Origin: Egypt Circa: 1550 BC to 1070 BC Dimensions: 3.5" (8.9cm) high x 3.25" (8.3cm) wide Collection: Egyptian Style: New Kingdom Medium: Stone Late in the Second  More »

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1550 BC to 1070 BC Dimensions: 3.5" (8.9cm) high x 3.25" (8.3cm) wide Collection: Egyptian Style: New Kingdom Medium: Stone Late in the Second Intermediate Period, the Theban rulers of the 17th Dynasty began to drive the Hyksos kings of the 15th Dynasty from the Delta. This expulsion was completed by the reign of Pharaoh Ahmose I, who reunited Egypt, ushering in a period that would be known as the New Kingdom, the third great era of Egyptian culture. Ahmose's successors in the 18th Dynasty conducted military campaigns that extended Egypt's influence in the Near East and established Egyptian control of Nubia to the fourth cataract. As a result, the New Kingdom pharaohs commanded unimaginable wealth, much of which they lavished on their gods, especially Amun-Re of Thebes, whose cult temple at Karnak was augmented by succeeding generations of rulers and filled with votive statues commissioned by kings and courtiers alike. Although the rulers of the 19th Dynasty established an administrative capital near their home in the Delta, Thebes remained a cultural and religious center. The pharaohs built their mortuary temples here and were buried in huge rock-cut tombs decorated with finely executed paintings or painted relief sculptures illustrating religious texts concerned with the afterlife. A town was established in western Thebes for the artists who created these tombs. At this site (Deir el-Medina), they left a wealth of information about life in an ancient Egyptian community of artisans and craftsmen. Known especially for monumental architecture and statuary honoring the gods and pharaohs, the New Kingdom, a period of nearly five hundred years of political stability and economic prosperity, also produced an abundance of artistic masterpieces created for use by nonroyal individuals.This diminutive stone head of a man is a masterpiece of Ancient Egyptian art, revealing the intricate detail and stylized idealization that Egyptian art is famed for. Fractured at the bottom of the chin, this head would have surely once been attached to a larger, full-bodied sculpture. However, even in its fragmented state, it seems complete. We are able to appreciate the idealized youth of the man and the beauty of the carving. Strong cosmetic lines mark the eyes and brow. He has a full, fleshy face with a mouth that arches slightly towards the corners in a sweet smile. The texture of his thick head of hair has been indicated by a brick pattern radiating outwards from the top center. This pattern is typical of Egyptian art and may represent layers of short, tightly braided locks. - (X.0431)   « Less

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1550 BC to 1297 BC Dimensions: 5.5" (14.0cm) high Collection: Egyptian Style: 18th Dynasty Medium: Limestone The treatment of this head as an  More »

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1550 BC to 1297 BC Dimensions: 5.5" (14.0cm) high Collection: Egyptian Style: 18th Dynasty Medium: Limestone The treatment of this head as an independent unit with a circular, recessed projection on its under side suggests its use as a lid on a Canopic Jar. The features of its cordiform-shaped face are idealing and are dominated by hieroglyphically-designed, almond-shaped eyes framed by plastically rendered eye brows, a delicate nose with thin bridge and somewhat prominent nostrils, a horizontally aligned mouth with a thicker, upper lip and drilled corners, and characteristically large ears bent back and appearing in side view in front of the stylized wig which reaches to the level of the neck. In both its style and material, this head should be dated to Dynasties XXVI-XXX of the Egyptian Late Period.The Canopic jar to which our head served as a lid was one of four, created to hold specific internal organs of the deceased removed during the process of mummification. Each of those four jars was associated with one of the Four Sons of Horus, only one of whom, Imsety, was represented with a human head. Our lid with the head of Imsety covered a Canopic Jar which contained liver of the deceased which he protected. At the same time Imsety served to guard the South whereas each of his three other brothers were charged with protecting the three other cardinal points of the compass, respectively.References:Ian Shaw and Paul Nicholson, British Museum Directory of Ancient Egypt (London1995), pages 59-60 [Canopic jars] and page 275 [Four Sons of Horus]; and for examples of such sets from the Late Period, see, Sue D’Auria, et al., Mummies and Magic. The Funerary Arts of Ancient Egypt (Boston 1988), pages 190-191.- (X.0433)   « Less

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1550 BC to 1297 BC Dimensions: 1.25" (3.2cm) high x 2" (5.1cm) wide x 3" (7.6cm) depth Collection: Egyptian Style: 18th Dynasty Medium:  More »

