Loading, please wait...
LOT 0923
Central Asian Seal Pendant with Spread Eagle
23RD-20TH CENTURY B.C.
1 1/8 in. (13.6 grams, 28 mm).
A bronze seal pendant in the form of an eagle with spread wings, with suspension loop to reverse; accompanied by a typed and signed scholarly note by W.G. Lambert, the late Professor of Assyriology at the University of Birmingham, 1970-1993, which states: '...This has the shape of a heraldic eagle: head sideways at the top, wings spread out, and tail feathers down. The face is flat and the eagle shape is hollowed out away from the edges. The back is generally convex, and has a big loop handle attached. The seal comes from west-central Asia and dates to c.2300-2000 B.C. It is an attractive piece and is in very good condition.' [No Reserve]
Provenance1980s-early 1990s collection, UK.
Accompanied by an original typed and signed scholarly note issued by the late Professor W.G. Lambert.
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.
-
Old Babylonian Pictographic Tablet
2600-2400 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,300
A roughly pillow-shaped clay tablet bearing pictographs to one face. 47 grams, 50 mm
Acquired early 1990s. Ex private American collection; thence by descent. Private Swiss collection since 1998. -
Western Asiatic Terracotta Jug with Net Painting
1st millennium B.C.Estimate: £200 - 300 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £88
A bulbous terracotta jug with trumpet-style neck, chamfered rim with bridge to conical spout and integral strap handle, polychrome painted frieze incorporating stylised 'net' motifs between concentric plain bands of varying thicknesses and geometric motifs to the handle and spout. 1.15 kg, 21 cm high
Acquired before 2000. Property of a London, UK, gentleman. Property of an Essex, UK, gentleman. -
Large Babylonian Cuneiform Tablet Fragment Concerning the Study of the Sacrificial Liver
Late 2nd millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,120
A large clay tablet fragment bearing panels of cuneiform text to the principal face, separated by plain parallel lines; remains of cuneiform text to the reverse; a Babylonian treatise concerning the study of the liver of a sacrificial lamb; repaired. 533 grams, 15.6 cm wide
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. The collection is exceptional for the variety of types, including some very rare and well preserved examples.
The prophetic practise of hepatoscopy, was called in Akkadian barûtu, the art of divination. It is a collection of omens in standard Akkadian (including many sumerograms) each composed of a protasis (description of the configuration of the organ at the time of observation by the diviner) followed by the apodosis giving the omen itself. The fragment preserves the beginning of the treaty on the face and the end on the reverse. Among the various omens is a so-called historical one concerning King Sargon of Akkad (ca. 2350 BCE). A colophon indicates that the text is a copy of an ancient original. The name of the scribe is Mudammiq-Adad. His work was verified by Ur-Nintinuga, a Sumerian name from the Cassite period.
