Bible treasures

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Lotus cup. Egyptian glazed earthenware from the 22nd dynasty (945–715 BC). Height:15 cm. swissinfo.ch

Good luck amulets in Egyptian glazed earthenware. 3-4 centimetres. (664-525 BC) swissinfo.ch

Images of gods in Egyptian glazed earthenware. Height 4.3cm. (approx.1400-656 BC) swissinfo.ch

Limestone stele, 46cm high, dedicated to the god Amon, probably fashioned in Thebes (around 1400–1250 BC) swissinfo.ch

Limescale relief bearing traces or the original colours, 36cm. (2500–2350 BC) swissinfo.ch

The Memphis Triad: Ptah (a), Sekhmet (b) son Nefertem (c), and the bull Apis (d). Between 8 and 20cm high, the figurines were sculpted between the 7th and 1st century BC swissinfo.ch

A bound Canaanite. Egyptian sculpture from the Roman era, wood, 20cm, high swissinfo.ch

Scarab amulets. Egypt, 14th-12th century BC swissinfo.ch

Lapis lazuli and glazed steatite scarabs from Amarna, Egypt dating back to the rule of Akhenaton (1355-1337 BC) swissinfo.ch

Part of the side of a coffin containing a mummified ibis, 46cm, 400-200 BC swissinfo.ch

Papyrus fragment with writing in red and black ink, probably from Thebes, 3rd century BC swissinfo.ch

Earthenware bowl, 18.5cm in diameter, 6-5 millennium BC swissinfo.ch

Terracotta statuette, 7.6cm high, 6400-5800 BC swissinfo.ch

Mesopotamian lapis lazuli seal, 2.9cm high, 2200-2000 BC. swissinfo.ch

Haematite seal, 2cm high, northern Syria, around 1850-1720 BC. swissinfo.ch

Scroll of the book of Esther, parchment, 11.3cm high, 2.95m long, 18-19 century BC swissinfo.ch

Coins bearing the image of Christ, 692-695 BC. swissinfo.ch

Ottoman koran, early 19th century swissinfo.ch

Veil with amulets, north of the Negev, after 1910. swissinfo.ch

Terracotta camel, 13.5cm high, Arabia, 600-400 BC. swissinfo.ch

Fragments of a military diploma, 158 BC. swissinfo.ch

Statuette of an ibis, associated with Thot, god of arts and wisdom. Bronze, wood and coloured stucco. Probably 26th dynasty (664-525 BC) swissinfo.ch

Mummy of pelegrine falcon (a), an incarnation of the god Horus, 36cm high, Egypt, 4-2 century BC. Fragment of a coffin (b) decorated with the Horus falcon, 21cm high. (10-9 century BC) swissinfo.ch

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The Bible+Orient collection in Fribourg offers fascinating insights into daily life in the Ancient Near East.

After the Cairo Museum and the British Museum, it holds the third-biggest collection of amulets and Egyptian scarabs in the world. From ancient times to the present, the 15,000 pieces show the connections between the three religions that believe in one God. (Photos: Bible+Orient Museum)