Ancient Phoenician Bronze Pendant with Scarab

$625.54

A finely modelled Ancient Phoenician cast bronze pendant, holding a steatite scarab. The thick bronze wire forms a suspension loop at the top and is modelled around the scarab, framing it. The scarab features a variation of an “anra” column, flanked by two crowned Uraei and Horus falcons. Anra scarabs are identified by a sequence of hieroglyphs which always includes the letters n and r in the inscription. This type of pendant is Phoenician in origin and was widely distributed throughout the Ancient Mediterranean world.

Date: Circa 700-400 BC
Provenance: German private collection of C.M., prior private French (Paris) collection, formed in the 1960s-70s.
Condition: Very fine, suitable for modern wear with care.

SOLD

SKU: CS-167 Category: Tags: , , ,

In Ancient Phoenicia, as in many ancient societies, jewellery was an important social marker used to demonstrate wealth, social status and privilege. The amuletic nature of this pendant is to attribute to the scarab, which, despite being a uniquely Egyptian innovation, soon became integrated into many neighbouring cultures that were in contact with the Ancient Egyptians, such as the Phoenicians. This pendant therefore represents the combination of different characteristics, showing the inter-connectivity of various civilisations in the ancient world through well-established trade routes, with different peoples often borrowing styles and artistic techniques from one another.

 

Weight 8.5 g
Dimensions L 2.7 cm
Culture

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Egyptian Mythology

Metal

Stone

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