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LOT 1396
Elamite Silver Beaker with Leopards
CIRCA 2500-1500 B.C.
3 3/8 in. (47 grams, 87 mm).
Sheet-silver pyxis with tapering sides and slightly curved base, everted rim; discoid lid with lip, impressed cruciform design with zigzags in the quadrants; sidewall with impressed frieze of leopards in profile, ring-and-dot and chased detailing to fur; some restoration.
ProvenanceUK private collection before 2000.
Acquired on the UK art market.
with TimeLine Auctions, 5 September 2024, no.1255.
Private collection, London, UK.
See von Bothmer, (ed.), Glories of the Past, Ancient Art from the Shelby White and Leon Levy Collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1991; Mahboubian, H., Elam – Art and Civilization of Ancient Iran, London, 2004, for discussion.
CONDITIONTimeLine 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:
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Persian Painted Miniature Leaf with Horse and Rider
Late 19th-early 20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £286
Hand-painted rectangular panel depicting a saddled horse and dismounted rider in a landscape; the horse with saddletree and cloth, integral stirrups; the rider with tight-fitting shirt and loose trousers gathered by a sash at the waist, riding boots, holding a riding crop; surrounded by concentric reveals in contrasting colours and decorative schemes. 50 grams, 34.5 x 23.7 cm
Private collection, UK. -
Sasanian Bronze Bowl
3rd-7th century A.D.Estimate: £180 - 240 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £90
Broad and squat with flared sidewall and rounded edge to the mouth, concentric rings to inner centre. 241 grams, 17.5 cm
Ex Abelita family collection, 1980s-2000s. -
Sumerian Terracotta Bulla
4th millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £468
A bulla with oval stamped impression of two animals. 147 grams, 60 mm
Specialised collection of cuneiform texts, the property of a London gentleman and housed in London before 1988. 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. Accompanied by a copy of a previous catalogue page.
Small globular and hollowed clay balls are defined as 'bulla'. They are also known as ‘bulla-envelopes', some of which are plain and some displaying epigraphic, zoomorphic and/or figural decoration, impressed by either cylinder or stamp seals. Bulla first emerged in Mesopotamia and their earliest occurrence can be traced to circa 8000 B.C. Most know decorated bullae come from the Uruk area and offer an insight into its culture. This bulla represents a religious scene, indicated by the combination of the pyramid-shaped byre and the 'sacred herd', which are seen on the early Uruk seals. The symbol of the Mother-Goddess, presented in conjunction with the representations of sheep herd and byre, gave such imagery symbolic significance. The impression with two sheep depicted under the byre, might have been impressed by a stamp seal of the early Uruk period.
