Ca. 2055-1650 BC. Middle Kingdom. A model of a hedgehog. It has a black-glazed face with incised features and two long upright ears, four small legs, and a large domed body made up of rows of square bumps to represent the spines. Hedgehogs were symbols of rebirth as they were observed to disappear underground for lengthy periods of time and then reappear on the surface when food was in abundance. There was also a magical-medical spell used to cure baldness, which involved placing a hedgehog on the scalp of a bald man in the hopes that some of its spikiness would transfer to him. Size: L:77mm / W:125mm ; 1.3kg. From a London private family collection; formerly acquired on the UK art market in the 1960s - 1970s; thence by descent.