Loading, please wait...
LOT 0491
Phoenician Bronze Scarab
LATE 1ST MILLENNIUM B.C.
5/8 in. (6.54 grams, 17 mm).
Scaraboid with incised detailing to the underside, with a central column depicting standing figures top and bottom, each flanked by two ankh symbols, and a central motif of a standing figure grasping a sceptre and winged serpent in each hand.
ProvenanceFrom an early 20th century Home Counties, UK, collection.
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:
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 0491
Phoenician Bronze Scarab
Estimate £350 - 450€410 - 520 (for guidance only)$470 - 610 (for guidance only)
-
Egyptian Necklace with Fly Beads
New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty, 1550-1350 B.C. and laterSold for (Inc. bp): £1,430
Group of restrung annular turquoise beads with gilt-metal interstitial collars and carnelian fly amulets; S-hook and eye closure; with custom display box. 10.45 grams, 48.5 cm long
Ex Swiss collection, kept in London since the 1980s. Accompanied by a copy of a previous illustrated catalogue page.
Since Egyptian artists often depicted fly whisks in the hands of pharaohs and high officials, one might assume that flies were simply a nuisance. However, the Egyptians held flies in high regard due to their quick speed, reactions, and persistence. Small fly amulets first appeared in burials during the Naqada II Period, c. 3200 B.C. These amulets grew in popularity, and the materials used to make them expanded during the New Kingdom, including gold, silver, lapis lazuli, carnelian, amethyst, faience, and bone. Fly amulets were believed to protect against insect bites and to ward off troublesome airborne creatures through apotropaic magic. Some believe they may have even been intended to symbolise the fly’s fecundity. Additionally, pharaohs would bestow gold fly-shaped pendants as military awards to honour the bravery and fly-like persistence of soldiers in battle. -
Egyptian Multi-Stranded Faience Mummy Bead Necklace
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
Multi-stranded designer necklace composed of beads of mainly annular and tubular types. 21 grams, 72 cm long
Acquired before 1979. From the private collection of Mr F.A., South Kensington, London, UK; thence by descent 2014.
For thousands of years, artisans in Egypt created vibrant ceramics to echo the beauty of rare jewels. These ornaments were created with almost every material, colour, and texture imaginable and they come from across Egypt and beyond: vibrant blue lapis lazuli from Afghanistan, glossy black obsidian from Turkey, and aqua-green turquoise from the Sinai. They were worn in life and, after death, they served as precious ornamentation for mummies. -
Egyptian Hardstone Double Plume Amulet
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Estimate: £200 - 300 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £100
Carved with integral ribbed loop to the reverse; unfinished. 4.4 grams, 31 mm
with Hotel des Ventes, Drouot, Paris, France. From the collection of Mr H. Naudy, Paris, France. Acquired at between 2004-2010. Property of a French collector.
This ancient amulet represents two ostrich feathers or shuty. Interestingly, these feathers were also present on the Atef crown of Osiris, the god of the afterlife and the dead. This suggests the amulet was believed to imbue the wearer with Osiris's divine power and protection.