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LOT 0213
Aramaic Magical Bowl Bearing an Incantation Against Evil Spirits
4TH-8TH CENTURY A.D.
7 5/8 in. (692 grams, 19.5 cm wide).
A ceramic flat-based bowl, inscribed in spiral from the bottom inner wall to the rim with Aramaic text, and on the outer rim.
ProvenanceEarly 1990s London collection.
Acquired on the UK art market.
From a private collection, Lancashire, UK
Cf. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, accession number: 80.001.0001.
FootnotesAramaic incantation bowls are particular to the Sassanian period and have been found in the regions of modern Iraq. These simple ceramic bowls, also known as magic bowls, each contain an Aramaic inscription, written in ink, which spirals from the centre. The bowls seem to have played an important part in domestic life. For example, during excavation in Nippur in 1889, one or more incantation bowls were found in each house together with domestic artefacts, most often in doorways or under floorboards in the corner of rooms. The bowls are predominantly apotropaic, and the inscriptions tend to protect their owners from misfortunes such as child-birth, illness and evil spirits.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0213
Aramaic Magical Bowl Bearing an Incantation Against Evil Spirits
Sold for (Inc. bp): £780
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1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £156
A gold pendant with tablet-shaped stone body wrapped in a sheet-gold sleeve, granulated bead and suspension loop above, bulbous dangle below. 2.26 grams, 31 mm high
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection. -
Western Asiatic Alabaster Dish
Circa 1600 B.C.Estimate: £300 - 400 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £100
A rectangular alabaster dish with classic Middle Bronze Age geometric schemes to the sidewalls and rim. 45 grams, 54mm
Acquired from Harmer Rooke galleries, New York, in 1986. From the collection of a West London, UK, gentleman. -
Jewish Silver Architectural Wedding Ring
19th-20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £598
An architectural silver wedding ring composed of a rectangular-section hoop bearing the words ‘mazel tov’ (good fortune) in Hebrew characters; roughly cushion-shaped bezel with large openwork building above, likely representing Solomon’s temple or a synagogue, hinge and clasp at the base, opening to a model of what is likely a representation of the marriage contract which lifts out of its setting to reveal a void; incised stylised detailing to the building with two handprints placed over the arched doorway; Hebrew text to both principal faces of the bezel with wreaths below reading 'קול חתן וקול כלה' to one side and 'קול ששון וקול שמחה' to the other, together forming a quotation from Jeremiah 33:10-11: 'The voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride'. 107 grams, 10.4 cm overall, 19.08 mm internal diameter (approximate size British S, USA 9, Europe 20, Japan 19)
From a UK private collection.
A Jewish wedding consists of the signing of a marriage contract (ketubah) and the gift of a token, usually a ring. The ring was generally worn only during the ceremony and is often made in the form of a miniature building, signifying the new household as well as the Temple in Jerusalem. Traditionally, the ring had to belong to the groom and to be made of a precious metal not set with any gemstones. The Earliest Jewish wedding rings were found in the medieval treasure hoards of Erfurt in Germany and Colmar in France. The description of a wedding in 1400 by Rabbi Jakob hal Lewi Mölln (or Mishagin) made the importance of the ring clear: 'After the blessing, the Rabbi called two witnesses. He showed them the wedding ring and made them bear witness that it was worth at least a heller. Then he enjoined them to make sure that the groom fulfilled his marriage vow by saying the words 'By this ring let thou be given to me by the laws of Moses and of Israel'. He then put the ring on the bride's finger next to the thumb.'
