Exquisite Egyptian Artifacts and Remarkable Roman Relics Shine at Hindman’s $1.5 Million Biannual Antiquities Auction
CHICAGO – Early Egyptian artifacts, sculpture and Roman portrait heads led Hindman’s May 26th Antiquities & Ancient Art: A Study auction to $1,531,063, the highest total for an Antiquities auction at the firm. Bidders from 22 countries and 33 states participated in the sale. A quintessential Egyptian Gilt Cartonnage Mummy Mask emerged as the top lot (lot 35), selling for $175,000 against a presale estimate of $50,000-60,000 and leading an incredibly strong selection of Ancient Egyptian artifacts.
“Last week’s bidders came as far as Asia and as close as Lake Street in Chicago,” shared Hindman’s Director and Specialist for Antiquities and Pre-Columbian Art Jacob Coley. “We are delighted to see how both new and established collectors are responding to the department’s offerings, and how all categories – Egyptian, Near Eastern, Jewelry and Greco-Roman – saw passionate bidding in the auction.”
Ancient Egyptian Artifacts
Egyptian artifacts saw enthusiastic bidding, led by a well-preserved Egyptian Gilt Cartonnage Mummy Mask (lot 35). Following the discovery of the intact tomb of the Pharaoh Tutankhamun, the best-preserved pharaonic tomb ever found in the Valley of the Kings, Egyptomania became a phenomenon across Europe and the United States. The stylized facial features of this exquisite sarcophagus mask share similar traits with the mask of the Pharaoh, most notably the gold face, calcite eyes and lapis lazuli-colored inlays. Elaborately decorated with two images of Osiris, a winged scarab and hieroglyphic inscription, this iconic mummy mask is emblematic of our modern-day fascination with the land of the ancient pharaohs and Nile River.
Lot 29 | An Egyptian Bronze Cat. Late Period to Ptolemaic Period, 664-30 B.C. Price Realized: $125,000
Additional Egyptian standouts were a bronze cat (lot 29), which doubled its estimate to realized $125,000. Cast in bronze, this impressive and dignified looking cat is depicted in a conventional seated position. In ancient Egypt, the cat personified Bastet, the goddess of fertility, pleasure and good health.
Lot 21 | An Egyptian Faience Female Figure. Middle Kingdom, 12th Dynasty, 1991-1783 B.C. Price Realized: $107,500
A premiere example of a Faience Female Figure (lot 21) that has been displayed at the Cincinnati Art Museum and Brooklyn Museum of Art sold for $107,500 against a presale estimate of $70,000 – $90,000. Highlights also included a Limestone Relief (lot 47), which realized $56,250, more than tripling its presale estimate, and an incredibly realistic appearing Alabaster Head of a Jackal (lot 49), which sold for $43,750.
Lot 49 | An Egyptian Alabaster Head of a Jackal. Late Period, 26th-30th Dynasty, 664-525 B.C. Price Realized: $43,750
Roman Portrait Heads and Additional Greco-Roman Highlights
Objects from ancient Greco-Roman cultures were also among outstanding performers, most notably Roman marble portrait heads. A Marble Portrait Head of Antisthenes (lot 163) sold for $100,000, while a Head of a Ram (lot 106) climbed well pasts its $8,000-12,000 estimate to achieve $34,375. Rams were important symbols of strength and virility in Ancient Rome. A Portrait Head (lot 200) resembling the Emperor Caracalla exceeded its estimate, selling for $25,000.
Cycladic sculptures also were extremely well received by bidders, such as two Marble Reclining Female Figures, which realized $81,250 and $31,250 (lots 108 and 110).
Bidders are Dazzled by Ancient Jewelry
A session of jewelry was led by a Western Asiatic Gold Bracelet with Lion-Headed Terminals (lot 79), which sold for $28,125 against a presale estimate of $10,000 – $15,000. Additional jewelry highlights included a Roman Red Jasper Ring Stone of a Nude Sculptor (lot 89), which sold for $12,500 against a presale estimate of $3,000-5,000, and an Egyptian Faience Scarab Swivel Ring (lot 80) that skyrocketed past its presale estimate of $2,000-$3,000 to sell for $11,875.
Bidding for the May 26th Antiquities and Ancient Art: A Study auction was available in-person, via phone and online via Hindman’s Digital Bid Room and additional online bidding platforms. Full auction results can be viewed here.
Hindman continues to welcome consignments for its November Antiquities auction.
Featured Image: An Egyptian Gilt Cartonnage Mummy Mask. Ptolemaic Period, 304-30 B.C. Price Realized: $175,000