Egyptian bronze figurine of Osiris
Price: on request
Sold
Object number
AR3020A
| Object: |
Egyptian bronze figurine of Osiris
|
| Material: |
Bronze.
|
| Period: |
Late Period of Ancient Egypt, 26th to 31st dynasty, 664 BC to 332 BC. |
| Description: |
Bronze figurine of Osiris, god of the afterlife. He is depicted as a mummiform young male with the Atef crown and pharaoh's beard. The arms are joined in front of the chest and hold a crook and flail. The shepherd's crook together with the flail are insignia of pharaonic authority. They symbolize Osiris' rule as king of the underworld. The statuette stands on a small rectangular base plate. A pin is under the plate and a loop at its side. A slender pillar is at the back of the statuette. |
| Background: |
Depictions of Osiris are mandatory for every collection of Egyptian antiquities. He is among the most important gods of the ancient Egyptian pantheon. Statuettes of him were used in burials since the New Kingdom. Since the Third Intermediate Period bronze was the most popular material for such statuettes and by the Late Period almost all of them were made of bronze. They are manifestations of the hope of the deceased to be reborn. Osiris was not only the king of the underworld, but also the god of fertility, afterlife and resurrection.
|
| Dimensions: |
8.5cm height including pin under the base plate.
|
| Condition: |
Very good condition. Mostly complete and intact including detailled facial features. Wonderful polychrome patina. Inscription "X40.242" at the back, inventory number of the Newark Museum.
|
| Provenance: |
Acquired by us in 2020 from an US American auction house. Consigned by the US American Newark Museum of Art. The figurine was included in the museum collection in 1940 as inventory number "X40.242". It later became part of the educational lending collection. A museum card with a description and a card with notes on loans come with the figurine.
|
| References: |
Cf. National Museum of Scotland, A.1886.518.7. Cf. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Inventarnr. 04.2.437. |
| Literature: |
A good explanation of Osiris bronze statuettes can be found in Madeleine Page Gasser's Götter bewohnten Ägypten, Bronzefiguren der Sammlungen Bibel+Orient der Universität Freiburg Schweiz, pages 55ff.
|
| Authenticity: |
We unconditionally guarantee the authenticity of every artefact, all items are subject to our lifetime return policy on authenticity.
|