Mask. Ancient Egypt, late period, 663-332 BC.

Mask. Ancient Egypt, late period, 663-332 BC.
Wood.
Restored. Fully woven wood, stuccoed and painted white, inlaid eyes. Areas of consolidation and white paint in places.
Provenance: Former private Rothgangel collection, Munich, Germany, acquired in Egypt before 1976, then by descent to the present owner.
Bibliography: E.S. Edwards, A Handbook to the Egyptian Mummies and Coffins, London 1938; Carol Andrews, Egyptian Mummies, London 1988; Expertise by Antonia Eberwein. Galerie Eberwein has been dedicated to the art of ancient Mediterranean civilizations for 40 years.
Measurements: 54 x 50 x 28 cm.

An impressive and skillfully carved upper section of a sarcophagus lid depicting the face of a white-skinned man, with a soft tripartite wig, eyes and eyebrows inlaid with bronze and limestone, painted black. The ears, according to Egyptian convention, appear larger than in real life, and have been designed in such a way that they are above the tripartite headdress. The deceased appears beardless, but the absence of this attribute does not necessarily reflect a gender distinction, as anthropoid sarcophagi of the period inscribed for men or women often lack a false beard.