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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;DonnaML, post: 6906838, member: 110350&quot;]I had another thread about this theme some time ago (see <a href="https://www.cointalk.com/threads/an-alexandrian-tet-with-an-isis-infant-horus-harpokrates-reverse.368637/#post-4959711" class="internalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.cointalk.com/threads/an-alexandrian-tet-with-an-isis-infant-horus-harpokrates-reverse.368637/#post-4959711">https://www.cointalk.com/threads/an-alexandrian-tet-with-an-isis-infant-horus-harpokrates-reverse.368637/#post-4959711</a>), but can&#039;t simply revive it because it ended up being shut down. So I fervently request that people please refrain this time from risking offense to anyone&#039;s sensibilities by analogizing the Isis/Osiris/Horus story to another famous story involving a mother and child and certain other events!</p><p><br /></p><p>Just as a reminder, these are the two coins I already had on the theme:</p><p><br /></p><p>Antoninus Pius Billon Tetradrachm, Year 23 (159-160 AD), Alexandria, Egypt Mint. Obv. Laureate and draped bust right, ΑΝΤѠΝΙΝΟϹ - ϹƐΒ ƐVϹƐΒ (counterclockwise from upper right) /Isis crowned with disk, horns, and plumes, seated right offering her right breast to crowned Harpocrates [“Horus-as-Child”] seated on her lap; Harpocrates extends his right hand towards her and holds lotus flower in left hand; crowned falcon [Horus] perched right on left end of back of throne, L -&nbsp; Γ [G] /K [= Year 23] across field. Emmett 1402.23 [Emmett, Keith, <i>Alexandrian Coins</i> (Lodi, WI, 2001)]; Dattari (Savio) 2257 [Savio, A. ed., <i>Catalogo completo della collezione Dattari Numi Augg. Alexandrini</i> (Trieste, 2007)]; RPC IV.4 Online, 13938 (temporary) (see <a href="https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/4/13938" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/4/13938" rel="nofollow">https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/4/13938</a>); Köln (Geissen) 1842 [Geissen, A., <i>Katalog alexandrinischer Kaisermünzen</i>, <i>Köln</i>, Band II (Hadrian-Antoninus Pius) (Cologne, 1978, corrected reprint 1987)][same dies, see RPC Online 13938 at the link provided, Example 3]; Sear RCV II 4377; K&amp;G 35.810 [Kampmann, Ursula &amp; Granschow, Thomas, <i>Die Münzen der römischen Münzstätte Alexandria</i>&nbsp; (2008)].&nbsp; 21x28 mm., 11.67 g. <i>Ex. Harlan J. Berk, Ltd., 168th Buy or Bid Sale, March 16, 2010<b>, </b>Lot 475<b>. </b></i></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1273005[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Julia Domna, AR Denarius ca. 201 AD, Rome Mint. Obv. Draped bust right, hair waved vertically and fastened in large bun in back, IVLIA AVGVSTA / Rev. Isis, wearing <i>polos</i> on head, draped, standing three-quarters right, head right, holding the nursing infant Horus (Harpocrates) in left arm against left breast, with her right hand holding a wreath or other ring-shaped object against her chest, her left foot against prow, right, and her left knee bent with Horus resting on it; to left of Isis, rudder rests against altar; SAECVLI FELICITAS.&nbsp; RIC IV-1 577 (p. 170), RSC III 174 (ill.), Sear RCV II 6606, BMCRE 166. 18x20 mm., 3.35 g., 6 h. <i>Ex. A.K. Collection; ex. CNG Triton XX Auction, Jan. 10, 2017, part of Lot # 614, No. E027.</i></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1273008[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>A close-up of the important part:</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1273009[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>See <a href="https://www.cointalk.com/threads/roman-imperial-coin-with-isis-and-horus-on-the-reverse.359651/#post-4487679" class="internalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.cointalk.com/threads/roman-imperial-coin-with-isis-and-horus-on-the-reverse.359651/#post-4487679">https://www.cointalk.com/threads/roman-imperial-coin-with-isis-and-horus-on-the-reverse.359651/#post-4487679</a> for a further discussion of this coin. Some have questioned whether this scene is actually intended to depict Isis nursing the infant Horus, because Isis wears the &quot;wrong&quot; kind of headgear, namely a <i>polos</i> rather than the sun disk and horns -- even though that was originally an attribute of Hathor, not Isis -- or the stepped throne crown of Isis. I think that the skepticism is probably misplaced, given the absence of any other reasonable candidate who would be recognized as represented in this scene. Not, I believe, Julia Domna herself, the mother of two sons, not one, neither of them an infant. Especially given the fact that it&#039;s an Imperial coin, and as well known as the Isis/Horus story may already have been in Rome, I&#039;m not sure the details of Isis&#039;s crown were necessarily that familiar to a Roman audience. Besides, why else would she be depicted with a rudder, her foot on a prow -- Isis&#039;s exact stance on the well-known Isis Pharia coins of Alexandria?