Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 1299
Mesopotamian Rock Crystal Cylinder Seal with Animals
CIRCA 7TH CENTURY B.C.
3/4 in. (5.25 grams, 18 mm).
With frieze in two registers: above, mainly running felines; below, addorsed pairs of gryphons sitting and bovines resting, solar disc above; supplied with a museum-quality impression.
Provenance
Ex London, UK, collection, by family descent before 1988.
Accompanied by a previous catalogue information slip.
VETTING:
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.
RELATED LOTS
-
Bactrian Style Alabaster Chalice
20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £65
With squat, bell-shaped bowl, everted rim and tapering cylindrical stem. 2.4 kg, 27 cm high
Ex London, UK, collection, 1990s. -
.jpg)
Western Asiatic Bronze Rhyton Bull Head
Early 1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £2,080
Hollow-formed head of a bull with short curved horns, large bulbous eyes, lateral scooped ears, short muzzle with flared nostrils, dewlap beneath; possibly from a rhyton; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 1.3 kg total, 22 cm high including stand
Excellent condition, very rare.
Acquired between 1980-1983. From the collection of a London, UK, gentleman. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12019-213616.
The rhyton was dipped into a krater and held above the drinker's mouth with the spout covered by a thumb, then opened to release a stream of wine into the mouth. The bull was a symbol of man’s control over the nature. Not only were these heads used to serve wine in the banquets, but they were also destined to hold blood from sacrificial animals, that was collected and then poured on the ground as a libation. -
.jpg)
Holy Land Pottery Dipper Cup
Bronze Age, 16th-14th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £33
Round-bottomed with strap handle and thumb-spur. 209 grams, 90 mm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent.
