Egyptian Scarabs and Magical Gems from the Collection of Constantine Schmidt-Ciazynski

Cracow: Jagiellonian University Press, 1989. 1st Edition . Soft cover. Very Good/No Jacket. 24x17 cm. ISBN: 83-01-09530-X Description: 104 pages, 155 photographs, 900 vols. issued Condition: very good Weight: 245g. Joachim Sliwa, Egyptian Scarabs and Magical Gems from the Collection of Constantine Schmidt-Ciazynski, Jagiellonian University Press, Cracow 1989 INTRODUCTION 1. CONSTANTINE SCHMIDT-CIAZYNSKI AND HIS COLLECTION 2. EGYPTIAN SCARABS, SCARABOIDS AND PLAQUES 2.1. Objects with royal names 2.1.1. From Spss-k3[f] to Nb-m3ct-Re 2.1.2. Mn-hpr-Rc- type 2.2. Objects with figural representations 2.3. Objects with names and representations of divinities 2.4. Objects with phrases 2.5. Objects with representations of animals 2.6. Objects with representations of symbols 2.7. Objects with undecorated bases 2.8. Beetles with naturalistically shaped lower parts 3. MAGICAL GEMS 3.1. Objects with representations of Egyptian gods and motifs 3.2. Objects with representations of Sarapis 3.3. Objects with representations of Osiris-Canopus 3.4. Object with representation of a snake-legged god with a cock's head 3.5. Object with representation of Pantheos 3.6. Objects with representations of Chnoubis 3.7. Objects with representations of other Graeco-Roman deities and motifs 3.8. Objects with zodiacal signs 3.9. Objects with representations of other animals 3.10. Varia 3.11. Modern imitations ABBREVIATIONS PLATES More than a century ago, in 1886, the National Museum in Cracow enriched its collection with an extremely interesting assemblage of glyptics, re­ceived from Constantine Schmidt-Ciazynski (1817-1889). Towards the close of the 19th century, C. Schmidt-Ciazynski was the owner of the con­siderable collection of art works, including also antique gems and cameos. Apart from those, the collection comprises moreover modern specimens with the signatures of the Pichlers, Girometti, Berini, Brown, Marchant and other most eminent engravers, as well as later ones, dating back to the second half of the 19th century. The collection's last, distinguished part of 12,517 items was purchased on exceptionally favourable terms by the Museum. A more detailed review of the hitherto not scientifically described glyptics collection of Constantine Schmidt-Ciazynski, presently in the Department of Artistic Handicraft of the National Museum in Cracow, has made it possible to distinguish from among it a highly interesting group of 50 Egyptian scarabs, scaraboids and plaques, and also the magi­cal gems, unique in Polish collections, including 105 items. The examina­tion of both these groups of objects makes the basic purpose of the pre­sent work. However, it seemed to me also quite an important task to recover, so far as possible from the preserved sources, the unusually ab­sorbing, yet almost forgotten figure of the antiquarian, the uncommon lover of gems and cameos, whose collection - very valuable also for scientific purposes - is now housed in Cracow. As can be seen from the catalogue presented below, there are e. g. some items among the so-called magical gems in the collection of Schmidt-Ciazynski which can be only rarely found in even world-renowned collections.