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LOT 0292
Amlash Terracotta Horse Rhyton
10TH CENTURY B.C.
14 1/2 in. (2.1 kg, 37 cm).
Hollow-formed rhyton with four splayed legs, curved neck with tall mane, loop handle forming the tail; filler hole to the middle of the back, spout to the chest; incised hatched bands to the mane and flank.
ProvenanceSakae Art Gallery, Nagoya, Japan, 1982.
with Aaron Gallery, acquired from the above.
Accompanied by thermoluminescence analysis report no.N121q65 by Oxford Authentication.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12822-241329.
Cf. for a Parthian pottery horse vessel of similar typology, Christie’s, Antiquities, 1st October 2015, catalogue, London, 2015, no.50, p.35.
FootnotesAmlash terracotta rhytons, significant objects of this culture, are ancient Near Eastern terracotta vessels, dating back to around 1000 BC, often in the shape of animals, particularly zebu bulls. Rhytons were used for holding and drinking wine or other liquids, and characterised by their detailed animal forms and often featuring incised details.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0292
Amlash Terracotta Horse Rhyton
Estimate £6,000 - 8,000€6,960 - 9,280 (for guidance only)$8,100 - 10,800 (for guidance only)
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Luristan Bronze Spearhead Blade
14th-10th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £338
With rounded shoulders and square-sectioned mid-rib running to the blade tip; short tang with fastening hole. 245 grams, 40 cm
Ex Abelita family collection, 1980s-2000s.
The spearhead belongs to the type VI spearhead of the Khorasani classification. It is characterised by a long blade and short tang, slightly rounded shoulders and pronounced midrib. Similar weapons were excavated by Prof. Negahban in the royal cemetery of Marlik. -
Neo-Babylonian Stone Duck Weight Collection
800-600 B.C.Estimate: £1,000 - 1,400 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £500
Each carved in the round as a duck with its head laid back along its spine; one drilled for suspension, one with old label to the underside reading '102/2, 11.7.90'. 121 grams total, 22-48 mm
UK private collection before 2000. Acquired on the UK art market. Private collection, London, UK. -
Sumerian Terracotta Bulla
4th millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £468
A bulla with oval stamped impression of two animals. 147 grams, 60 mm
Specialised collection of cuneiform texts, the property of a London gentleman and housed in London before 1988. Thence by descent to family members. Examined by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert FBA (1926-2011), historian, archaeologist, and specialist in Assyriology and Near Eastern archaeology, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The collection is exceptional for the variety of types, including some very rare and well preserved examples. Accompanied by a copy of a previous catalogue page.
Small globular and hollowed clay balls are defined as 'bulla'. They are also known as ‘bulla-envelopes', some of which are plain and some displaying epigraphic, zoomorphic and/or figural decoration, impressed by either cylinder or stamp seals. Bulla first emerged in Mesopotamia and their earliest occurrence can be traced to circa 8000 B.C. Most know decorated bullae come from the Uruk area and offer an insight into its culture. This bulla represents a religious scene, indicated by the combination of the pyramid-shaped byre and the 'sacred herd', which are seen on the early Uruk seals. The symbol of the Mother-Goddess, presented in conjunction with the representations of sheep herd and byre, gave such imagery symbolic significance. The impression with two sheep depicted under the byre, might have been impressed by a stamp seal of the early Uruk period.
