Loading, please wait...

Use mousewheel to zoom in and out, click to enlarge

Details

LOT 0036

Monumental Egyptian Bronze Atef Crown Feather From a Life-Sized Statue

LATE PERIOD, CIRCA 664-332 B.C.

13 1/4 in. (1.21 kg, 33.5 cm high including stand).

Ostrich feather with deep recessed cells to accept inlay, with tapering mounting lug to one side; remnants of gilding; mounted on a custom-made display stand. [No Reserve]

Provenance

Seward Kennedy collection, acquired 1960s.

This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.11840-207822.

Literature

Cf. The Brooklyn Museum, accession number 53.76.2, for a broadly similar object; Tiribilli, E., The Bronze Figurines of the Petrie Museum from 2000 BC to AD 400, London, 2018, pp.288-290, for similar examples.

Footnotes

This large feather is part of an Atef crown that would have been attached to a wooden statue of Osiris, the powerful underworld deity. The crown combines the Hedjet, the White Crown of Upper Egypt, flanked by ostrich feathers on each side to form the Atef crown.

CONDITION

VETTING:

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 0036

Monumental Egyptian Bronze Atef Crown Feather From a Life-Sized Statue

Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,820

Print page

RELATED LOTS

  • Egyptian Stone Head
    Egyptian Stone Head
    Coptic, circa 6th century A.D.

    Sold for (Inc. bp): £975

    Stylised face with broad surrounding hood with corrugated texture to the outer face; lentoid face with reserved almond eyes, D-section nose and slit mouth; with arc of drilled holes around the inner edge of the hood to accept inset ornaments, more holes to the forehead, eyes, cheeks and chin; mounted on a custom-made stand. 2.92 kg total, 29 cm wide including stand



    From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent.

    Lot Details

  • Egyptian Alabaster Kohl Pot
    Egyptian Alabaster Kohl Pot
    Middle Kingdom, circa 2035-1665 B.C.

    Sold for (Inc. bp): £715

    Barrel-shaped with broad flat rim; with later hieroglyphic inscription to the lid. 115 grams, 47 mm high with lid



    Acquired in the mid 1980s-1990s. From the family collection of Mr S.A., Switzerland, thence by descent. Private collection since the late 1990s.

    Lot Details

  • Egyptian Wooden Sarcophagus with Falcon Mummy
    Egyptian Wooden Sarcophagus with Falcon Mummy
    Late Period-Ptolemaic Period, 664-31 B.C.

    Estimate: £8,000 - 10,000 (‡+bp*)

    Opening Bid: £3,500

    Two-part wooden (sycamore?) falcon-headed mummiform coffin carved from a single piece of wood, with a tripartite wig and human ears, painted detailing to the eyes, and broad decorative collar; the whole covered with black paint with traces of yellow decoration and inscriptions; inside a mummified falcon wrapped in linen strips. 2.3 kg, 49.5 cm



    Ex R. Liechti (1934-2010) Geneva, Switzerland, formed between 1950-1990s. Accompanied by a copy of an old collection inventory note. Accompanied by an academic report by Egyptologist Paul Whelan. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12074-218220.

    This falcon-headed coffin once contained a so-called 'corn mummy' - a mummiform effigy impregnated with grain, which germinated. Such 'corn mummies' were associated with Osirian regeneration, fertility, and rebirth concepts. The falcon-headed coffin was associated with the powerful funerary deity Sokar-Osiris or Ptah-Sokar-Osiris. It seems that the original contents of this coffin were either lost or discarded and replaced with a mummified bird (falcon?). Interestingly, the most significant number of falcon-headed coffins come from Tuna el-Gebel, the site of an extensive animal mummy necropolis.

    Lot Details

Stay up-to-date with the latest from TimeLine Auctions by joining our mailing list