Details

LOT 0226

Large West Iranian Grey Stone Cylinder Seal with Figures

CIRCA 1200-1000 B.C.

1 3/4 in. (23.9 grams, 45 mm).

Accompanied by a copy of an old scholarly note, typed and signed by W.G. Lambert, late Professor of Assyriology, University of Birmingham, 1970-1993, which states: ' Cylinder seal of black stone, 45 x 20 mm., condition fine. This seal shows three walking figures in a row, to be identified as gods from their headdresses. They are all clad in the same garb: long robes reaching the ankles, with a fringe reaching from the shoulder to the bottom, and another one around the bottom. The first one carried two rodents by their tails in one hand and holds a small scimitar in the other. The middle one holds up a twig of vegetation in one hand and a short rod in the other. The rear deity holds a twig in each hand, with (apparently) a string falling from each hand to the ground. There is a rodent sideways filling space between the second and last gods, and for a terminal there is a lozenge, a horned animal with front and rear legs close together, and a simple cross. This is a rare seal from west Iran, dating to c. 1200-1000 B.C. The twig as a divine symbol is well known from seals of this period excavated at Susa and Choga Zanbil, and other details are paralleled, such as the angular depiction of the hands holding the various objects.'; supplied with a museum-quality impression.

Provenance

From the private collection of a North American lady, formed 1970s-early 1990s, with collection reference no.P27.
Accompanied by a copy of a scholarly note, typed and signed by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert dated January 1990.
This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.