Ancient Egypt, Late Dynastic to Greco-Roman periods, ca. 712 to 30 BCE. An amazing, rare artifact from a culture whose enigmatic funerary rituals hint at a truly lost way of life, this piece is a painted-gesso-covered wood - likely sycamore based on similar examples - statuette depicting Ptah-Sokar-Osiris in his human form confronting a seated figure of Sokar in his hawk form. The mummiform figure is brilliantly painted in hues of cobalt, burgundy, tan, white, and black as he gazes forth from huge eyes beneath a tripartite wig. An arch of triangles adorns the upper body, while the lower features a vertical band of hieroglyphs - likely stating who the statue is for - surrounded by striated and dotted designs. Size: 12" L x 4.1" W x 15" H (30.5 cm x 10.4 cm x 38.1 cm); 17.8" H (45.2 cm) on included custom stand.

Ptah Sokar Osiris is one of the most complicated concepts of Egyptian mythology. The figures shown here represents the god's three parts: Ptah, the creator god of Memphis; Sokar, the patron of the Memphite necropolis, and Osiris, the god of the afterlife and lord of the underworld. All three are traditionally depicted in mummy forms; Osiris and Ptah as men, and Sokar as a falcon. Together, they tell a story of birth, death, and resurrection. These figures became popular after ca. 1000 BCE and are associated with elite burials. In each, the god stands atop a box with a simple lid; a linen-wrapped mummy made of vegetable matter would be placed into the hollow box to represent rebirth in the afterlife (the earliest examples instead had funerary papyri placed inside of them). This "mummy" was a substitute image of the deceased, and when it sprouted, it would symbolize rebirth. This figure represents the complex religious iconography of ancient Egypt and also serves as a good example that this religion and culture was not unchanging over the vast time period that it lasted; instead, new practices and gods arose over time.

Provenance: ex-private Bishop Family Trust collection, the Trust of the late Bill Bishop, a noted antiquarian with shops in Scottsdale, Arizona and Allenspark, Colorado, USA, acquired before 2010

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Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.

#172881

Some chipping to top of hawk's head and end of tail. Both have stable fissure, nicks, abrasions, and old insect holes in areas. Hawk has 3 old drill holes for attachment to stand, 1 with remains of wooden peg. Otherwise, both are intact (original wooden box) and very nice with great remaining pigments. Both fit to modern wooden stand - mummiform figure is detachable.