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A miniature Egyptian pottery double-bodied jar image 1
A miniature Egyptian pottery double-bodied jar image 2
Property from the Michel Holley Collection (lots 1-9)
Lot 5

A miniature Egyptian pottery double-bodied jar

Antiquities
1 December 2020, 11:00 GMT
London, New Bond Street

Sold for £8,925 inc. premium

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A miniature Egyptian pottery double-bodied jar
Predynastic Period, Naqada II, circa 3500-3200 B.C.
In the form of two conjoined ovoid jars, with a pair of pierced lugs, decorated in reddish paint with four boats, each with a double cabin with a standard attached on one side of the deckhouses, and an arched palm projection at the prow, with numerous oars, marsh plants and wavy lines representing the water beneath, a spiral decorating the flat double bases, 7cm high x 11cm wide

Footnotes

Provenance:
Michel Holley collection, Paris, acquired prior to 1972.

For similar painted decoration, see the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, acc. no. 36.1.121. Decorated vessels of the Naqada II Period were often embellished with Nile Valley scenes, in particular boats, birds and plants. It has been suggested that boat scenes with figures may record stages in a ritual; for a discussion on the subject see D. Craig Patch, Dawn of Egyptian Art, New York, 2012, pp. 69-73.

Michel Holley (b. 1924) is a noted architect, and sailing enthusiast. M. Holley studied architecture at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, in the studio of Otello Zavaronia, and was elected Grand Massier in 1954. A keen member of the Royal Ocean Racing Club, M. Holley took part in the 1973 Cowes Admiralty Cup with the Izenah IV. His love of the nautical inspired his collection, which though drawn from the breadth of the Greek, Roman and Egyptian cultures, is bound by a fascination with seafaring. Formed in the early 1970s, this collection comes to auction for the first time.

Additional information

Bid now on these items

An Anatolian marble idol
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