A TURQUOISE FAIENCE AEGIS AMULET OF SEKHMET, LATE PERIOD

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A TURQUOISE FAIENCE AEGIS AMULET OF SEKHMET, LATE PERIOD This lot is from a single owner collection and is therefore offered without reserve The Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger, entry from 2005: “No. 22, JS, Late p. pectoral aegis Sekhmet” Gallery price: EUR 189 or approx. EUR 310 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing. Egypt, 664-332 BC. The head and upper torso of the lion-headed goddess Sechmet, finely modelled, with a pronounced feline visage, incised facial details, a headdress and layered collarlike necklace. Overall glazed in turquoise. Important Note: For essential information on the Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger and provenance documentation please visit here: www.zacke.at/rubencollection_ledger Dimensions: Height 2.3 cm An aegis is a collarlike necklace (often called a broad-collar) bearing a divine head as symbol of protection and fertility. The aegis was an element of a sacred menat necklace from at least the 18th dynasty. Heads of Lion- or cat-headed goddesses were most frequently depicted, but other goddesses and some gods might appear. Sekhmet is a warrior goddess as well as goddess of medicine. She is the daughter of the sun god, Ra, and is among the more important of the goddesses in the Egyptian Pantheon. Sekhmet acted as the vengeful manifestation of Ra's power, the Eye of Ra. Sekhmet is said to breathe fire, and the hot winds of the desert were likened to her breath. She is also believed to cause plagues (which were described as being her servants or messengers), although she is also called upon to ward off disease and heal the sick. Literature comparison: Compare a closely related turquoise-glazed faience aegis amulet, dated to Late Period-Ptolemaic Period, 3.7 cm high, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 10.130.2055. Compare a closely related turquoise-glazed faience aegis amulet, dated to the first half of the 1st millennium BC “or later”, 3.1 cm high, in the Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest, inventory number 51.2630.

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