High Flying Falcon and Extraordinary Egyptian Sculpture Leads to $1.1 Million Auction
Antiquities & Ethnographic Art Auction also Sees Strong Engagement with Figural Stone Sculptures & Portrait Heads
CHICAGO – On November 18th, Hindman Auctions achieved $1,121,063 in its Antiquities and Ethnographic Art auction, which included remarkable engagement with ancient Egyptian sculpture. Figural stone sculptures and portrait heads also saw strong bidding activity. The auction offered rare objects from the fifth millennium B.C. to the 20th century A.D. Collections that featured outstanding performers included the Collection of Dr. Hernan D. Ruf, Florida; Pamela Keld, New York; an Important Midwest Private Collector; and the Palm Springs Art Museum, California.
Lot 72 | An Egyptian Granodiorite Falcon. Ptolemaic Period, 304-30 B.C. Height: 7 1/2 inches (19 cm)
Price Realized: $93,750
Egyptian Granodiorite Falcon
Emerging as the top lot of the auction was an Egyptian granodiorite falcon (lot 72), which shattered its presale estimate of $7,000-9,000 to sell for $93,750. The falcon is seen as a powerful and fierce bird in ancient culture. Bidders recognized value in the fine craftmanship and overall remarkable condition.
Exceptional Egyptian Sculpture
Other Egyptian sculpture that saw fervent bidding activity was an Egyptian alabaster canopic jar (lot 131), which climbed well past its estimate of $30,000 – $50,0000 to achieve $87,500. This jar is from the reign of Tuthmosis III, yet remains impressively intact with much of its original pigment. The inscription is for a scribe named Apis, reading in five lines: “Oh Selket, (you) have wrapped (your) two arms around. What is in (you) so that (you) may protect Quebehsenuef who is in you, and the one revered before Quebehsenuef, the Osiris, the Scribe, Apis, True of Voice.” An Egyptian limestone sarcophagus lid from the Late Period (26th-30th Dynasty, 664-343 B.C) (lot 73) sold for a fantastic price of $68,750. An Egyptian limestone round-topped stele (lot 132) realized $37,500, more than four times its presale estimate.
Exceptional Egyptian Sculpture
Other Egyptian sculpture that saw fervent bidding activity was an Egyptian alabaster canopic jar (lot 131), which climbed well past its estimate of $30,000 – $50,0000 to achieve $87,500. This jar is from the reign of Tuthmosis III, yet remains impressively intact with much of its original pigment. The inscription is for a scribe named Apis, reading in five lines: “Oh Selket, (you) have wrapped (your) two arms around. What is in (you) so that (you) may protect Quebehsenuef who is in you, and the one revered before Quebehsenuef, the Osiris, the Scribe, Apis, True of Voice.” An Egyptian limestone sarcophagus lid from the Late Period (26th-30th Dynasty, 664-343 B.C) (lot 73) sold for a fantastic price of $68,750. An Egyptian limestone round-topped stele (lot 132) realized $37,500, more than four times its presale estimate.
Egyptian cat sculptures were also presented, with an exceptional bronze catmade during the 26th Dynasty, 664-525 B.C. (lot 61), leading the offering and achieving $78,125. This life-sized bronze figure, which measures 19.1 cm, perfectly captures the splendor of the species. By the Late Period, the goddess Bastet was often depicted in complete feline form. Objects such as this were deposited as votive offerings to her at the temple Bubastis or Memphis.
Lot 131 | An Egyptian Alabaster Canopic Jar. Height: 11 3/4 inches (30 cm). Price Realized: $87,500
Figural Stone Sculpture Highlights
Figural stone sculptures and portrait heads also saw passionate bidding. Examples included a Roman marble Alexander the Great (lot 231), circa the 1st -2nd Century A.D, which sold for $59,375, exceeding its presale estimate of $35,000-45,000. Additional notable sales included a Roman marble head of Eros (lot 228), which realized $15,000, triple its presale estimate. A portrait head (lot 235) of a woman from the 2nd to 3rd Century A.D. sold for $11,250, also surpassing its presale estimate.
A rediscovered black marble Roman Torso of the Goddess Venus (lot 229) realized $53,125 compared to a presale estimate of $40,000-50,000. An iconic image from antiquity, this sculpture’s unique dark hue is what makes it so distinctive. The torso was exhibited, with twenty-six other paintings and sculptures, at in a seminal exhibition called She at Cordier & Elkstrom Gallery, which showcased Matisse’s Nu Blue and de Kooning’s Woman on a Sign II.
Other ethnographic highlights included a Zapotec terracotta jaguar (lot 296), which sold well above its presale estimate of $3,000-6,000, realizing $18,750. A Greek bronze Chalcidian helmet (lot 253) sold for $20,000 against a presale estimate of $12,000 – $18,000, and three Syrian stone spectacle idols (lot 12) realized $15,000.
Bidding for the November 18th auction was available via absentee bid, by phone, and online through the Digital Bid Room, Hindman’s recently launched online and mobile bidding platform. Hindman continues to welcome consignments for upcoming Antiquities auctions.
Featured Image: Detail, an Egyptian Limestone Round-Topped Stele. New Kingdom, 18th-20th Dynasty, 1550-1070 B.C. 11 1/2 x 17 1/4 inches (29 x 43 cm) Price Realized: $37,500