Beaded mummy mask - Ancient Egypt (Late Period; 664-332 BC). A fine Egyptian mummy mask made of small faience beads, restrung in their original arrangement. Black, turquoise blue, red and cream tones have been used to render, in a highly stylised manner, a human face with a neutral expression. The large trapezoid eyes, long thin eyebrows, broad nose and small mouth are arranged in a perfectly symmetrical manner. Such masks would have been placed over the face of the deceased at their burial, in a similar manner to the better-known cartonnage mummy masks, mostly for decorative or protective purposes. Masks of this type rose to popularity in the Late Period of Ancient Egypt. They likely had both a decorative and symbolic role, as the burial of the dead in Ancient Egypt was an elaborate and ritualised process. Their unnaturalistic style and the similarities between beaded mummy masks in general make it unlikely that they were modelled after the face of the deceased individual; they seem to have more likely been generic images of a dead human face as the absence of expression and the blue-greenish skin complexion could indicate. However, such masks have also been interpreted as visual representations of the god Osiris – himself also a dead being – frequently depicted in the tombs with an identical skin-colour. Provenance: Purchased by the current owner to a Spanish private collector (P. T.; 1980s). The Supplier warrants that he obtained this lot legally. Provenance statement seen by Catawiki. Important information. The seller guarantees that he is entitled to ship this lot. The seller will take care that any necessary permits will be arranged. The seller will inform the buyer about this if this takes more than a few days. Important: For destinations out of Spanish territory: all our objects will be shipped after obtaining CERTIFICATE OF EXPORTATION by Ministry of Culture of Spain. We inform our clients that it may take between 4-8 weeks.