Egyptian Limestone Canopic Jar w/ Falcon Lid

Egypt, Late Dynastic Period, 26th to 31st Dynasty, ca. 664 to 332 BCE. A hand-carved limestone canopic jar of an elegant minimalist presentation. The cylindrical vessel has a flat base, an inverted piriform body with a bulging shoulder, a flat upper rim, and a shallow interior cavity meant to contain and protect the mummy's internal organs. The jar lid is sculpted to resemble the head of a falcon, with hemispherical eyes protruding from within ovoid sockets, a petite aquiline beak, tapered cheeks, and a characteristically furrowed brow, all in front of a rounded tripartite wig. Traces of yellow pigment are visible on the lid verso, and black pigment can be seen on both lid and body. Size (w/ lid): 5.7" W x 11" H (14.5 cm x 27.9 cm).

Canopic jars are some of the most iconic artifacts from Egypt, made to hold internal organs removed during the mummification process. This tradition lasted for an incredibly long time - the first evidence for a canopic chest containing organs comes from the Fourth Dynasty (ca. 2600 BCE) and they were used into the late 1st millennium BCE. The 18th Dynasty marked a shift in canopic jar tradition, when these jars were given to all people of status, and when their heads were fashioned to look like the four Sons of Horus, including Qebehsenuef. The Four Sons were charged with protecting the internal organs, as they had originally been charged with protecting the body of Osiris. The falcon-headed son who represented the west, Qebehsenuef, was charged with protecting the intestines of the deceased and was protected by the scorpion goddess Serqet.

A stylistically similar example, of a slightly larger size, hammered for GBP 8,750 ($10,781.09) at Christie's, London "Antiquities" auction (sale 12239, July 6, 2016, lot 4).

Provenance: private J.H. collection, Beaverton, Oregon, USA; ex-Royal-Athena Galleries, New York, USA and London, England; ex-private U.N. diplomat P.A. (1908-2004) collection, New York, USA, acquired in June 1970 from S.O. Simonian, Cairo, Egypt; thence by descent

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#149671
Condition Report: Minor chips to base, body, and upper rim of vessel as well as beak, head, and lower rim of lid. Small area of fill material along shoulder of body with light resurfacing. Both lid and body have minor abrasions and nicks, with light encrustations, and fading to original pigmentation. Great earthen deposits and detailing throughout, with original chiseling marks still visible within vessel interior.