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LOT 0028
Romano-Egyptian Limestone Funerary Niche
COPTIC, 5TH-6TH CENTURY A.D.
19 1/4 in. (57.55 kg, 49 cm).
Carved architectural block fragment comprising: a shallow niche with arched top and parallel sides, with concentric mouldings to create a reveal and ledge below to accept offerings; horizontal tiered base; attachment sockets for two figurines (absent) flanking the niche; to left, a column modelled in the half-round with two parallel vertical stems, shallow roundel to the base and stylised foliage at the top; pediment above with scooped profile; above each figurine recess an incised initial, 'A' and 'M'; facing surface keyed for plaster finish.
ProvenanceFrom the estate and private collection of Matthew Upham (1962-2025), an antiques trader from Budleigh Salterton, Devon, UK.
Acquired at an estate sale at auction.
Property of a Cambridgeshire, UK, gentleman.
Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no. 13297-255939.
Cf. Crum, M.W.E., Catalogue général des antiquités égyptiennes du Musée du Caire, nos.8001-8741; Coptic Monuments, Le Caire, 1902, pls.II (8414); VII (8434), XLIX-LII, LIII, LIV (complete with the image of ‘orans’) for similar monuments; Atalla, N.S., Coptic Art, Sculptures, Architecture, L'Art Copte, II, Cairo, 1989, figs. pp.35, 45, for similar carvings; Wamser, L., Die Welt von Byzanz - Europas Östliches Erbe, München, 2004, items 870-872, for similar niches.
FootnotesIn the Christian Roman Empire, the stelae in the form of aedicula, which could be funerary monuments with crosses or the images of the deceased, or devotional niches with images of saints, appear to be independent sculptures. These stelae consisted of a rectangular body surmounted by a circular arch or trapezoidal structure. At the centre of the niche, the deceased was often depicted full-length, in a praying position (orans). Devotional stelae were also placed inside a church or shrine, with images of the Virgin and Child, or saints.
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LOT 0028
Romano-Egyptian Limestone Funerary Niche
Estimate £2,000 - 3,000€2,320 - 3,480 (for guidance only)$2,700 - 4,050 (for guidance only)
Opening Bid
£1,000 (EUR 1,160; USD 1,350) +BP*
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Egyptian Funerary Linen Fragment with Hieratic Text from the Book of the Dead for Ta-sherit-n-ta-ihet
Graeco-Roman Period, circa 3rd century B.C.-2nd century A.D.Estimate: £500 - 700 (+bp*)
Bids: 20 | Current Bid: £1,100
Bearing a portion of Chapter 17, a spell written in late hieratic script executed in black ink on woven linen, consistent with funerary bandages of the Graeco-Roman period; the inscription identifies the owner as a woman named Ta-sherit-n-ta-ihet, with her mother named Iset-(m-)khebit; as is typical for funerary manuscripts of this period, the father’s name is not recorded. 5.08 grams, 22 cm wide
Found inside an 18th-century Bible and believed to be a souvenir acquired in the 19th century. From the private collection of a North American lady. An academically identified and unpublished fragment, offering potential for further scholarly study and publication. Accompanied by a report in progress dated 28 April 2026 by Holly Lund.
Spell 17 is among the most important and widely transmitted compositions in the Book of the Dead, concerned with cosmology, divine knowledge, and the transformation of the deceased in the afterlife. Even in fragmentary form, such texts provide valuable insight into funerary belief and scribal practice during the later phases of ancient Egyptian religion. This description was prepared using information provided by Dr Ann-Katrin Gill, Academic Assistant at the Egyptological Institute, University of Leipzig, and a separate assessment by Steve Vinson, Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures at Indiana University, Bloomington. The linen fragment may derive from a nineteenth-century mummy unwrapping, a practise widely attested in this period. -
Phoenician Green Stone Scarab with Man Fighting Lion
5th-4th century B.C.Estimate: £120 - 170 (+bp*)
Bids: 1 | Current Bid: £65
Modelled with incised detailing, pierced longitudinally, the underside with a bearded king in Assyrian attire, wearing a long, striated garment and tall headdress, grasping the forelegs of a rearing lion, its head turned back, a star above. 2.63 grams, 18 mm
Private collection, 1990s-early 2000s.
The motif of the Egyptian king overcoming an enemy, whether human or animal, is well attested in the New Kingdom and was later adopted by non-Egyptian artisans for scarabs and seals. -
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Egyptian Faience Lotus Flower Amulet
18th Dynasty, Amarna Period, 1353-1336 B.C.Estimate: £80 - 100 (+bp*)
Bids: 2 | Current Bid: £15
A blue glazed composition pendant in the form of a lotus, with some repair to the suspension loop. 0.26 grams, 14 mm
Ex early 20th century London collection.
