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LOT 0212
Bactrian Stone Female 'Princess' Idol
BACTRIA-MARGIANA, LATE 3RD-2ND MILLENNIUM B.C.
3 3/4 in. (540 grams total, 95 mm high).
Carved as a seated human figure, body with rows of overlapping tufts of fur, set with a bald head carved from cream stone with semi-naturalistic detailing to the face; a separate wig with wavy hair, and separately modelled hands.
ProvenancePalace Galleries, New York, early 2000s.
Acquired by the current owner from the above.
Private collection of a North American lady.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13372-256950.
See Aruz, J., Art of The First Cities: The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2003, pp. 367-368, for discussion and similar examples; cf. Hiebert, F. and Cambon, P. eds., Afghanistan: Crossroads of the Ancient World, The British Museum Press, 2011, pp.71-76, for discussion and comparable objects.
FootnotesThis wonderful composite stone sculpture of a seated female figure with finely carved features is typical of the area of Bactria-Margiana, from the late 3rd to early 2nd millennium B.C. Among the few three-dimensional images assigned to this period in Central Asia are a group of stone female figures seated or squatting on a platform and wearing a pattern-decorated robe, perhaps imitating sheep's fleece.
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Mesopotamian Steatite Bowl with Animals and Palm Trees
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Acquired by a Swiss family in the mid-1980s to late 1990s, thence by descent. Private collection, Switzerland, since the late 1990s. 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.13026-246787.
In Mesopotamia ancient stone-carvers produced a variety of vessels from soft soapstone (steatite) and pale yellow alabaster, along with jewellery. They include cylindrical boxes, cups, high open-rim vases and a few globular jars. Among it the most prominent products were the cups with tall, slender stalks, apparently intended for religious purposes. The repertoire of motifs of the ‘Intercultural Style’ includes vegetal, architectural, and abstract or naturalistic representations of people and animals, depicted in a carved and inlaid technique. -
Mesopotamian Terracotta Cuneiform Tablet
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Small rectangular tablet with impressed text on four sides. 24.1 grams, 37 mm
Specialised collection of cuneiform texts, the property of a London gentleman and housed in London before 1992. 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. This small collection is exceptional for the variety of types, including some very rare and well preserved examples.
