Mesopotamian Compartmented Stone Vessel

Restrung on a cotton thread, composed mainly of cylindrical, biconical and tabular beads. 62.9 grams, 36 cm



From the family collection of a Hampstead gentleman; formerly acquired in the 1980s.

A matching pair of penannular armbands, each with a round-section body and dragon-head terminals, one terminal on each band separately made; the dragons with ring-and-dot eyes and linear decoration, slit mouths and flaring nostrils. 1.19 kg total, 13-13.1 cm



Ex London, UK gallery, 1971-early 2000s. Private collection, London.

Bronze armbands of this scale and quality are characteristic of Luristan, an important centre of metal production in western Iran during the early 1st millennium B.C. The region is renowned for its distinctive cast bronzes, including weapons, horse trappings, and items of personal adornment, often decorated with powerful animal imagery. The dragon, with its elongated body and open jaws, was a common motif in Luristan art, symbolising strength, protection, and the supernatural. Armbands with dragon-head terminals likely carried an apotropaic function, serving both as impressive ornaments and as protective charms for the wearer. Monumental examples such as this pair are rare survivals, attesting to the high status of their original owner and the extraordinary skill of Luristan bronze workers.

With frieze in two registers depicting running animals, facing figure with arms raised and other items; supplied with a museum-quality impression. 4.42 grams, 24 mm



Ex 'S' collection, London, UK. 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 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.