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1550 BC to 1297 BC Dimensions: 1.25" (3.2cm) high x 2" (5.1cm) wide x 3" (7.6cm) depth Collection: Egyptian Style: 18th Dynasty Medium: Glass Additional Information: sold but not paid for yet fully In Ancient Egypt, the earliest examples of glass were in the form of faience-glazed clay beads that can be dated as far back as the Neolithic era. Later on, a faience was also employed in the manufacture of amulets and ushabti. However, it was not until the Predynastic era that pure glass as a separate material first appeared in the form of translucent beads. By the Middle Kingdom, glass was frequently used to make amulets, mosaic tesserae, and little animal figurines. During the New Kingdom, territorial expansions along the Eastern Mediterranean coast exposed the Egyptians to the advanced glass manufacturing centers of the Levant. It is likely that some of the local craftsmen were brought back to Egypt as slaves where they introduced a variety of revolutionary new techniques including the manufacturing of glass vessels. The pharaoh maintained a monopoly on the production of glass vessels so that only members of his court, top dignitaries, and the high priests would have been able to possess such pieces. This fact is confirmed by the discovery of several 18th Dynasty workshops located within close proximity to royal palaces. In this way, sophisticated glass works were intimately linked to the elite classes of Egyptian society.By far the most important amulet in Ancient Egypt, the scarab was symbolically as sacred to the Egyptians as the cross is to Christians. Based upon the dung beetle, this sacred creature forms a ball of dung around its semen and rolls it over the sand, creating a larger ball. Eventually, the scarab drops the excrement ball into its burrow where the female lays her eggs on the ground and covers them with the ball. In turn, the larvae consume the ball and emerge in the following days from the ground as if miraculously reborn. In the life cycle of the beetle, the Ancient Egyptians envisioned a microcosm of the daily rebirth of the sun. They imagined the ancient sun god Khepri was a great scarab beetle rolling the sun across the heavens. The scarab also became a symbol of the enduring human soul as well, hence its frequent appearance in funerary art.Scarabs of various materials form an important class of Egyptian antiquities. Such objects usually have the bottoms inscribed with designs, simultaneously functioning as both amulets and seals. Of all the different types of scarabs, by far the most prized and important as those known as heart scarabs. Towards the end of the mummification process, after all the major organs were removed, amulets were traditionally placed over the body to serve as substitutes for the viscera. Foremost among them was the heart scarab. This imposing amulet would have been placed on the throat of the mummy, on the chest, or over the heart as a substitute. Some were worn by the deceased on a chain or a cord, hung around the neck, or mounted in a gold setting as a pectoral. Clearly, the spiritual importance of such is evident. The heart of the deceased would be reborn in the afterlife just as the Egyptians thought the offspring of the beetle emerged from the ball of dung and just as the sun was reborn each day, dragged across the sky by the great scarab god Khepri.This gorgeous blue glass heart scarab, dated to the 18th Dynasty, is the only known glass example of this type in existence. More than just the most coveted type of scarab amulet, this piece is also an important example of the evolution of glassmaking. Might this scarab have been created by a master glassmaker from the Levant who was brought into Egypt as a slave? Or could it have been made by a native Egyptian who learned the secrets of glassmaking from such slaves? Overall, the scarab is a potent symbol for the glories of Ancient Egypt as a whole. In our hands, we hold a tangible reminder of the mythology, religion, and funeral rites of this civilization that continue to fascinate mankind even today. - (X.0435)   « Less

Origin: Egypt Circa: 2 nd Century AD to 3 rd Century AD Dimensions: 8.5" (21.6cm) high Collection: Egyptian Style: Roman Period Medium: Stucco This gorgeous plaster  More »

Origin: Egypt Circa: 2 nd Century AD to 3 rd Century AD Dimensions: 8.5" (21.6cm) high Collection: Egyptian Style: Roman Period Medium: Stucco This gorgeous plaster funerary mask reveals that the traditional Egyptian arts continued to flourish even under Roman rule. In fact, the Egyptian style was reinvigorated with a healthy dose of Roman classicism that elegantly merges with the stylized traditions of Egypt. Here, a man wearing a diadem has been depicted with textured hair, solemn features, and a tight-lipped expression. Overall, his physiognomy is typical of the multiethnic population of Roman Period Egypt. His skin has been painted a soft creamy hue, while his hair, eyebrows, and neatly trimmed beard and moustache have been painted black. Multiple little painted dots are used to create the beard and moustache. His eyes and lashes have been detailed in black paint, while a thin red line encircling his eyelids heightens the sense of realism. Most of these life-size masks were made for Greek and Roman merchants and administrators who settled in Egypt. They generally show some attempts at portraying an individual, but with conventionalized features. These heads were made separately in molds, with gender-specific details added subsequently, and attached to the mummy case or cartonnage so that they are half raised up off the surface, as if the deceased was just awaking in his new afterlife. The masks were usually painted with realistic colors and some were even gilt. Looking into this mask is like looking into a mirror. It is easy to see ourselves inside this carefully modeled face. We wonder if his life, if his cares and concerns, were really that different than our own? - (X.0441)   « Less

