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Egyptian Gilded Polychrome Statue - Mourning Nephthys
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Description
Egyptian, Late Dynastic to Ptolemaic Period, ca. 664 to 30 BCE. A stunning and finely-carved wooden statue depicting Nephthys, the goddess of death and darkness and one of the oldest deities in the Egyptian pantheon. She kneels while wearing a form-fitting gown, her arms secured to her torso with small nails, and holds her left hand neatly atop her thigh and raises her right hand - palm inward-facing - in front of her face in a gesture of mourning. Her pensive visage boasts downturned almond-shaped eyes, a slender nose above full lips, lightly-rounded cheeks, and cupped ears, all beneath the folds of a tripartite wig as well as a headdress in the shape of a temple or estate layout. Layers of chalky-white gesso across the figure create the ground upon which faded red, blue, blue-green, and flesh-toned pigment are presented, and her face still retains ample traces of fine gilding. Custom 1950s lacquered wood stand included. Size: 5.75" L x 4.25" W x 14.125" H (14.6 cm x 10.8 cm x 35.9 cm); 17" H (43.2 cm) on included custom stand.
The goddess Nephthys is one of the oldest deities of ancient Egypt and, accordingly, one of the most symbolically significant. She is the daughter of Geb (god of the earth) and Nut (goddess of the sky), and is the mother of Anubis, the jackal-headed god of embalming and the dead. Nephthys' association with death and darkness originates from the bipolarity of light and dark she shares with her sister Isis, the goddess of light and rebirth, and the symbols most-commonly associated with the goddess are the temple (as seen on her headdress), the hawk, and the sycamore tree.
Nephthys is so strongly linked with death that effigies of her likeness were regularly created and displayed during ancient Egyptian funerary ceremonies, and her portrait is one of four goddesses present in the tomb of Tutankhamen. In fact her namesake cult, the "Cult of Nephthys," is even credited for creating some of the first professional funerary mourners, nicknamed the "hawks of Nephthys." Funerary figures like this example were elaborately decorated to pay homage as well as to protect the body of the deceased. This figure was first covered in thick layers of gesso, then painted with brightly-colored pigments, and finally accentuated with thin layers of applied gilding. Funerary carvings of Nephthys were often accompanied by matching carvings of her sister, Isis, with each being placed near on atop the ends of a sarcophagus.
For a stylistically-similar example, please see The Brooklyn Museum, accession number 11.681: https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/3074
For another stylistically-similar example boasting a greater variety of colors, please see The Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 12.182.23a: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/551501
Provenance: ex-private Joel Chen collection, Los Angeles, California, USA; ex-C. Morrill Gallery; ex-Stendahl Gallery, Los Angeles, California, USA, acquired around 1970
Condition: Arms reattached at shoulders and elbows with small nails, and headdress reattached to head with one nail and adhesive. Chipping and fading to gesso, original pigmentation, and gilding, with nicks and abrasions to legs, arms, body, and head, light insect damage, and encrustations. Nice earthen deposits, original pigmentation, and patina throughout. Great traces of gilding on face.
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#146238
The goddess Nephthys is one of the oldest deities of ancient Egypt and, accordingly, one of the most symbolically significant. She is the daughter of Geb (god of the earth) and Nut (goddess of the sky), and is the mother of Anubis, the jackal-headed god of embalming and the dead. Nephthys' association with death and darkness originates from the bipolarity of light and dark she shares with her sister Isis, the goddess of light and rebirth, and the symbols most-commonly associated with the goddess are the temple (as seen on her headdress), the hawk, and the sycamore tree.
Nephthys is so strongly linked with death that effigies of her likeness were regularly created and displayed during ancient Egyptian funerary ceremonies, and her portrait is one of four goddesses present in the tomb of Tutankhamen. In fact her namesake cult, the "Cult of Nephthys," is even credited for creating some of the first professional funerary mourners, nicknamed the "hawks of Nephthys." Funerary figures like this example were elaborately decorated to pay homage as well as to protect the body of the deceased. This figure was first covered in thick layers of gesso, then painted with brightly-colored pigments, and finally accentuated with thin layers of applied gilding. Funerary carvings of Nephthys were often accompanied by matching carvings of her sister, Isis, with each being placed near on atop the ends of a sarcophagus.
