An Egyptian Flint in the Form of a Bird

Predynastic Period, 3500-3300 B.C.

Length 1 1/4 inches (3.2 cm).

Property from a Florida Private Collection

Provenance:

Arielle Kozloff, Cleveland.

Acquired by the present owner from the above, 16 August 2010.

According to Egyptologist, Arielle Kozloff, "This little flint is most likely an early amulet, and belongs to a group of four, the other three having been in the Mildenberg collection. It is very rare for early flints to be formed in identifiable shapes, and this group probably represents a small sacred hoard." This revelation suggests that the ancient Egyptians utilized flints, like this example, as amulets rather than tools.

For comparative examples of a flint in the form of a bird dating from the Predynastic Period, see the Cleveland Art Museum, Cleveland (Inv. no. 1995.40) and A.S. Walker, Animals in Ancient Art from the Leo Mildenberg Collection, Mainz, 1785, vol. III, p. 55, figs. 79a, 79b, and 79c.

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Jacob Coley

Senior Vice President, Head of Department, Antiquities and Ancient Art

[email protected]312 280 1212

Mr. Coley joined the Antiquities department in 2021 after working as Managing Director in the Ancient Art department at Colnaghi, the world’s oldest commercial art gallery, where he helped to establish the Ancient Art department and launched Colnaghi New York in 2017. Prior to Colnaghi, Mr. Coley was in the Greek and Roman Art department at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Mr. Coley holds a B.A. from the University of Miami and an M.A. in Art Market from the Fashion Institute of Technology, and he earned an art-appraisal certificate from New York University.

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An Egyptian Flint in the Form of a Bird

Predynastic Period, 3500-3300 B.C.

Length 1 1/4 inches (3.2 cm).

Property from a Florida Private Collection

Provenance:

Arielle Kozloff, Cleveland.

Acquired by the present owner from the above, 16 August 2010.

Ancient Art & Natural History: A Cabinet of Curiosities

An Egyptian Flint in the Form of a Bird

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An Egyptian Flint in the Form of a Bird