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LOT 0245
Bactrian Camel Applique
3RD-2ND MILLENNIUM B.C.
6 3/4 in. (245 grams total, 17.5 cm including frame).
A finely modelled two-humped camel, shown in a dynamic pose, possibly in the act of kneeling and balancing its body weight on its bent back and front legs; mounted in a display frame.
ProvenanceEx London, UK, gallery, 1971-early 2000s.
Property of a London gentleman.
Cf. Sarianidi, V., Myths of Ancient Bactria and Margiana on its Seals and Amulets, Moscow, 1998, fig.110, for similar; cf. also the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession no.53.117.1, for a similar statuette.
FootnotesCamels were a symbol of wealth and well-being. The importance of the Bactrian camel is attested in the ancient sources. The two-humped Bactrian camel, object of many seal representations, was already widespread in North India during the first quarter of the 2nd millennium B.C. It was probably an Aryan introduction. The Mitanni came from Bactria and Margiana and maintained a close connection with their regions of origin, via Khorasan, as can be suggested by the presence of Bactrian camels on the Mitanni seals.
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