26th Dynasty, 664 - 525 BC.

Bronze with dark olive green patina and brownish sinter deposits. Cat sitting upright with ears attentively placed, tail wrapped around the body to the right up to the paws. Around the neck a ribbon from which hangs an amulet. In the neck a ring-shaped eyelet. The cat is the personification of the goddess Bastet, whose cult center was in Bubastis in the Nile Delta. She was worshipped as the goddess of fertility and protector of women, children and family. She was also considered the goddess of joy, music, dance and feasts. On the bottom of the statuette there are two cast pivots, by means of which it is inserted into a solid metal base.

Dimension: Object dimensions: height 7,2 cm, height with base 11,3 cm, width: 2,5 cm, length 4,2 cm,

Condition: Intact and in excellent condition.

Provenance: William Rockhill Nelson Trust, Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.A., acquired from Sotheby's New York, June 15. 1988.