EGYPTIAN LIMESTONE GRAFFITO WITH TWO HEADS

Egypt, New Kingdom, late 18th-early, Ca.1300 BC
A limestone fragment (ostracon) with sculptor's trial. The piece showing tree representation in sunk relief: on the left the outline of a Egyptian man's head with detailed wig, in the right a head of an Nubian captive. Under the two 'portraits' we can see the part of an owl's head and a left hand. The rough style of incisions denote that this ostracon is a beginner's study. The item is accompanied by a report from Simone Musso, consultant curator for the Egyptian antiquities at the Stibbert Museum, Florence, Italy, member of the Nuri Archaeological Expedition.
Size: L:220mm / W:150mm ; 2.54kg
Provenance: Property of a London Ancient Art gallery; formerly in a French collection, acquired in the late 1980s. This item has been checked against the Art Loss Register database.
Estimate: GBP 2000 - 3000