</p><p><br /></p><p>In any event, here is the first of my two new acquisitions depicting Isis and the infant Horus, with no doubt as to the subject. It&#039;s my first Roman Egyptian diobol -- representing 1/12 of a tetradrachm. (There were 6 obols to a drachm, and 4 drachms to a tetradrachm, so an obol was 1/24 of a tetradrachm and a diobol 1/12. See the table at p. 16 of&nbsp; Kampmann, Ursula &amp; Granschow, Thomas, <i>Die Münzen der römischen Münzstätte Alexandria</i> (2008).)</p><p><br /></p><p>Hadrian, AE Diobol, Year 16 (131/132 AD), Alexandria, Egypt Mint. Obv. Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from rear, ΑΥΤ ΚΑΙ - ΤΡΑΙ ΑΔΡΙΑ ϹƐΒ / Rev. Isis as mother, crowned with disk and horns, seated right on throne, offering left breast to infant Harpocrates (&quot;Horus-as-child&quot;) sitting on her knee crowned with skhent (the crown of Upper and Lower Egypt) [or wearing sidelock?]; on corners of back of throne, two hawks/falcons (also representing Horus), facing each other, each wearing skhent, L - IϚ [= Year 16] across fields. Emmett 1138.16; RPC [<i>Roman Provincial Coinage</i>] Vol. III 5813 (2015); RPC III Online at <a href="https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/3/5813" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/3/5813" rel="nofollow">https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/3/5813</a>;&nbsp; BMC 16 Alexandria 762 at p. 90 &amp; PL. XVI [Pool, Reginald Stuart, <i>A Catalog of the Greek Coins in the British Museum, Vol. 16, Alexandria</i> (London, 1892)]; Dattari (Savio) 1749; Köln 1046; K&amp;G 32.530. <i>Purchased from Shick Coins, Ashdod, Israel, Dec. 2020; Israel Antiquities Authority Export License No. 42927, 02/02/2021.</i></p><p><i><br /></i></p><p><i>[ATTACH=full]1273054[/ATTACH] </i></p><p><br /></p><p>Thus, Horus actually appears three times on this coin: once as the infant Horus (Harpocrates), and twice in his manifestation as the Horus falcon. The falcons clearly wear the skhent crown; I&#039;m not entirely sure whether Harpocrates wears the same crown, or whether that&#039;s simply the childhood sidelock in which he is known for wearing his hair. For comparison, here&#039;s my bronze Horus falcon, wearing a skhent (26th Dynasty, 2 1/8” H x 2 1/8” L x 3/4” D inc. integral base, purch. 1/27/1986, Harmer Rooke, NYC):</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1273056[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1273057[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Finally, here&#039;s my second recent acquisition depicting the Isis &amp; infant Horus theme</p><p><br /></p><p>Egypt, green faience amulet depicting Isis, wearing “stepped throne” crown (in form of hieroglyph for Isis&#039;s name, Queen of Throne)*, right breast bare, seated on elaborate chair with cross-hatched/basket pattern on sides; on her lap, her son the infant Horus (a/k/a Harpocrates, “Horus-the-child”), wearing sidelock resting upwards against her body; her left hand holds him up behind his head, with her right hand about to offer her breast to him. 60.3 mm. (2 3/8”) H, 30 mm D. <i>Purchased 1/10/2021, Explorer Ancient Art, NYC, ex. DW Collection, NJ (before 1981).</i></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1273061[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1273062[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1273063[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1273064[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>*See, e.g., <a href="https://egyptianmuseum.org/deities-isis" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://egyptianmuseum.org/deities-isis" rel="nofollow">https://egyptianmuseum.org/deities-isis</a> (Isis &quot;is known today by her Greek name Isis; however, the ancient Egyptians called her Aset. Her name translates to &#039;Queen of the Throne&#039; which is reflected in her headdress, which is typically a throne&quot;);<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isis" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isis" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isis</a> (&quot;The hieroglyphic writing of her name incorporates the