For a stylistically-similar example, please see The Brooklyn Museum, accession number 11.681: https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/3074
For another stylistically-similar example boasting a greater variety of colors, please see The Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 12.182.23a: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/551501
Provenance: ex-private Joel Chen collection, Los Angeles, California, USA; ex-C. Morrill Gallery; ex-Stendahl Gallery, Los Angeles, California, USA, acquired around 1970
Condition: Arms reattached at shoulders and elbows with small nails, and headdress reattached to head with one nail and adhesive. Chipping and fading to gesso, original pigmentation, and gilding, with nicks and abrasions to legs, arms, body, and head, light insect damage, and encrustations. Nice earthen deposits, original pigmentation, and patina throughout. Great traces of gilding on face.
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#146238
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Egyptian, Late Dynastic to Ptolemaic Period, ca. 664 to 30 BCE. A stunning and finely-carved wooden statue depicting Nephthys, the goddess of death and darkness and one of the oldest deities in the Egyptian pantheon. She kneels while wearing a form-fitting gown, her arms secured to her torso with small nails, and holds her left hand neatly atop her thigh and raises her right hand - palm inward-facing - in front of her face in a gesture of mourning. Her pensive visage boasts downturned almond-shaped eyes, a slender nose above full lips, lightly-rounded cheeks, and cupped ears, all beneath the folds of a tripartite wig as well as a headdress in the shape of a temple or estate layout. Layers of chalky-white gesso across the figure create the ground upon which faded red, blue, blue-green, and flesh-toned pigment are presented, and her face still retains ample traces of fine gilding. Custom 1950s lacquered wood stand included. Size: 5.75" L x 4.25" W x 14.125" H (14.6 cm x 10.8 cm x 35.9 cm); 17" H (43.2 cm) on included custom stand.
The goddess Nephthys is one of the oldest deities of ancient Egypt and, accordingly, one of the most symbolically significant. She is the daughter of Geb (god of the earth) and Nut (goddess of the sky), and is the mother of Anubis, the jackal-headed god of embalming and the dead. Nephthys' association with death and darkness originates from the bipolarity of light and dark she shares with her sister Isis, the goddess of light and rebirth, and the symbols most-commonly associated with the goddess are the temple (as seen on her headdress), the hawk, and the sycamore tree.
Nephthys is so strongly linked with death that effigies of her likeness were regularly created and displayed during ancient Egyptian funerary ceremonies, and her portrait is one of four goddesses present in the tomb of Tutankhamen. In fact her namesake cult, the "Cult of Nephthys," is even credited for creating some of the first professional funerary mourners, nicknamed the "hawks of Nephthys." Funerary figures like this example were elaborately decorated to pay homage as well as to protect the body of the deceased. This figure was first covered in thick layers of gesso, then painted with brightly-colored pigments, and finally accentuated with thin layers of applied gilding. Funerary carvings of Nephthys were often accompanied by matching carvings of her sister, Isis, with each being placed near on atop the ends of a sarcophagus.
For a stylistically-similar example, please see The Brooklyn Museum, accession number 11.681: https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/3074
For another stylistically-similar example boasting a greater variety of colors, please see The Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 12.182.23a: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/551501
Provenance: ex-private Joel Chen collection, Los Angeles, California, USA; ex-C. Morrill Gallery; ex-Stendahl Gallery, Los Angeles, California, USA, acquired around 1970
Condition: Arms reattached at shoulders and elbows with small nails, and headdress reattached to head with one nail and adhesive. Chipping and fading to gesso, original pigmentation, and gilding, with nicks and abrasions to legs, arms, body, and head, light insect damage, and encrustations. Nice earthen deposits, original pigmentation, and patina throughout. Great traces of gilding on face.
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#146238
The goddess Nephthys is one of the oldest deities of ancient Egypt and, accordingly, one of the most symbolically significant. She is the daughter of Geb (god of the earth) and Nut (goddess of the sky), and is the mother of Anubis, the jackal-headed god of embalming and the dead. Nephthys' association with death and darkness originates from the bipolarity of light and dark she shares with her sister Isis, the goddess of light and rebirth, and the symbols most-commonly associated with the goddess are the temple (as seen on her headdress), the hawk, and the sycamore tree.
