LOT 0023

Egyptian Steatite Portrait of a Ptolemaic Prince

2ND-1ST CENTURY B.C.

4 in. (84 grams total, 10 cm including stand).

With a round face, large eyes, a narrow nose that broadens at the end, and full lips downturned at the corners; the forehead with a distinctive deep furrow above the brow; a narrow, twisted diadem encircling his wavy hair; mounted on a custom-made display stand.

Private collection, Bern, Switzerland.
with Galerie Rhéa, Zurich, Switzerland.

This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12631-236408.

Cf. Ashton, S.-A., Ptolemaic Royal Sculpture from Egypt, BAR International Series 923, Oxford, 2001, p.68, no. 3.2, for another small steatite head in the Petrie Museum (UC 49930) featuring a similar rounded face, wavy hair, and a twisted diadem, dated to the 1st century B.C.

The Greek hairstyle is a characteristic feature of Ptolemaic royal portraiture, as is the twisted diadem - a Greek interpretation of the Egyptian headband (the sšd) - which appears on several portrait heads of Ptolemaic boy-kings and princes. The distinctive furrow is intriguing, as it contrasts with the typically blemish-free physiognomy of most Ptolemaic royal sculpture. However, a similar furrow can be seen on the portrait head of a provincial governor from Dendera, dated to the 2nd century B.C. (Bothmer, B.V., Egyptian Sculpture of the Late Period 700 B.C. to A.D. 100, New York, 1960, pp. 144-143, pl. 112, nos. 301-302), which may indicate an artistic trend employed in high-status sculpture at that time.

It has been suggested that small royal portrait heads, such as this example, may have served as votives. The lack of an Egyptian-style back pillar on this and similar pieces supports the possibility that they were inserted into statues made of different materials (Ashton, S.-A., Ptolemaic Royal Sculpture from Egypt, BAR International Series 923, Oxford, 2001, p.12).