Egypt, Third Intermediate to Late Dynastic Period, 21st to 31st Dynasty, ca. 1070 to 332 BCE. An adorable faience amulet depicting a majestic feline, perhaps the goddess herself, Bastet, seated upon thick haunches atop an integral plinth. The surface is covered in a smooth layer of seafoam green, this characteristic hue of faience is due to copper in the glazing. Bastet was the cat headed goddess who represented fertility and motherhood. Thousands of mummified cats and kittens were given as offerings to Bastet at temples in her honor, and a petite amulet like this one was probably made to be worn or placed upon an altar to demonstrate devotion to her and seek her protection. Size: 0.7" L x 0.3" W x 1.3" H (1.8 cm x 0.8 cm x 3.3 cm); 2.3" H (5.8 cm) on included custom stand.

The ancient Egyptians, rather uniquely among the world's civilizations, had an obsession with cats, both tame and fierce, large and small. Cats were domesticated to help protect crops from pests in Cyprus or possibly Mesopotamia (it is difficult to interpret the archaeological record on this matter for a variety of reasons), but the Egyptian love of cats seems to have gone above and beyond that of their contemporaries. The cemetery at Hierakonpolis includes a cat skeleton in a pre-Dynastic tomb (ca. 3700 BCE) that had a broken left humerus and right femur that seem to have been set by a human and allowed to heal before that cat's ultimate death. The first illustration of a cat with a collar comes from a 5th Dynasty (ca. 2500 to 2350 BCE) Egyptian tomb at Saqqara. Cats were the most frequently mummified animal in Egypt and there were multiple feline goddesses, including the domesticated cat-form Bastet.

Bastet was initially a lioness goddess associated with the solar god and channeled its destructive power. However, by the early first millennium BCE, she assumed a more domestic feline form and became understood as a goddess of fertility and a guardian of the home. Ever since, statuettes comprised of various materials have characterized her as a doting mother cat. Her cult expanded decisively when her town in Bubastis (derived from per Bastet or "house of Bastet"), became the royal residence of the kings of the 22nd Dynasty, during the 10th century BCE. The city hosted an annual festival honoring Bastet in celebration of the Nile flood waters, and she was honored throughout Egypt through the first millennium BCE.

Provenance: Collection of Dr. W. Benson Harer, Los Angeles, California, USA; ex-Philip Mitry collection, noted antiquarian in Egypt, prior to 1951

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 to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.

#180898

Professional restoration to front of plinth, as well as expected nicks and pitting to surface, all commensurate with age. Otherwise, excellent and wearable as a bead or pendant. Impressive preservation of detail.