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LOT 0468
Framed Coptic Wool Garment Fragment with Female Heads
CIRCA 6TH-7TH CENTURY A.D.
18 1/8 x 7 in. (728 grams total, 46 x 17.5 cm including frame).
Comprising a vertical arrangement of female heads wearing proplomas, alternating with green foliage; enclosed within a red-orange border with yellow bands, wave motifs to the edges; mounted in a custom-made glazed frame by Jean Bohne Pictures & Frames, New York, with a handwritten dedication to the reverse. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom the private collection of Mr Vladimir Gregorietch Simkhovitch (1874-1959), Professor of Economics at Columbia University, U.S.A.
Vladimir was a great collector of ancient art and works from his collection are kept in the Smithsonian Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of New York, and the Brooklyn Museum amongst others.
Cf. Del Francia Barocas, L., Museo dell'Alto Medioevo, Roma, I materiali Copti, pp.166-167, nos.41 A-B-C, for similar textile figures and warp.
FootnotesThe band was probably a segment from a curtain, carpet or parietal cover.
CONDITIONTimeLine 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:
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Opening Bid: £278
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Large Egyptian Glazed Hieroglyphic Shabti
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Modelled mummiform, arms crossed over the chest holding crook and flail, with a blank pillar to reverse; hieroglyphs to the front of the body; remains of glaze; mounted on a wooden display base; repaired. 191 grams total, 17 cm high including stand
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Egyptian Falcon-Headed Lapis Lazuli Scaraboid
Late Period, 664-525 B.C.Estimate: £1,500 - 2,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £800
Naturalistic detailing to the underside with pierced lug for attachment; detailed clypeus on upper side, modelled with a falcon head. 2.73 grams, 17 mm
From an early 20th century collection, Home Counties, UK, 1930-1940s.
Funerary scarabs with falcon heads such as this were placed within the wrappings of the mummy on various parts of the body. They undoubtedly served a protective role, perhaps with solar connotations of rebirth (suggested by the falcon head) but, unlike heart scarabs, their precise function is not known.