4,000-Year-Old Egyptian Model Boat and Bronze Cat Fetch £298,000 at London Auction

Another day, another Egyptian antiquity surfaces and is sold at an auction abroad. On Wednesday, an incredible wooden model boat dating back to Ancient Egypt’s Middle Period (2123-1797 B.C) has fetched a whopping £161,000 at a Bonhams Antiquities Auction in London.

So how did this model Egyptian boat sail its way into this auction? According to the Bonhams website, the boat was originally bought by British Army Officer Esmond Sinauer in Egypt in the early part of the 20th century, and passed by descent to the Scottish private collection from which it was consigned for sale.

The model of the boat is significant and important part of Egypt’s mythology, as they were considered the only way to travel in the afterlife. Historically, Ancient Egyptian tombs would be equipped with two boats, one with a crew preparing to use the wind to sail south, while the other boat would have a crew prepared to row North.

Sadly, the boat wasn’t the only piece of Ancient Egypt sold at this auction, as a late Egyptian nronze cat dating back to 664-30 B.C was also auctioned. The ancient cat that came back was estimated at £20,000 to £30,000 but managed to sell for over four times that amount fetching an incredible £137,000. So how did this historic piece of antiquity find its way to auction? According to the Bonhams website, the cat was acquired in the 1950s and became part of a well-known collection belonging to antiquities dealer Raymond Richardson.

"The wooden boat was an exceptionally fine work of particularly impressive dimensions which attracted a lot of pre-sale interest, reflected in keen bidding in the sale room, on the phones and on the internet. In a strong sale, a first-century bronze Egyptian cat also stood out, but many other pieces also exceeded their estimates,” explains Siobhan Quin, Bonhams Senior Specialist in Antiquities.

The auctions total sales reached £1,310,00.