Nephthys is so strongly linked with death that effigies of her likeness were regularly created and displayed during ancient Egyptian funerary ceremonies, and her portrait is one of four goddesses present in the tomb of Tutankhamen. In fact her namesake cult, the "Cult of Nephthys," is even credited for creating some of the first professional funerary mourners, nicknamed the "hawks of Nephthys." Funerary figures like this example were elaborately decorated to pay homage as well as to protect the body of the deceased. This figure was first covered in thick layers of gesso, then painted with brightly-colored pigments, and finally accentuated with thin layers of applied gilding. Funerary carvings of Nephthys were often accompanied by matching carvings of her sister, Isis, with each being placed near on atop the ends of a sarcophagus.
For a stylistically-similar example, please see The Brooklyn Museum, accession number 11.681: https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/3074
For another stylistically-similar example boasting a greater variety of colors, please see The Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 12.182.23a: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/551501
Provenance: ex-private Joel Chen collection, Los Angeles, California, USA; ex-C. Morrill Gallery; ex-Stendahl Gallery, Los Angeles, California, USA, acquired around 1970
Condition: Arms reattached at shoulders and elbows with small nails, and headdress reattached to head with one nail and adhesive. Chipping and fading to gesso, original pigmentation, and gilding, with nicks and abrasions to legs, arms, body, and head, light insect damage, and encrustations. Nice earthen deposits, original pigmentation, and patina throughout. Great traces of gilding on face.
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#146238
Exceptional Day 1: Antiquities Asian Fine Art
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Day 1 of an important 2-day auction featuring exceptional art from around the world - Egyptian, Greek, Etruscan, Roman, Viking, Russian, Near Eastern; Asian Art from China, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Burma, India; Fine Art from the 17th century to present.
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Please read the following "Terms of Sale" carefully. Your submission of bids in this auction constitutes your acceptance of these "Terms of Sale." 1. All items in this auction have been legally acquired, are legal to sell, and guaranteed to be as described or your money back. 2. By bidding in this auction, the bidder personally guarantees payment. The auctioneer has final discretion in all matters. In case of dispute, the lot(s) in question may be resold. Lots will be sold in their numerical sequence unless the auctioneer directs otherwise. 3. HIGH and LOW ESTIMATES are provided for each lot for reference only. The actual selling / hammer price may be higher or lower based on bidder demand. All lots will sell to the highest bidder without hidden / confidential reserves. 4. No lots will be released / shipped until payment has been made in full. 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After Artemis Gallery is notified of the dispute, a written letter from a recognized expert in the field pertaining to the item in dispute must then be presented. If Artemis Gallery concludes that the assessment of the piece is accurate, a full refund, including item price, buyer's premium (if applicable), and shipping costs will be provided. Artemis Gallery will either provide a pre-paid return shipping label or will reimburse the return shipping charge. Artemis Gallery will only remit refund after the item has been returned. In the event of an error in item description, condition report, provenance, or dimensions, written notification of the error must be given within two business days from receipt of the item as shown by FedEx, UPS, or USPS tracking data. A full refund, including item price, buyer's premium (if applicable), and shipping costs will be provided. Artemis Gallery will either provide a pre-paid return shipping label or will reimburse the return shipping charge. Artemis Gallery will only remit refund after the item has been returned. If a return is requested for any reason other than the above, written notification with reason for return must be given within 15 days from receipt of the item as shown by FedEx, UPS, or USPS tracking data for Artemis Gallery to issue a refund to the original payment method. If notification is given after 15 days, the item may be returned for credit toward a future purchase or may be consigned for sale through Artemis Gallery. The item must be returned to Artemis Gallery at the buyer's expense and a refund or credit of the item price and buyer's premium (if applicable) will be provided after the item is returned. Original shipping charges will not be refunded. All items to be returned must be adequately insured and must be received by Artemis Gallery in the same condition as when shipped. In no event may any item be returned after 90 days from the date of delivery. 8. 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