Origin: Egypt Circa: 664 BC to 332 BC Collection: Egyptian Style: Late Kingdom Medium: Painted Wood

Origin: Egypt Circa: 664 BC to 332 BC Collection: Egyptian Style: Late Kingdom Medium: Painted Wood   « Less

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1295 BC to 1185 BC Dimensions: 2.2" (5.6cm) high x 1.2" (3.0cm) wide Collection: Egyptian Style: 19th Dynasty Medium: Faience This delightfully  More »

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1295 BC to 1185 BC Dimensions: 2.2" (5.6cm) high x 1.2" (3.0cm) wide Collection: Egyptian Style: 19th Dynasty Medium: Faience This delightfully small, cylindrically-shaped, faience beaker exhibits a slightly everted mouth, a disc-shaped lip and a protruding off-set foot. There are two columns of hieroglyphs of a lighter turquoise-blue color set into a rectangular frame on one side of the rich, darker blue colour of the vessel itself. Although the hieroglyphs are somewhat faded and some of the signs within the cartouche, or royal ring, are indistinct, the traces of what remain suggest that the cartouche contains the name of one of the kings of Dynasty XIX, and these remains plausibly suggest that that name may have been one of the forms of the prenomen of Sety I, the decoration of whose tomb in the Valley of the Kings ranks among the dynasty’s finest.The Lord of the Two Lands [is the pharaoh] Sety I, who is the one beloved of the god SokarSuch beakers were extremely popular during Dynasty XVIII and variations continued to be created into the Third Intermediate Period and beyond. It is assumed that these vessels were funerary in nature. That suggestion is supported by the mention of the god Sokar on our example because Sokar was originally a funerary deity worshipped at Memphis whose cult was later assimilated into that of Osiris. The two-tone blue color of the faience itself reinforces the funerary symbolism of the vessel because of the associations of that colour with both resurrection and rebirth. It is assumed that such beakers, because of their small size, originally contained precious unguents and balms which were associated with the funerary cults of the deceased. Although ostensibly inscribed with the name of Sety I, our vessel was not necessarily part of his own funerary equipment. Objects such as this might also have been dedicated in sanctuaries for the continued well-being of the dedicator in the Hereafter.References:There is a virtually identical example in the famed Miho Museum in Japan which bears the prenomen of Sety I, and forms the basis for our proposed reconstruction of the hieroglyhphs within the cartouche of our example: Sidney Merrill Goldstein, Ancient Glass (Miho Museum 2001, page 192, catalogue number 18. Ian Shaw and Paul Nicholson, British Museum Dictionary of Ancient Egypt (London 1995), pages 273-274, for a discussion of the god Sokar; and R. S. Bianchi, in Florence D. Friedman (editor), Gifts of the Nile. Ancient Egyptian Faience (Providence 1998), page 198, catalogue number 57, for a discussion of the type.- (X.0507)   « Less

Origin: Egypt Circa: 664 BC to 525 BC Dimensions: 6.25" (15.9cm) high Collection: Egyptian Style: 26th Dynasty Medium: Bronz and Electrum This magnificent bronze votive  More »

Origin: Egypt Circa: 664 BC to 525 BC Dimensions: 6.25" (15.9cm) high Collection: Egyptian Style: 26th Dynasty Medium: Bronz and Electrum This magnificent bronze votive sculpture represents Osiris, god of fertility, king of the dead, and ruler of eternity. Many centuries ago, it might have been found inside a temple, placed as an offering to the mighty deity. He is depicted wrapped as a mummy, holding a crook and flail. These two attributes act as scepters symbolic of his divine authority over the forces of nature. He wears the atef crown, featuring a Uraeus cobra slithering down the front and a false braided beard with a curved tip. This type of beard is a symbol of divinity while the headdress associates the god with the ruling pharaohs. On the back, a falcon head symbolic of Horus is present. The falcon wears a tripartite wig and is crowned with a double plumed headdress replete with a solar disk and Uraeus cobra. Furthermore, an incised decorative band leads just below the falcon head on his shoulders to the back of his feet. This design appears to imitate colorful beaded necklaces that have been found decorating mummies from this period. This sculpture is in a remarkable state of preservation; even the inlaid electrum eyes have survived intact. The legend of Osiris states that his brother Seth, overcome by jealousy, murdered him and tore his body into fourteen parts, scattering them across Egypt. Isis, the faithful wife of Osiris, traversed the land and gathered all the parts of his body. She then cast a spell that resurrected her deceased husband for one night, during which their child, Horus, was conceived. Thus, Osiris was the central figure of Egyptian religion, the god who had triumphed over death and therefore offered the hope of rebirth and resurrection to all men. This striking image of the god in his royal mummiform speaks of a universal mystery, the unanswered questions for which no living man has a sure answer. - (X.0462)   « Less

