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Details
LOT 0532
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.
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