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LOT 0509
Phoenician Bronze Statuette of a Naked Female
6TH-4TH CENTURY B.C.
3 3/4 in. (107 grams, 94 mm).
Modeled in the round with arms folded across the abdomen, standing nude on a square base. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired in Egypt by Lieutenant James Alexander Goodman in the 1920s.
Thence by descent to his grandson.
Lieutenant Goodman served in the 4th Battalion Welsh Regiment during World War I and saw action in Palestine during the capture of Bethlehem, (for which he won an MC). After the war, he setup a business selling Fordson trucks and tractors in Alexandria, Egypt. A keen antiquarian, he collected ancient objects during his time in Alexandria and when he visited the pyramids at Giza. After his first marriage failed, he returned to the UK in the early 1930s. On his death in 1959, he passed his small collection of Egyptian objects on to his second wife, Ruby Goodman. On Ruby’s death in 1994, they were left to their second daughter, Rosemary Johnson, (née Goodman), and are currently in the possession of her son.
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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Egyptian Faience Figure of Nefertum
Ptolemaic Period, 332-30 B.C.Estimate: £700 - 900 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £350
Turquoise faience standing figure of Nefertum in a striding pose with arms at the sides, sporting a black coloured tripartite wig surmounted by the god's distinctive headdress consisting of a lotus flower with two plumes on top; a suspension loop at the back; repaired. 71 grams total, 13 cm including stand
Property from an American deceased estate, acquired between 1970 and 1989. with Bonham's, London, 28 October 2009, no.81 [Part].
Nefertum was closely associated with the creator god Ptah and the goddesses Sekhmet and Bastet. He represented the first sunlight and the sweet scent of the Egyptian blue lotus flower (nymphaea caerulea). According to beliefs, the sun rose from the bloom of a blue lotus, embodying notions of rebirth and rejuvenation. Additionally, as the lotus was seen as a symbol of fertility, it is possible that this amulet was also worn for that purpose. -
Egyptian Faience Beaded Sons of Horus Panel
Ptolemaic Period, 332-30 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
Openwork restrung panel depicting Imsety, Hapy, Duamutef, and Qebehsenuef, the Four Sons of Horus with a winged scarab above; restrung. 21.4 grams, 12 cm
Ex Mariaud de Serres, Paris, France, 1990s. From a London, UK, collection.
Winged scarabs were often used as funerary amulets and believed to symbolise the deceased's rebirth and regeneration. The Four Sons of Horus were deities responsible for protecting the deceased's internal organs. Here, on the left, is the erect-eared jackal-headed Duamutef, who protects the stomach. Next is the falcon-headed Qebehsenuef, who protects the intestines. Then comes the human-headed Imsety, protector of the liver, and finally, the baboon-headed Hapy on the right, protector of the lungs. -
Egyptian Silver Fly Amulet
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £124
Formed as a fly with long triangular wings and domed eyes. 0.84 grams, 16 mm
From an early 20th century collection.
Considering 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. They are crafted from various materials such as gold, silver, lapis lazuli, carnelian, amethyst, faience, and bone. These amulets were thought to protect against insect bites and to ward off troublesome flying 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 soldiers' bravery and fly-like persistence in battle.
