An Egyptian Painted Limestone Fragment

New Kingdom, 18th-20th Dynasty, 1550-1070 B.C.

Width 11 3/4 inches (29.85 cm).

Property from a Midwest Private Collection

Provenance

Kim's Auction, Burwood, Australia, Antique and Collectable Art Auction, 24 October 2021, Lot 166.

This limestone fragment, decorated with applied gesso, features a vervet monkey grasping a cluster of grapes in both paws. The monkey is tethered to the leg of a chair where the lady of the house is likely to sit. In Ancient Egyptian symbolism, monkeys and grapes signify fertility, indicating the woman’s capacity to sustain the lineage. The depiction behind the lady subtly underscores her vital role in ensuring prosperity and continuity in the household.

Height with stand 13 3/4 inches (34.93 cm).

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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.

Antiquities, Pre-Columbian and Ethnographic Art

An Egyptian Painted Limestone Fragment

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