Very Large Phoenician Stone Scarab with Hieroglyphics

Modelled in the round with dorsal pillar and loop, small base. 6.1 grams total, 43 mm including stand



Collection of Monsieur M.; Etude Tajan, Paris, 26 February 1996, no.101. Private collection, London, UK, acquired from the above sale. Accompanied by a copy of a French cultural passport, dated 21 March 1996. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

The vervet monkey was a symbol of love and sexual fulfilment.

Amuletic pendant of the cat goddess Bastet, sitting on a rectangular base, suspension loop behind the shoulders. 1.82 grams, 16 mm



Acquired 1990s. Property of a Staffordshire lady collector. Ex Quercus of Quonians, Lichfield, UK, 2018. Property of a Sussex, UK, teacher. Private collection, London. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

The cat was sacred to Bastet, a protective mother goddess and the daughter of the sun god Re. Amulets provided the wearer with the goddess's protection. Her name means ‘she of the bast [ointment jar],’ which may have contained a substance favoured by or exclusive to royalty. Originally, Bastet was depicted as a woman with the head of a lioness, but by the late New Kingdom, she was typically depicted with a cat's head. She is sometimes shown with kittens, emphasising her maternal role as a fierce protector of offspring.

Carved in the round with a detailed tripartite wig, segmented collar, and seed bag across the back, the figure has hands crossed at the chest, each holding a hoe, and wrists adorned with bracelets; eight bands of hieroglyphic text encircle the lower body, interrupted by a vertical column at the front, running from midriff to feet; mounted on a later copper base. 147 grams, 23 cm



From the collection of Mrs Kilvert, who fled from France to England during the French Revolution. Received by gift to the Hodge family from Mrs Kilvert at Bath in 1864-1865; thence by descent to the grandchildren of Mr John Hodge, a private London tutor. From the collection of a New Zealand family; thence by descent. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12845-239091. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.