A miscellaneous group of Egyptian antiquities, including seven restrung faience necklaces, one...

A miscellaneous group of Egyptian antiquities, including seven restrung faience necklaces, one composed of truncated white disc beads, the others variously of blue, green, red, dark brown, cream and yellow cylindrical and disc beads, including one with a blue faience amulet of a recumbent lion, 2cm long, two necklaces with old ink inscribed labels, one number ‘N19’, the other ‘N.4.’; two restrung necklaces composed of shells, all pierced for stringing; seventeen faience, glass and hardstone inlays, ring bezel and pendant mounted on card, including fruits, a cobra/uraeus, Apis bull, striding Horus, 1.5cm max length, the card ink inscribed ‘A.94.’; another card with ink inscriptions relating to amulets, with two remaining attached to the card, one of green hardstone, 1.3cm, the other a blue faience boat-shaped bead, 1.3cm; a rectangular blue glass inlay moulded with a crouching ibis, 3.2cm x 1.8cm; a blue glass inlay of Anubis supporting a djed pillar, 3.9cm high; a collection of faience pendants and amulets, including a blue glazed bunch of grapes pendant, 2.4cm; a flower pendant, 1.6cm diam; a menat amulet, 3.2cm; a snake-head amulet, 2.8cm long; two tyt amulets, 1.9cm and 2.9cm; two bright blue glazed Sobek (crocodile god) amulets, 2.5cm; a papyrus amulet, 2cm; a blue glazed cobra head with hooded eyes, 2cm; a pale blue amulet of Mut, 2.7cm; a pale blue glazed amulet of six standing deities, 1.7cm x 1.3cm; two Shu amulets, 1.6cm and 2cm high; three small Bes amulets, 1.7cm maximum height; a udjat eye, 1.6cm; a green feldspar writing tablet, 2cm high; seven small amulets and pendants, 1.5cm maximum, and a bronze spiral hair-ring with an ink inscribed label ‘B21’, New Kingdom – Roman Period, circa 1350 B.C. – 1st Century A.D.; six small steatite amulets and fragments, including a Bes, two with figures of Anubis, heads missing, 1.5cm maximum, possibly ancient; a group of scarabs and scaraboids, including a larger scarab, the underside inscribed Menkherperre and a uraeus wearing a Double Crown, 2.6cm long, and a collection of steatite, faience and hardstone scarabs, some inscribed, 1.5cm maximum, mainly not ancient; three inscribed plaques in hardstone and steatite, 2.1cm maximum length and two hardstone engraved circular intaglios, 1.3cm diam, Various periods, some ancient   (a lot)

Provenance: Walter Thomas Gaze Cooper (1895-1981) collection; and thence by descent to the present owner.

Walter Gaze Cooper was a prolific composer and musician, writing his first serious piece, a piano concerto, in 1923. He studied at the Royal College of Music and his many compositions included piano concertos, eight symphonies and an opera. He was a piano and theory teacher throughout his life, teaching at the Midland Conservatoire of Music.

His other great passion in life was collecting Egyptian, Chinese and Greek art and antiquities. His collection was impressive, indeed, the archaeologist, Sir Mortimer Wheeler often spoke of a rare artefact saying that 'there are only two of its kind, one in the British Museum and the other in the Gaze Cooper collection.'