Canopic Vase With The Head Of Amset

Canopic vase with the head of Amset, protective divinity of the liver of the dead, in the Egyptian style
Napoleon III period
Black patinated regula
H. 38 cm
Morello cherry red marble base engraved with gilded hieroglyphs (15 x 15 cm)

In ancient Egypt, four canopic vases were used to hold the embalmed viscera of the deceased.
Following Napoleon's campaign in Egypt in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, a number of discoveries were made, leading to renewed interest in this ancient civilisation. Egyptomania was born. Canopic vases fully illustrate the fascination of European decorative arts with Ancient Egypt. They were made in porcelain, bronze, marble and bisque, like the vases created by Wedgwood