Loading, please wait...

Bactrian Manuscript Fragment of a Letter Bactrian Manuscript Fragment of a Letter Bactrian Manuscript Fragment of a Letter
Use mousewheel to zoom in and out, click to enlarge
Details

LOT 1351

Bactrian Manuscript Fragment of a Letter

6TH-7TH CENTURY AD

6 in. (5.57 grams, 15.5 cm).

A near-complete fragment of a letter in Avestan on leather, recto bearing eight lines of cursive script, faded but largely undamaged; verso bearing traces of at least two lines of text; irregular in shape.

Provenance

Collection of Bruce Ferrini, USA.
Central London gallery, acquired c.1994.
Property of a UK collector.

For UK buyers only, this item is not exportable from the UK.

Published

Sims-Williams, N., Bactrian Documents from Northern Afghanistan II: Letters and Buddhist Texts (Studies in the Khalili Collections Volume III), London: The Nour Foundation, 2012, pp.24, 106-107, and Bactrian Documents III: pl.169b, 170a.

CONDITION
VETTING:

TimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process


AUCTIONS:

TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.

LOT 1351

Bactrian Manuscript Fragment of a Letter

Sold for (Inc. bp): £468

Print page

RELATED LOTS
  • Mesopotamian Grey Mottled Stone Macehead
    Mesopotamian Grey Mottled Stone Macehead
    3rd-2nd millennium B.C.

    Sold for (Inc. bp): £117

    Oblate in profile and drilled vertically to accommodate a wooden shaft. 406 grams, 71 mm



    Ex 1990s collection and with a central London gallery.

    Lot Details

  • Sogdian Silver Cup with Incised Design
    Sogdian Silver Cup with Incised Design
    7th-8th century A.D.

    Estimate: £6,000 - 8,000 (+bp*)

    Opening Bid: £3,000

    Comprising a tapering sidewall with carination and convex underside, trumpet-shaped foot with beaded rim; D-shaped thumb-pad to the rim with narrow chamfered handle and spur beneath; frieze of fronds reserved against a pounced field. 67.7 grams, 86 mm



    Old Belgian private collection, 1970s. Acquired on the Brussels art market, 2008. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D'Amato. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12908-242700.

    Footed silver cups with ring handles were well known in Central Asia and were common in Sogdian silverwork of the 7th – 8th century A.D. The low beaded foot and the ring handle with lobed thumb rest are well documented in Sogdian silver attributed to the same period. The plant and floral decoration finds parallel with a silver bowl from Xijao (Marshak, 1999, fig.6), which shows the same low beaded foot of our cup. This decoration is also visible on a vessel from the Malaya Perescepina treasure, sent by the Emperor Heraclius to the Bulgarian Khan Kuvrat. Heraclius took it together with other precious objects as war booty after defeating the Sasanians in 627-628 A.D.

    Lot Details

  • Mesopotamian Clay Fertility Figure
    Mesopotamian Clay Fertility Figure
    4th-3rd millennium B.C.

    Sold for (Inc. bp): £156

    Stylised detailing to her face and hair, beaded necklace around her neck and small breasts; remains of outstretched arms; shallow U-shaped channel to reverse delineating her buttocks and spine. 225 grams, 11.5 cm high

    Fine condition.

    Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection. From the private collection of John Meredith, acquired since the 1990s; thence by descent.

    Lot Details

Stay up-to-date with the latest from TimeLine Auctions by joining our mailing list