Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 0065
Egyptian Wooden Stele for Pa-di-Amun-(em)-ipat with Ra-Horakhty
LATE PERIOD-PTOLEMAIC PERIOD, 664-30 B.C.
17 3/4 in. (1.94 kg, 45 cm high).
Arch-topped and composed of two vertical boards, coated with gesso and skilfully painted on one side; the lunette decorated with a winged sun-disc and two pendant uraei; the central vignette depicting the deceased worshipping the falcon-headed god Ra-Horakhty with the Four Sons of Horus standing behind, each with their name written above; the lower register with six lines of hieroglyphic text providing an offering formula for the benefit of the deceased: Transliteration of the hieroglyphs: 1) ḥtp-dı-͗nsw rꜤ-ḥr-Ꜣḫtı͗nṯr Ꜥ nb pt sḥḏ [.....] wsır͗ ẖntt [ım͗ntt?] 2) nṯr Ꜥ nb Ꜣbḏw dı⸗͗f pr.t-ḫrw t ḥnḳt kꜢ Ꜣpd [....] ḫt nb(t) (n) fr(t) wꜢbt […] 3) ḫt nbt nḏm dı⸗͗f ḥtpw ḏfꜢw [...]f ḫꜢ m t dı⸗͗f ḫꜢ m 4) ḥnḳt dı⸗͗f ẖꜢ ır͗p [...] dı⸗͗f ḫꜢ m ı͗[...] dı⸗͗f ḫꜢ ı(͗Ꜣ)r(r)t dı⸗͗f 5) m snṯr ḥr ḫꜢwt [...] ḳrs nfr ḥr ım͗nt nfr 6) n [..] wsır͗ [......] pꜢ-dı-͗ım͗n(m) ıp͗ Ꜣ.t ms (n) ḫꜢ [....] Translation: 1) An offering that the king and Ra-Horakhty, Great God, Lord of Heaven, the illuminated [...] Osiris Foremost [of the West?] 2) Great God, Lord of Abydos (that) he may give a voice-offering (of) bread, beer, oxen, and fowl […] everything good and pure […] 3) everything sweet, he gives offerings of provisions […] a thousand of bread, he gives a thousand of 4) beer, he gives a thousand of wine […], he gives a thousand of vines, he gives a thousand of 5) incense on the altar […] a good burial in the beautiful West 6) for […] the Osiris[…] Pa-di-Amun-(em)-ipat born (to) Kha[…]; on the verso, an old handwritten collection label reading: 'From Harding & Sm[ith] Collection Sale Sotheby 2 Nov 1922 L.N. 234. A families [sic] stele, arched top, with the deceased worshipping a standing Horus attended by the four Children of Horus and six horizontal lines of inscription in colour. SP/10a'; mounted in a custom-made wooden frame.
Provenance
From the collection of the late W. Harding Smith (1848-1922).
with Sotheby, Wilkinson & Hodge, 34 & 35 New Bond Street, 2 November 1922, no.234.
Old handwritten label to verso reading 'From Harding & Sm[ith] Collection collection Sale Sotheby 2 Nov 1922 L.N.234...'
Accompanied by an academic report by Egyptologist Paul Whelan.
Accompanied by a copy of the 1922 Sotheby, Wilkinson & Hodge catalogue pages.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13251-253195.
Literature
Cf. Munro, P., Die spätägyptischen Totenstelen, 2 vols., Ägyptologische Forschungen 52, Glückstadt, 1973, vol.2, pl.3, fig.12, for a stela with similar format; for an example with a three-line border see British Museum EA22919; or with a plain, single-coloured band with thin outer and inner delimiting lines see Cairo Museum A9444.
Footnotes
The syncretism of two strong gods, Re and Horus, is one of the most significant events in Egyptian mythology, and it appears to have had a substantial iconographic impact on Egyptian history. Re's power was augmented by this, which consisted of a falcon-headed man crowned with a sun disc; in the mornings, Re was combined with Horus to become Re-Horakhty.
CONDITIONVETTING:
TimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
AUCTIONS:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
LOT 0065
Egyptian Wooden Stele for Pa-di-Amun-(em)-ipat with Ra-Horakhty
Sold for (Inc. bp): £20,800
RELATED LOTS
-
Egyptian Bronze Figure of Isis and Horus
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £520
Isis enthroned wearing a cow's horn headdress with a solar disc fronted by uraeus, suckling the infant Horus on her lap; Horus with a side-lock of youth. 73.4 grams, 68 mm
Acquired in the mid 1980s-1990s. Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent. Private collection, since the late 1990s.
In ancient Egyptian mythology, Isis was the sister-wife of Osiris and the mother of the sky god Horus. She is associated with aspects of fertility and motherhood and is often depicted in various artworks seated in a nursing pose with her son Horus on her lap, as here. -
Egyptian Yellow Steatite Scarab with Cartouche
New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty, 1550-1292 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £143
Incised anatomical detailing on the body, underside with a cartouche of Pharaoh Thutmose III, Red crown, hes-vase and sun disc. 1.06 grams, 14 mm
From a late Warwickshire numismatic collector, his collection formed from the early 1980s. -
Egyptian Gold Bastet Seated Cat Amulet
Late New Kingdom-Third Intermediate Period, circa 1069-900 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £468
Modelled seated on a tongue-shaped base, with simple facial detailing and suspension loop to the back. 0.51 grams, 8 mm
Ex French collection, early 20th century.
The goddess Bastet was believed to be the daughter of the sun god and was shown with the features of a lion up until about 1000 B.C. when she was first portrayed as a cat or human with a cat head. As the daughter of Ra she was associated with the rage inherent in the sun god's eye, which was considered to be his instrument of vengeance. Her development into a cat goddess occurred during the New Kingdom but did not fully develop until the Late Period. She was still associated with the destructive power of the sun and was shown on the prow of the solar boat, decapitating the evil serpent Apophis in the Book of the Dead. The maternal, protective and hunting characteristics of the cat are obvious in Bastet, and she was seen as a protector of pregnant women and young children. In the Pyramid Texts, she is invoked by the deceased king to act as his protector and to help him reach the sky to join the sun god; the king proclaims that Bastet is his mother and nurse. Like her counterpart, Sekhmet, Bastet has an aggressive side and, in a text from Karnak, Amenhotep II described his enemies being slaughtered like the victims of Bastet. The goddess had a shrine at Karnak, where she is known as the 'Lady of Asheru', which aligns her closely with the goddess Mut, the consort of Amun-Ra. Her most famous shrine was in the north-east Delta region, at Bubastis, and was known as Per-Bastet or 'the House of Bastet.' Herodotus describes the festival of Bastet as one of the most elaborate in all of Egypt and identifies her with the Greek Artemis. Cemeteries of cats have been excavated at Bubastis, and at Saqqara and Memphis.