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1 st Century AD Dimensions: 13" (33.0cm) high x 6.5" (16.5cm) wide Collection: Egyptian Style: Roman Period Medium: Paint on Wood The so-called  More »

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1 st Century AD Dimensions: 13" (33.0cm) high x 6.5" (16.5cm) wide Collection: Egyptian Style: Roman Period Medium: Paint on Wood The so-called Faiyum portraits are the fascinating result of cultural fusion between indigenous Egyptian and invading Roman cultural styles. The Romans had a fascination with the longevity of Egyptian mummies and the immortality they promised, and introduced to the mummification process the relatively innovative and to Egypt revolutionary art style of perceived representationalism. The reign of Akhenaten had been the only flirtation Egypt had had with such a style, and the violent end of him and his short-lived dynasty (including the possible murder of Tutankhamun) heralded the return of traditional Egyptian styles.This piece, 13 inches tall by 6.5 wide, is both spectacular and highly significant to the development of Egyptian and Roman art styles. It has been published in full as is appropriate for a piece of this importance (H.F. in Klaus Parlasca and Hellmut Seemann (editors), Augenblikcke. Mumienporträts und ägyptische Grabkunst aus römischer Zeit (Munich 1999), pages 220-221, catalogue number 129). The piece is described below by Dr R.S. Bianchi:The sitter of this engaging, life-like portrait is a mature, full-figured woman with her head turned slightly to the left. Her visage is round with wide-open, olive-dark eyes set into rather deep sockets, casting their glance upward and to the left in the direction of her turned head. Her eyebrows are full and the lashes of her eyes well defined as if lined with mascara. Her sensuous lips are closed and set above a prominent chin. The sensuality of the figure is enhanced by her fleshy, exposed neck, itself lined with rings of Venus, an ancient sign of beauty and desirability. Her dark hair is arranged along her forehead in a series of short, loop-like curls, behind which are a series of horizontally arranged, well-articulated braids, apparently tied into a bun at the back of the head. She is depicted wearing a chiton dyed a grayish-purple color which is decorated with wide, black clavi, or stripes, and finished at the seams in white. Over this and draped over both shoulders is a thick mantle, dyed purple as well. Her accessories include earrings featuring large, white pearls and a gold necklace with flame-like drop pendants radiating over the top of her chiton.The predominant purple color of her costume and its clavi identify our subject as an elite member of aristocratic society in Roman Egypt, purple being the color generally reserved for Roman emperors. Her gold necklace suggests both wealth and status, as does the presence of pearls in her earrings, this depiction being among the earliest documents of the use of pearls as a fashion accessory. The portrait can be securely dated to the Flavian Period of the Roman Empire on the basis of the style of the sitter's coiffure, because it reflects the taste and fashion of Roman empresses of that period.This portrait belongs to classification of Faiyum portraits, so-called because Sir Flinders Petrie, the father of modern archaeology, first called attention to the type at the site of Hawara in the Egyptian Faiyum, that rich agricultural district to the southwest of modern Cairo. Subsequent research has shown that only ten percent of these elite Romans buried in Egypt possessed mummies equipped with such portraits. The portraits were painted on wafer- thin panels of wood in either the encaustic or tempera technique. The encaustic technique involves suspending pigment in molten wax and applying it while still hot to a wooden panel. The tempera technique, which is rarer for these portraits, is employed for this panel and resembles the technique employed by artists of the West since the time of the Renaissance. As a result, the artist of this panel has achieved a mastery of detail which includes a nascent chiaroscuro in which highlights on the face and neck are given a three-dimensional quality by means of the use of white. One has, therefore, correctly compared Faiyum portraits of the quality of this one under discussion to the Baroque portraits of both Rubens and Hals. The portrait originally hung in the house of the sitter in much the same way that oil paintings and photographs of loved ones are still to be found in our homes today. Upon death, her heirs carefully delivered the portrait to the funerary home where the priests intentionally cut the top in order to accommodate it more efficiently over the face of the mummy where it was placed. Traces of the mummy bandages used for that fastening are still preserved, as are traces of the unguents and balms used in that process.It is rare to find a Faiyum portrait of such quality that has been published and featured in an exhibition, as this one has been. The sitter exudes a warmth and immediacy which evokes the very best of European portraits and would be at home in any consummate art collection. - (X.0554)   « Less

