Description:

Ancient Egypt, Late Dynastic Period, 26th to 31st Dynasty, ca. 664 to 332 BCE. A mold-formed composite faience amulet charm in the form of a recumbent ram that symbolized the deity, Khnum, with a loop along the back for suspension. The animal is shown in a mummified pose on an integral base: extended legs in front and a head replete with naturalistic facial details and curled horns. Depictions of mummified rams were important as sacrificial offerings to the ram-headed deity Khnum, one of the creator gods thought to be the source of the Nile River. It was believed that Khnum molded the bodies of both gods and humans on his potter's wheel and then breathed life into them, and rams were also associated with reproduction and fertility in ancient Egypt. Size: 1.59" L x 0.52" W x 0.85" H (4 cm x 1.3 cm x 2.2 cm)

Exhibited at the Drexel Museum, Philadelphia, 1895 to 1914; with the Drexel Institute Collection, Minneapolis Museum of Art, 1915 to 1958, ref. no. 16.136; at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) from 1986 to 1991; in the University of Arizona Museum of Art, October 1993 to December 1993; and in the Robert and Frances Fullerton Museum of Art (RAFFMA), California State University, San Bernardino from 1996 to 2023, reference number EL01.156.1996.

Provenance: Collection of Dr. W. Benson Harer, Los Angeles, California, USA; ex-Emil Brugsch Collection, curator of the Bulaq Museum, Cairo, Egypt; Exhibited at the Drexel Museum, Philadelphia, 1895 to 1914; with the Drexel Institute Collection, Minneapolis Institute of Art, 1915 to 1958, ref. no. 16.136; at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) from 1986 to 1991; in the University of Arizona Museum of Art, October 1993 to December 1993; and in the Robert and Frances Fullerton Museum of Art (RAFFMA), California State University, San Bernardino from 1996 to 2023, reference number EL01.156.1996

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#182215

  • Condition: Some softening to details, otherwise intact and great condition. Light mineral encrustations on surface. Remains of wax on the base from a previous display stand. Old inventory number on the surface.

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