Egyptian Shabti of Psamtek

A ceramic black burnished ware pilgrim's flask of discoid form, short neck with collar, body with raised concentric roundels to both faces. 296 grams, 15.8 cm high



Acquired in Egypt in 1960 whilst working at the British Council. Ex Andrews collection.

This resembles an Etruscan style bucchero impasto flask of circa 700-600 B.C., suggesting that this was an import into Egypt; a comparable example is in the Penn Museum (inventory no. MS 3431).

A mixed group of mainly composition artefacts and fragments comprising: a steatite scarab beetle inscribed with a scarab, cobra and crown to base, 2024-1700 B.C.; tilapia fish, symbol of regeneration, c.1300 B.C.; Taweret hippopotamus goddess of child birth, c.1300 B.C.; sphinx amulet, c.1300 B.C; alabaster kohl jar fragment sticks, c.1400 B.C.; Djed pillar amulet, c.600-300 B.C.; stone playing counter, c.300-50 B.C.; two fruit amulets, c.18th-19th Dynasty; fragment of a large Eye of Horus, c.600 B.C.; Eye of Horus amulet with nfr sign on reverse, c. 1000 B.C. 66.8 grams total, 8-39 mm



From an old UK collection. From the private collection of Alf Baxendale (1941-2016) part 2, keen Egyptologist, member of the Egyptology Society, trustee of the Amarna Trust; thence by descent. Accompanied by twelve identification display cards. Accompanied by a copy of his obituary published in Horizon, The Amarna Project and Amarna Trust newsletter, Issue 18, 2017, p.21, by Barry John Kemp, CBE, FBA, Professor Emeritus of Egyptology at the University of Cambridge and directing excavations at Amarna in Egypt.

A mixed group of scarabs and intaglios comprising: carnelian plaque with helmetted warrior holding shield with right hand and winged Nike on his left; green glazed composition scarab with enigmatic hieroglyphs on base; onyx scarab with an armed running warrior on base, cut in Rome; a later gold bracelet with an Etruscan scarab; one wedjat eye scaraboid; an Etruscan scarab with a centaur; one stone scarab with seated Ra-Horakhty above nb reading 'lord Ra Horakhty'; one pink stone scarab with bird. 4.13 grams total, 12-15 mm



Supplied with small a handwritten note: 'Antiquities found in Rome, given to Henrietta Sophia Benfield by her mother'. Henrietta Sophia Benfield (1796-1857) was the daughter of Paul Benfield and his wife, Mary Frances, daughter of Henry Swinburne (1743-1803). Property of the Berkeley collection. With Sotheby's, London, 11 December 2019, lot 182. English private collection.