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Finely carved from dark brown wood, the fragmentary mask is modeled with an elongated oval face, a straight nose, gently smiling lips, and a softly rounded chin. The eyes are particularly striking and elaborately constructed, with bone whites and black glass pupils, framed by separately applied bronze eyebrows and eye rims, lending the face a remarkably vivid, lifelike expression. A tall wig rises above the forehead, its surface retaining substantial traces of pigment.
Expert’s note
The designation “mummy mask” encompasses several forms of funerary face covering and is not restricted to masks placed directly over the wrapped head of the deceased. In both museum and auction terminology, separately carved wooden faces originally attached to the lids of anthropoid coffins are likewise often described as wooden mummy masks.
The present example belongs to this latter tradition: the substantial, separately carved wooden face would originally have formed the focal element of an anthropoid coffin lid rather than being worn directly over the face of the mummy. Particularly noteworthy is the sophisticated construction of the eyes, combining bone and glass with separately applied bronze surrounds and eyebrows. Such costly and technically elaborate details were intended to give the transfigured deceased an enduring, vividly animate appearance. The style and quality of the carving also leave open an earlier date within the long tradition of wooden coffin masks, possibly extending into the Third Intermediate Period.
The warm reddish-brown color and dense appearance of the wood find close parallels among Egyptian wooden coffin masks. Sycomore fig (Ficus sycomorus), one of the principal native timbers employed for Egyptian coffins and separately carved coffin faces from this group, is a possible candidate, although the exact wood species of the present mask has not been scientifically determined.
Provenance: The private collection of Dr. Martin Winkler, Feldafing, Germany, acquired by 1960, and thence by descent. With Galerie Günter Puhze, Freiburg, acquired from the above in 2007. The private collection of Erika Krautkr?mer, acquired from the above in 2007, and thence by descent within the family. Christie’s New York, 17 October 2023, lot 124, dated as late period (664-332 BC) mid-estimate of USD 40,000 or approx. EUR 38,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing. Dr. Martin Winkler (1893-1982) was a German historian and art collector based in Feldafing, Bavaria. He was particularly noted for his collection of Russian icons and was regarded, together with Heinrich Wendt, as one of the leading German private collectors in this field during the mid-20th century. His collection was associated with the 1955 exhibition 100 Ikonen aus westdeutschem Privatbesitz at the Kunsthalle Recklinghausen, an exhibition that contributed to the foundation of the city’s Icon Museum. Erika Krautkr?mer (1932-2022), together with her husband, Dr. Herbert Krautkr?mer (d. 2003), was instrumental in the foundation of WHU: Otto Beisheim School of Management in Germany. Shortly after World War II, Dr. Herbert Krautkr?mer and his brother Josef founded a company for non-destructive material testing, creating Germany’s first pulse-echo ultrasonic device—a global success that lives on in Waygate Technologies (Baker Hughes). As early as the early 1980s, Dr. Herbert Krautkr?mer supported the founding of WHU – both morally and financially. Erika Krautkr?mer shared her husband's convictions and continued their shared commitment with personal closeness and keen interest after his death. She assumed responsibility for the Campus Krautkr?mer Foundation and, with great personal commitment, realized the student residence hall that opened in 2005.
Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age. Old wear, expected natural cracks, obvious losses, chips, holes, scattered nicks and fissures, weathering, and remnants of pigment, especially to the headdress.
Weight: 1,289 g (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 31 cm (excl. stand), 44 cm (incl. stand)
Mounted on an associated wood stand. (2)
Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related wooden face of a coffin, 18th dynasty, dated 1400 BC, 17.3 cm high, in the British Museum, registration number EA6887.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s London, 8 December 2021, lot 136
Price: GBP 225,000 or approx. EUR 330,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An Egyptian polychrome wood mummy mask, New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty, circa 1550-1292 BC
Expert remark: Compare the closely related separately carved wood face from an anthropoid coffin lid, the red complexion indicating a male owner, the large almond-shaped eyes, elegantly arched eyebrows, gently smiling lips, and remains of a striped headdress. Note the considerably earlier dating.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s London, 5 December 2023, lot 5
Mid-Estimate: GBP 200,000 or approx. EUR 260,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A Large Egyptian Wood Mummy Mask, 19th/21st Dynasty, 1305-956 B.C.
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form and similar expression and inlays. Note the size (29 cm) and considerably earlier dating.
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