A TURQUOISE-GLAZED FAIENCE AMULET OF SEKHMET NURSING THE YOUNG PHARAOH, LATE PERIOD TO PTOLEMAIC ERA
Lot 58 - ANT1125

Published: Gerry D. Scott, Temple, Tomb, and Dwelling. Egyptian Antiquites from the Harer Family Trust Collection, 1992, p. 158, no. 105.

Exhibited:
Los Angeles County Museum (LACMA), exhibited 1986-1991.
Temple, Tomb, and Dwelling. Egyptian Antiquites from the Harer Family Trust Collection, University Art Gallery, California State University, and San Bernardino County Museum, 1992.
University of Arizona, Tucson, 1993.
California State University, San Bernardino, periodically 1994-2023.

Egypt, 760-30 BC. The plaque is of rectangular form, finely modeled to depict the lion-headed Sekhmet majestically seated on a throne, wearing the royal wig surmounted by a serpent, gently nursing the divine child, Horus on earth. A Horus falcon, crowned with a sun disc, adorns the side of the throne. The plaque pierced with two small holes for suspension along the upper edge.

Provenance: Superior Galleries, Los Angeles, 9 March 1984. Collection of Dr. William Benson Harer, acquired from the above. William Benson Harer Jr. was a distinguished doctor, educator, and collector of Egyptian art. Following the path of his father, he earned degrees at Princeton University and the University of Pennsylvania and pursued a notable career in obstetrics and gynecology, maintaining a private practice in San Bernardino for more than thirty years and later teaching at San Bernardino County General Hospital. Beyond his medical career, Dr. Harer maintained a lifelong passion for Egyptian art, which led him to California State University, San Bernardino, where his remarkable collection remains on long-term loan to the Robert V. Fullerton Museum of Art. Representing the largest assembly of Egyptian art and artifacts west of the Mississippi River in the United States, the collection has become a focal point of the university’s educational programs, including the Summer Egyptian Experience, which introduces children across the Inland Empire to the richness of ancient Egypt.
Condition: Good condition with ancient wear and firing irregularities. Few minor glaze losses, mostly to the base. Expected fissures, one with signs of old restoration and a small chip. Small areas with soil encrustation. The image displaying exceptionally well despite its age.

Weight: 48.2 g
Dimensions: Height 7 cm

Horus was venerated as one of the foremost deities in ancient Egyptian religion, personifying kingship and celestial order, while also governing martial and hunting domains, and was at times regarded as the initiator of Egyptian civilization. As the son of Osiris and Isis, he occupied a central position as the divine embodiment of royal authority. His depiction as a child being nursed was a recurring motif in devotional iconography, emphasizing his role as the legitimate heir and divine ruler.

While Isis, his natural mother, is traditionally portrayed as the nurturing figure, in this instance the act is performed by the lion-headed goddess Sekhmet. As the first-born daughter of the sun god Ra, Sekhmet was revered both as a warrior and as a goddess of healing, closely associated with the protection of kings. In this symbolic maternal role, she imparts not only life but also the distinctive attributes of her divine nature to the young Horus, including her solar power and martial prowess. Sekhmet’s appearance in this context underscores the fluidity of Egyptian theology, wherein different goddesses could assume overlapping roles to highlight specific theological or cultic associations.

The material most commonly used in the production of amulets in ancient Egypt was glazed composition known as faience, already in use during the Dynastic Period. By the end of the Middle Kingdom (c. 1650 BC), virtually every material intended for amulet manufacture, however, had been put to that use. Perhaps the most characteristic of all ancient Egyptian substances, faience consisted of a sandy core, ideally though rarely of pure powdered quartz, coated with a vitreous alkaline glaze. The glaze could assume any color, depending on the pigments added, with green and blue tones particularly favored for their association with life and regeneration, dating the earliest examples to the Predynastic Period. The popularity of glazed composition derived from its versatility. It could be molded, typically in open-backed pottery molds, or modeled into any amuletic form, allowing for the addition of intricate incised details. While still soft, the body could easily accommodate means of suspension, either by perforation or by incorporating a loop of composition.

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related faience amulet plaque of Isis nourishing a pharaoh, Egypt, Third Intermediate period, dated 1050-900 BC, 3.1 cm high, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 74.51.4533. Compare a related blue-glazed faience amulet plaque of Sekhmet suckling a king, Egypt, Third Intermediate period, dated 1085-760 BC, 7.1 cm high, in the British Museum, registration number EA11314. Compare a related glazed faience pendant depicting Sekhmet nursing Horus, Egypt, Late to Ptolemaic period, dated 760-30 BC, 3.9 cm high, illustrated in Gerry D. Scott, Temple, Tomb, and Dwelling. Egyptian Antiquites from the Harer Family Trust Collection, 1992, p. 158, no. 105b.