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1570 BC to 1070 BC Dimensions: 19" (48.3cm) high Collection: Egyptian Style: New Kingdom Medium: Wood Wooden sculptures from Ancient Egypt are  More »

Origin: Egypt Circa: 1570 BC to 1070 BC Dimensions: 19" (48.3cm) high Collection: Egyptian Style: New Kingdom Medium: Wood Wooden sculptures from Ancient Egypt are exceedingly rare, since fine wood was scarce and expensive, and preservation is often problematic despite the desiccated environments of stone-cut tombs. On the majority of New Kingdom wooden sculptures to have been recovered, the torso/legs and arms were carved separately, the arms then being pegged into place. Unusually, the current piece has been carved from a single block of wood. He stands in the distinguished posture characteristic of males in this period, legs together, the right arm extended by the side with closed fist (pierced to hold a weapon, or perhaps an agricultural implement), the left flexed at the elbow and extended forwards, palm-up. The figure is naked except for a knee-length skirt-like loincloth; the anatomical details are perfectly rendered in low relief, with well-defined pectoral and biceps muscles. The face is a mask of placidity, the cheeks, eyes, mouth, eyes, eyebrows and ears all picked out in clear detail. The top of the head is angularly flattened, suggesting that the figure originally wore a wig or headdress made from some other material that fit over the wooden form: probable candidates include bone and ivory. As with all of the rest of the sculpture, there is little radicalism in terms of sculptural interpretation, as was briefly the case under the heretic pharaoh Akhenaten (the husband of Nefertiti, and father allegedly of Tutankhamun). The only tangible effect of his reign was a subsequent slight increase in naturalism and rather less tendency towards stylised formulaic reiteration. There is no hieroglyphic inscription on the figure, so it is impossible to ascertain the identity of the individual portrayed. However, the size of the figure, the rarity of the material and the care with which it has been carved seem to suggest that it was an individual of some importance. The fact that the ears project to such an extent, and have no wear means that the missing headpiece was high and narrow. It is therefore possible even likely that the figure depicts a member of the royal family or a pharaoh. This is a true masterwork of ancient Egyptian art, the value of which is enhanced by its rarity and excellent preservation. - (X.0565)   « Less

Origin: Egypt Circa: 664 BC to 525 BC Dimensions: 2" (5.1cm) high x 2.5" (6.4cm) wide Collection: Egyptian Style: 26th Dynasty Medium: Terracotta This object is a  More »

Origin: Egypt Circa: 664 BC to 525 BC Dimensions: 2" (5.1cm) high x 2.5" (6.4cm) wide Collection: Egyptian Style: 26th Dynasty Medium: Terracotta This object is a flat-backed plaque depicting the right facing head of a ram in high relief. The horn of the ram is re-curved and curls around the ear toward the front of its face. The profile is aristocratic, helped by the high nasal bones and small ears that characterise many North African domestic and wild sheep breeds. The details of the ear particularly the treatment of the hair in the area from which it springs from the head the tear duct anterior to the eye, and the mouth-nostrils are meticulously observed and executed. The entire object is modelled in broad planes to which linear detail has been added. The facial aspect is smooth clay: the horns and long hair at the neck level are in stronger relief. Without either an accompanying inscription or distinctive specific attribute, it is difficult to identify the deity to which this particular ram carving was intended to relate. Candidates include Khnum (who, as potter, fashioned mankind on the potters wheel), Amun (whose depiction as a ram is demonstrated by the avenues of ram-headed sphinxes in Thebes) and Bad-neb-djed, the ram-headed god of Mendes (the capital of Egypt during Dynasty XXIX). Our ram may well represent any one of these deities. In style and technique, our terracotta plaque finds its closest stylistic parallels in limestone plaques that are often termed sculptors models, with the understanding they were maquettes for larger works, However, they may in fact have served as votive offerings in their own right. Limestone versions are usually dated to the Late Period, but stylistic comparisons with related artefacts including an example in Boston seem to suggest a date somewhere in the Ptolemaic Period. In essence, however, our plaque is unique. This is an exceptionally beautiful, perfectly executed and very rare artefact that will appeal to anyone with interests in ancient Egyptian artworks. References: For the double-sided relief in Boston, Museum of Fine Arts 51.2474, see, Robert Steven Bianchi, Cleopatras Egypt. Age of the Ptolemies (Brooklyn 1988), pages 242-243, catalogue number 131. - (X.0690)   « Less