Bidspirit auction | A Pair of Hand Carved

A Pair of Hand Carved Ethiopian Orthodox Wooden Prosphora Bread Seals - This pair of hand carved hardwood circular seals, known as mahtam, is used in the Ethiopian Orthodox tradition to stamp ritual Eucharistic bread. Both objects are crafted from a dark, dense wood with a polished, oily surface and a deep brown color. The first and larger seal features a complex, relief-carved face organized into a nine-panel grid. The central panel is divided into four quadrants containing stylized characters that represent the traditional christogram. Surrounding this are panels featuring geometric crosses, interlaced motifs, and a square section containing a three-by-three grid of recessed circular pits. The second seal is smaller with a smooth, plain base and a prominent, tapering square handle. The top face of this handle is incised with a cross-form divider creating four quadrants; these contain characters including a cross, a crescent shape, and vertical bars. The sides of the handles and the upper surfaces of the circular bases bear hand-incised characters. On the side of the handle of the smaller seal, the characters read I, S, Y followed by a digit resembling a 3. Around the handle of the larger seal, an inscription reads S 7 2 3 L X. These incised marks appear to be a combination of Ge'ez and stylized Greek characters common to Coptic liturgical iconography. The recessed areas of the carving on the primary faces retain light-colored mineral or flour residue from historical use. The seals are in good, used condition with evidence of age and liturgical use. The larger seal shows softening and rounding of the carved relief edges from repeated handling (photo 1). The smaller seal exhibits a significant vertical drying crack running through the center of the handle and partially into the base (photo 4). Both pieces show scattered surface scratches and minor abrasions consistent with wood age (photo 2 and 3). There are stable stress fractures in the wood grain on the undersides and handles (photo 5). No signs of modern repair are visible.