Egypt, Third Intermediate to Late Dynastic period, 21st to 31st Dynasty, ca. 1070 to 332 BCE. An intriguing depiction of the god Pataikos, the bow-legged dwarf deity meant as a protector and a mitigator of violent natural forces, mold-made from faience and covered in a lustrous blue-green glaze. He stands atop an integral plinth, holds attenuated arms to his portly abdomen, and has a petite suspension loop near the top of the dorsal pillar along the verso. Size: 0.37" L x 0.53" W x 1.05" H (0.9 cm x 1.3 cm x 2.7 cm)

Pataikos was a god (or perhaps a member of a whole group of similarly looking gods) who gave protection. He is mostly known from amulets. Pataikos is generally depicted as a dwarf with short crooked legs and a bald head or, less frequently, the head of a falcon. In many cases he is shown standing on crocodiles (a symbol of his triumph over them) and having snakes and other dangerous animals in his hands. In many ways he resembles the god Harpokrates on magical stelae. An extra element which is sometimes added is a scarab on top of his head. Pataikos was also associated with Ptah and Ptah-Sokar. The name Pataikos goes back to Herodotus, the Greek writer who visited Egypt in the 5th century BC. He tells us that a statue of the god Ptah was kept in the temple of Memphis, which had the shape of a dwarf and which reminded him of a statuette in similar shape in Phoenicia. He also informs us that the god represented as a dwarf was regarded as the son of Ptah. Pataikos is also depicted together with Sekhmet or Nefertem, both gods who were related to Ptah in the triad of Memphis.

Provenance: Collection of Dr. W. Benson Harer, Los Angeles, California, USA, purchased in 1975; ex-Superior Galleries, Los Angeles, California, USA, purchased in early 1975; ex-Philip Mitry collection, with Anglo-American Bookstore, Cairo, 1940s, and imported to USA circa 1952

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.

#182312

Minor abrasions and earthen deposits, with light fading to glaze pigment, otherwise intact and excellent. Great preservation to figural form and most finer details.