Egypt, Late Dynastic Period, 26th to 31st Dynasty, ca. 664 to 332 BCE. A petite amulet resembling a trussed ox, hand-carved from a mottled crimson-hued jasper with dark inclusions. The depicted animal is fattened and immobilized with its feet bound together, and its curved back leads upwards toward a small head with perky ears and a short snout. Amulets depicting bound oxen represent food and sustenance for a deceased individual during their journey through the afterlife. The choice of a red stone like jasper is also symbolic as the color represents the blood and edible flesh of the animal. Size: 0.8" L x 0.55" H (2 cm x 1.4 cm).

For a similar example, please see the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, accession number 72.1296: https://www.mfa.org/collections/object/amulet-of-a-trussed-ox-132165

Provenance: private Southern California, USA collection

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#134857

Surface wear commensurate with age, very minor abrasions, and some light fading to incised details, otherwise intact and excellent.