th Century Base
Late-Ptolemaic Period, circa 664-30 B.C.Estimate: £180 - 240 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £100
Carved model of a 'conical loaf; mounted on a later Chinese-style stand. 55 grams, 80 mm high including stand
with a privately curated collection, 1980s-early 2000s. From the private collection and estate of Christine Simons (1943-2025), West Midlands, UK. -
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Very Large Egypto-Phoenician Alabaster Alabastron with Hieroglyphic Inscription
Third Intermediate Period-Late Period, circa 1077-525 B.C.Estimate: £12,000 - 17,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £6,000
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. -
Egyptian Terracotta Funerary Cone of Montuemhat
Late Period, 25th-26th Dynasty, circa 700-650 B.C.Estimate: £500 - 700 (+bp*)
Bids: 1 | Current Bid: £5
The front portion of a tapering funerary cone, with the circular flat end bearing four horizontal lines of impressed hieroglyphic text, reading: 'Fourth god’s servant (of) Amun, overseer of Upper Egypt, Montuemhat, true of voice, the eldest son of his body, god’s servant (of) Amun, king’s acquaintance, Nes(u)ptah, born of the lady of the house, Nesykhonsu, true of voice'. 1.24 kg total, 15.5 cm wide including stand
Acquired from Abdoul Rassoul on the West Bank at Luxor, 1974-1980 when a guest lecturer. From the private collection of Peter Clayton, FCILIP, Dip, Arch, FSA, FRNS, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, UK; formed since the late 1950s.
Some funerary cones for Montuemhat, such as this example, include members of his family, in this instance naming his son, Nesuptah, and his son’s mother, Nesykhonsu, who was Montuemhat’s first wife. From Montuemhat's tomb in the Asasif at Thebes (TT34).
