Egyptian Silver Poppy Amulet and Beads

D-shaped in plan with carved facial detailing, thick nose and full lips; painted bands to the brow, pierced in three places for attachment. 1.04 kg, 30 cm



Swiss private collection, Zurich, assembled in the 1950s. Private collection. Acquired on the Zurich art market in 2013. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12847-241680.

The cartonnage mask from the Ptolemaic Period (305-30 BC) was a funerary covering made of wood or layers of papyrus/linen and plaster, modelled and painted, which covered the face of the mummy, often gilded, decorated with coloured glass and stones, and depicted the deceased with an idealized face and golden skin to protect him and guarantee him rebirth as a deity in the afterlife, combining Egyptian tradition with Graeco-Roman influences.

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.

Each lentoid in plan with applied iridescent blue glass panel. 5.18 grams total, 43-45 mm



Acquired in UK art market, 1977-1979.