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LOT 0532

Sold for (Inc. bp): £442

LARGE EGYPTIAN STEATITE SCARAB
SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD–NEW KINGDOM, CIRCA 1600-1069 B.C.
1 3/8 in. (13.3 grams, 34 mm).

Modelled body of a beetle with detailed carapace and legs; the underside carved with a border enclosing the depictions of an advancing lion, a crocodile below, with a fish behind, and a nefer sign in front.

PROVENANCE:
From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

LITERATURE:
Cf. Petrie, W.M.F., Button and Design Scarabs, London, 1925, pl. XIV, nos. 880, for a scarab depicting a lion above a crocodile; Ben-Tor, D., The Scarab: A Reflection of Ancient Egypt, Tel Aviv, 1993, p. 32, for a discussion of this scarab design type.

FOOTNOTES:
It is believed that the lion symbolised the king and his strength in overcoming dangerous forces.

CONDITION
VETTING:
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