sign for a throne, which Isis also wears on her head as a sign of her identity&quot;); <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-met/curatorial-departments/egyptian-art/temple-of-dendur-50/cult-and-decoration" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-met/curatorial-departments/egyptian-art/temple-of-dendur-50/cult-and-decoration" rel="nofollow">https://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-met/curatorial-departments/egyptian-art/temple-of-dendur-50/cult-and-decoration</a> (the fourth photo down shows a relief from the Temple of Dendur, depicting Isis wearing, on top of her headdress, &quot;a small stepped hieroglyph that depicts a throne and was used to write Isis&#039;s name&quot;); <a href="http://www.art-and-archaeology.com/asianartglossary.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.art-and-archaeology.com/asianartglossary.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.art-and-archaeology.com/asianartglossary.html</a> (referencing &quot;[t]he stepped-throne hieroglyph of Isis&quot;).</p><p><br /></p><p>****</p><p><br /></p><p>Small amulets and statuetttes/figurines of Isis nursing (or about to nurse) the infant Horus were very common in Ancient Egypt during the Late Period, most notably in bronze (and wearing the sun disk and horns), but also in faience, and wearing Isis&#039;s stepped throne crown, as on my artifact. See the examples from the Brooklyn Museum, the Louvre, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, at: <a href="https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/117027" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/117027" rel="nofollow">https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/117027</a>; <a href="https://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/statuette-isis-nursing-horus" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/statuette-isis-nursing-horus" rel="nofollow">https://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/statuette-isis-nursing-horus</a>; and <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/545969" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/545969" rel="nofollow">https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/545969</a> . To quote from the Met&#039;s description:</p><p><br /></p><p>&quot;In the Late Period, the popularity of this important goddess dramatically increased. She is nearly always depicted in anthropomorphic form, standing or seated on a throne. This statuette shows the goddess in her most beloved pose, nursing her son Horus (known also as the lactans pose). Other goddesses sometimes nurse Horus or other child gods, but Isis is preeminent among them in this role. She wears the horned crown that by the Late Period she had adopted from the goddess Hathor, as well as the vulture headdress that emphasized the role of goddesses as royal mothers. Horus, meanwhile, wears an amulet on his chest, a common feature for child gods.</p><p><br /></p><p>The large number of Isis statuettes in this particular pose demonstrate some of the qualities for which Isis was most valued in the first millennium BC: her role as a life-giver and protector. These types of statuettes were very common, dedicated not just to Isis cults, but seemingly to many temples and shrines, usually in association with Osiris and the child god Horus.&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>From the Louvre:</p><p><br /></p><p>&quot;During later periods, Egyptians produced many small bronze statuettes of their deities, which they then gave as tributes during pilgrimages to holy sites. Thousands of them have been found in concealed areas, where they were placed to make room for others. This image of Isis nursing her child only appeared during the last millennium BC. Prior to this time, this role was attributed to other goddesses, such as Mut and Hathor, the Celestial Cow, also called the Temple of Horus, whose cow horns were usually attributed to Isis at the time. This is a good example of a common image that was reproduced in varying degrees of craftsmanship. It is difficult to accurately determine the geographical provenance or the precise date for most of these objects, as Isis was viewed as the universal mother from an early time.&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>Please post anything Egyptian you like, that you haven&#039;t posted before or posted recently -- whether or not it&#039;s a coin, and whether or not it concerns Isis and/or Horus/Harpocrates.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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