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_900x900.jpg "Luristan Bronze Horse Bit Cheek-Pieces Modelled as Winged Gryphons")
_200x200.jpg "Luristan Bronze Horse Bit Cheek-Pieces Modelled as Winged Gryphons")
.jpg "Luristan Bronze Horse Bit Cheek-Pieces Modelled as Winged Gryphons")
LOT 0221
Luristan Bronze Horse Bit Cheek-Pieces Modelled as Winged Gryphons
8TH–7TH CENTURY B.C.
4 1/8 - 4 1/4 in. (10 1/4 in.) (423 grams total, 10.4-10.7 cm (1.07 kg total, 26 cm wide including stand)).
Comprising a matched pair of cheek-pieces, each a winged gryphon standing on a baseline with head turned to face the viewer, curled tail to rump, lateral horns to the brow; pierced at the shoulder to accept the bit; mounted on a custom-made stand. [2]
ProvenanceA.P. family collection, Europe, from 1969, partly transferred to the United Kingdom in 1981.
London art market, after 2000.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12975-245210.
Cf. similar in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, under accession no.32.161.24.
FootnotesHorse equipment was an important symbol of status and power in the Iron Age Near East. Elaborate bits with decorated cheek-pieces were not only practical items for controlling horses but also served a display function, reflecting the wealth and rank of their owners. The sphinx, a creature combining human and animal features, was a common protective figure in the art of the period. Winged sphinxes, in particular, were associated with divine guardianship and the protection of rulers and warriors. The use of such imagery on horse gear underscored the prestige of cavalry and chariotry in the 8th–7th century BCE, when mounted warfare played a central role in the expansion of Near Eastern empires.
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LOT 0221
Luristan Bronze Horse Bit Cheek-Pieces Modelled as Winged Gryphons
Estimate £2,500 - 3,500€2,900 - 4,060 (for guidance only)$3,380 - 4,730 (for guidance only)
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Western Asiatic Black Stone Mould for Female Figure
2000-1700 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £390
Tongue-shaped mould fragment with a recessed female figure on the upper face, 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: 'Upper Portion of Mould in Black Stone, 39 x 29 x 10 mm. This mould served to make metal figurines of a nude female figure. It is preserved from the thighs up, and is in very good state of preservation. The figure is worked in much detail: the hair is carefully arranged on the head, she has large earrings, five strings of beads around the neck; she holds her hands under her breasts, and the pubic hair is carefully marked. The fine quality, detailed work of this piece is most unusual. It dates to c. 1200 - 1700 B.C and comes from Iraq or an adjacent area.' 23.43 grams, 38 mm
UK private collection, acquired 1990-1993. Accompanied by a copy of a scholarly note, typed and signed by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert in 1991. -
Mesopotamian Mottled Grey Stone Macehead
3rd-2nd millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £117
Piriform with vertical socket expanding towards the narrower end. 580 grams, 82 mm
Ex 1990s collection and with a central London gallery. -
Sabaean Alabaster Bull
3rd-1st century B.C.Estimate: £3,500 - 4,500 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £1,750
Carved in the round with integral rectangular base; of sturdy build with thick shoulders, rump and legs; latticed hair texture to the brow. 1.14 kg, 14 cm wide
Mrs Janssens, Belgium, 1970s. Private collection, London, UK. Accompanied by a copy of an Art Loss Register certificate, no.S000119291. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12980-245246.
In Sabaean religion, the bull signalled strength, fertility, and divine protection, and is often linked by scholarship with the moon-god Almaqah, the principal deity of the kingdom. Small alabaster figures of this type were likely set up as temple offerings or served as fittings within cultic furnishings; flat undersides or discreet mounting points on some examples suggest attachment to a larger ensemble.
