Some may say it’s a sight for sore eyes.
A 2,800-year-old ancient Egyptian mummy head that had been locked away in a cupboard for decades has been put up for sale.
The precious artifact was brought to the UK by a British soldier during the First World War — and has been carbon dated to between 800BC and 750 BC.
A descendant of the soldier who had the priceless relic in their family’s possession for a century said it was kept away in a cupboard for decades because “It is not everyone’s cup of tea,” the Daily Mail reported.
Originally, the artifact was showcased under a glass dome, but after visitors began to find it disturbing the family decided to stash it away.
The ancient mummified head is going for an eye-popping PS20,000 — or nearly $25,000.
Since some relatives thought it was unseemly to auction the relic, one of soldier’s descendents put it up for sale.
“It’s ideal for it to go someplace where it can studied and appreciated,” said the Oxfordshire seller, who chose to remain anonymous.
“I’m hoping that a museum will pick up on the carbon dating and historical importance.”
While the relative is hoping to sell the priceless mummied head, he said he would consider lending it out if there are no takers.
“If it doesn’t sell, I will probably loan it to a museum where it can be on display anyway,” the relative added.
The head will be sold by Swan Fine Arts in Tetsworth. It is set to be auctioned off on Wednesday.
According to Matthew Hull of Swan Fine Art and Daily Mail, this artifact is a rare find.
“It’s very rare to see an Egyptian mummy head from the ancient world at public auction, particularly a piece with such superb preservation.”
According to Hull, the head going up for auction was mummified during the Third Intermediate Period of ancient Egypt, which was between 1070 BC and 664 BC.
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