Egyptian Terracottas of Harpokrates Ancient Ex. Gustave Jéquier (1868-1946)

Here you find a lovely terracotta figure of the god Harpocrates, wearing the crown of Upper and Lower Egypt. This figure also has his left hand in a pot, like the cornucopia a symbol of abundance. These terracotta clay figures were often placed in temples as votive offerings. Horus the Egyptian Har, was the Hellenistic god known to Greeks as Harpocrates, in Egyptian Har-pa-khered which meant "Har, the Child”. Also in this lot a small headless Harpokrates. Nice example for the main figure from a well provenanced collection! Measures 6 inches in height. Late Period to Ptolemaic Period 664-30 B.C.

Provenance: Collected by Gustave Jéquier (1868-1946)

Ex. Billy Jamieson Collection, 2009 (1954-2011)

Authentication: Gayle Gibson, Royal Ontario Museum Toronto

Galleria Delvecchio .… “is pleased to present a collection of Egyptian antiquities assembled by the celebrated Swiss Egyptologist Gustave Jéquier. Jéquier was born in 1868 in Neuchatel. He first studied in Paris under Gaston Maspero (1846-1916) and later went to Berlin before joining the de Morgan expedition to Persia, during which time he contributed to the discovery and decipherment of the code of Hammurabi. Gustave Jéquier was a giant in the field of Egyptology whose contributions are far too numerous to list here. He is best known for his association with the French Institute in Cairo which enabled him to engage in seminal research at the pyramid site of the Old Kingdom. He also completed the work begun at Abydos by his Swiss compatriot, [Henri] Eduard Naville (1844-1926). The two are considered to be Switzerland’s most preeminent Egyptologists. One of Jéquier’s most important discoveries was the 13th Dynasty pyramid of Khendjer. He wrote extensively on his history of Egyptian architecture, and published on philology and religion as well. Gustave Jéquier died in 1946 in the city in which he was born, and most of his collection was acquired by the University of Basel. The works of art presented here were given to a sibling who emigrated to the US in the late 1940’s; the collection later passed to their daughter, Jéquier’s niece.”