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LOT 0032
Romano-Egyptian Bronze Sistrum Fragment with Goat
2ND-3RD CENTURY A.D.
4 1/4 in. (73.7 grams, 10.8 cm).
Comprising a slender U-shaped body with beaded border, the sides with four pairs of piercings to accept separate crossbars, an applied goat resting atop the body. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceEx Paul Munro-Walker, Bournemouth, Hampshire, UK, 1980s.
From a UK collection since before 1990.
Cf. Roeder, G., Ägyptische Bronzefiguren II, Berlin, 1956, pl. 63f and l, for examples of bronze sistrum frames topped by figurines.
FootnotesWhen the sistrum was shaken, copper or bronze discs on its crossbars would rattle against each other, creating a clashing sound. The ancient Egyptian name for the sistrum, sesheshet, is onomatopoeic and mimics this sound.
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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Very Large Egyptian Expedition Lithograph of the Memnonium at Thebes and Tomb of Ozymandias
Early 19th century A.D.Estimate: £100 - 140 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £50
Proof etching on laid paper of plate 28 from Vol .I of Description de l'Égypte : ou, Recueil des observations et des recherches qui ont été faites en Égypte pendant l'expédition de l'armée française. entitled Thèbes. Memnonium. Coupe longitudinale du tombeau d'Osymandyas. 225 grams, 104.5 x 69 cm
From the collection of a North American priest. Acquired between 1981-1996. Property of a North American collector.
Produced between February 1802 and 1830 on the orders of Napoleon Bonaparte; published between 1809 and 1828. Just 1,000 copies were distributed to various institutions, printed on laid paper with an 'Égypte ancienne et moderne' watermark. The book is subtitled Recueil des observations et des recherches qui ont été faites en Égypte pendant l’expédition de l’Armée française, publié par les ordres de Sa Majesté l’Empereur Napoléon le Grand (Gathering of observations and discoveries which were made in Egypt during the expedition of the French army, published on the orders of His Majesty the Emperor Napoleon the Great). It was the world's first encyclopedia devoted exclusively to the remains of ancient Egypt. The plates of this book are the first to present the archaeological sites of Thebes (Luxor). The "Memnonium" is the Greek name for the mortuary temple of Ramesses II, now known as the Ramesseum. -
Egyptian Faience Amulet Group
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Estimate: £180 - 240 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £90
Comprising three heart amulets, two phallic amulets, and a ribbed fruit amulet. 11.6 grams total, 16-25 mm
From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s. -
Egyptian Yellow Faience Bastet Cat Amulet
New Kingdom, circa 1550-1070 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £715
Figure of Bastet as a cat with pointed ears, seated on a rectangular base with a rounded end; suspension loop on the back, ear repaired. 2.51 grams, 26 mm
Ex London gallery and Belinda Elliston, a member of the Egyptian Exploration Society, 1940s onwards.
In ancient Egypt, the cat was venerated as the sacred animal of the goddess Bastet, whose principal cult centre was Bubastis in the Nile Delta. Although cats were once part of folk practice, their veneration as part of formal cults spread across Egypt during the Late Period. Bastet was closely linked to lion-headed goddesses like Sekhmet, Tefnut, and Pakhet, and the cat itself became associated with solar imagery: the Book of the Dead portrays the sun god as a Great Cat vanquishing Apophis beneath the sacred Ished Tree. The cat could also embody the Eye of the Sun or, more often in Bastet’s case, the Eye of the Moon. Mummified cats were frequently dedicated as votive offerings, and some of their feline-shaped coffins were adorned with finely crafted bronze heads to enhance their divine likeness.
