PARIS.- On May 15th, Artcurial will disperse the Bouvier collections during its auction dedicated to archeology and Oriental Arts. Gathered mainly between 1930 and 1960 when Maurice Bouvier taught law in Alexandria, this set is comprised of 250 lots.

It represents all facets of Egyptian civilization: from the Predynastic Period, with arrowheads and black top vases dating from the 4th Millennium BC, from the Muslim period of the 12th century, with jewelry and textiles, in parallel with the Pharaonic and Coptic period.

Maurice Bouvier, a pronounced taste for ancient and Muslim civilization
For the majority of his working life, Maurice Bouvier (1901-1981), a lawyer from the Jura region of France, works at the University of Alexandria where he teaches law between 1930 and 1960. He nurtures his love for antique and Muslim civilisation in Egypt where he starts to collect, acquiring objects from simple peddlers or occasional vendors as well as from Cairo and Alexandria’s greatest antique dealers.

During these years, he acquires various types of artefacts: Oushebtis, Coptic era terra cottas terra cottas, Islamic textiles, bronzes or jewellery. These rich and varied collections bears witness to his astuteness, his desire to submerge himself into ancient civilisations and an aesthetic and scientific interest for the pieces, far from any speculative consideration. As evidence of the quality of the pieces, certain works purchased in the 1930’s, then unknown, were then exhibited across Europe.

Collection of more than 50 Oushebtis
Artcurial will present a collection of impressive Oushebtis. Including close to 50 diverse models in wood, ceramic or alabaster, the set traces the stylistic and symbolic evolution of these Egyptian funerary items.

Called Shaouabtis (in wood) before the year 1000 BC, initially image of the deceased, these statuettes are then renamed Oushebtis (respondent) and hold agricultural tools allowing them to substitute for the deceased in the accomplishment of farm work in the afterlife. Over time, the deceased brought an increasing amount of the figures, usually one for each day of the year or for each task (sowing, harvesting, grinding...)

An Oushebti representing Neferibresaneith, royal chancellor of Lower Egypt and administrator of the palace, will be part of the set. In light green ceramic, represented standing, holding the two tilling tools and coiffed with the tripartite wig, this 26th dynasty statuette (circa 664 to 525 BC) belongs to a broader set of 336 Oushebtis found in 1929 during the discovery of the tomb of Neferibresaneith, high official of the Saïte court by British Egyptologist Cecil Mallaby Firth. All sold individually by the Museum of Cairo, they are now part of the greatest museums and private collections (estimate: €8,000 - 10,000).

Egyptian votive statuettes
Maurice Bouvier and the custodians of his collections also gathered a set of Egyptian bronze votives. Made in small quantities prior to the 1st Millennium BC, they multiply during the New Empire, when Egyptian sculptors and goldsmiths develop great dexterity in bronze-working techniques. These statues are the representation of the divinity from whom the faithful seek attention. The practice is based on the principle of gift and counter-gift: By offering to the Divinity a body through which it will be venerated, the mortal hopes that in return he will be granted prosperity on Earth and in the Afterlife.

A statue of Neith, goddess and creator of the world with the help of her seven arrows, Mistress of weaving, domestic arts and of women, the protector of sleep, of sarcophagi and canopic jars plays an important part in this chapter of the auction. Made in dark brown patina bronze and inlaid with gold and silver, this exhibit dated from the 26th dynasty (toward 664 to 525 BC) was exhibited in several Swiss museums (estimate: €20,000 - 25,000).

Coptic Art Objects
The Bouvier collections present all the facets of Egyptian civilization including the Coptic period located between pharaonic Egypt and Muslim Egypt (3rd to the 12th century). Objects bearing witness to this civilization have for the most part been discovered in funerary context deposited in the graves to accompany the deceased into the Afterlife. These vestiges of a long local tradition have thus revealed a vast quantity of everyday objects: jewels, toiletry objects, work tools, musical instruments, etc...

Stonework among the Copts marks a break with ancient statuary. Sculpture in the round is indeed abandoned for the benefit of relief sculpture. However, Antiquity remains a constantly renewed source of inspiration for the Copts. Such is the case of the 6th century limestone Papnouthis funerary stele which reveals a pronounced taste for decorative ornamentation (geometric, plant and animal patterns) to the detriment of human figuration and narration (estimate: €6,000 - 8,000).

Egyptian jewellery from the foremost Cairote antique dealers
The symbols of the evolution of styles and civilization values, jewellery logically take an important place in this set. With nearly 60 carefully chosen and itemized lots, this selection reflects the infinite diversity of production (rings, necklaces, amulets, etc...) and the dexterity of Egyptian, Achaemenids, Greek, Roman and Islamic craftsmen.

Purchased from Cairo’s foremost antique shops such as Khawam, Tano, Nahman, or having a renowned provenance as the Kettaneh collection, these jewels are for the most part in gold and silver. Important to note, in ancient Egypt, silver was rarer and more expensive due to the absence of nearby deposits.

Among these jewels, Artcurial dispersed a 5th century gold fibula. Utilitarian and ornamental, the brooch was used to clip, maintain and adjust pieces of clothing (estimate: €4,000 - 6,000).

Islamic fabrics
According to the historian Maurice Lombard, Muslim civilisation was the textile civilization; indeed, Muslim civilization demonstrated a rich and unique production throughout the centuries. The sumptuous character of this craft did not escape Maurice Bouvier who, as early as the 1930’s, began to acquire Islamic fabrics.

The set presented here mainly focuses on the Abbasid (750-1258) and the Fatimids (9091171) caliphates period under which the textile industry experienced unprecedented affluence. At the time, the major cities of Egypt, Iran or Iraq are equipped with private workshops devoted exclusively to the production of fabrics for the caliph. The pieces issued from these productions are recognizable by their inscriptions naming the reigning caliphate.

The Tiraz, from the Persian word for embroidery, refers to the woven, embroidered or painted decorative bands which adorned the turbans and robes of honour. These prestigious textiles were worn by the Sovereign or offered as a gift to distinguished guests. Artcurial will present an early 10th century Abbasid Tiraz from the caliph AlMuqtadir Al-Qadir. In cotton and silk fabric, it is embroidered with two lines of dark blue coufiques inscriptions and carries and estimate of €8,000 - 10,000.