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LOT 0209
Old Babylonian Alabaster Vessel with Recumbent Lamassu
EARLY 2ND MILLENNIUM B.C.
7 3/4 in. (781 grams, 19.5 cm (1.12 kg total including stand)).
Deep elongated vessel, carved with an image of a reclining Lamassu on one side, the hind legs and the right front leg tucked beneath the body, the left front leg raised on the side of the head, the head modelled in the half-round with a characteristic long beard and hair framing the face; accompanied by a display stand.
ProvenanceFrom an important London-Geneva collection, formed before 1988, by family descent.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13371-258817.
Cf. a similar, slightly smaller vessel in the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Philadelphia, inv. B17087, published in Aruz, J. (ed.), Art of the First Cities. The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus, New York - New Haven - London, 2003, catalogue no. 69 ('Pouring vessel'); see also for images of early Lamassu Frankfort, H., More Sculpture from the Diyala Region, OIP 60, Chicago, 1943, pls.49-51.
FootnotesThe Lamassu was a protective deity related to several Mesopotamian civilisations (Assyrian in particular, where it was represented as a winged bull-man). They were considered beneficial and protective spirits, guardians of the doors with an apotropaic function, destined to ward off dark or hostile forces.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0209
Old Babylonian Alabaster Vessel with Recumbent Lamassu
Estimate £3,000 - 4,000€3,480 - 4,640 (for guidance only)$4,050 - 5,400 (for guidance only)
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Sasanian Marble Bifacial Amulet with Animals
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From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s. -
Large Sasanian Clay Bulla with Seal Impressions
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Domed body with four seal impressions, one showing the standing nimbate figure of blessing Saint Basil with the Greek inscription 'Αγιος Βα[σι]λ', one with a cross, and two other smaller impressions. 34 grams, 46 mm
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Large West Central Asian Bronze Six-Spoked Wheel Seal Matrix
Circa 2300-2000 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £124
Openwork seal formed as a spoked wheel, accompanied by an old scholarly note, typed and signed by W.G. Lambert, late Professor of Assyriology, University of Birmingham, 1970-1993, which states: 'Stamp Seal of Bronze, 43 x 43 x 12 mm. This is round, with flat face and flat back, on which a loop handle is mounted. The design, which is both compartmented and open-work, consists of a rosette, with six 'rays' off a central small circular band, and a plain outer band surrounded the whole, divided into 17 segments. This comes from west central Asia and dates to c. 2300-2000 B.C. There is some wear and denting, but the piece is generally in fair condition, the metal having been conserved.' 27.9 grams, 45 mm
Acquired in the late 1980s-early 1990s. Ex property of a West London businessman. Academically researched and catalogued by the late Professor Lambert in the early 1990s. Accompanied by a copy of a scholarly report, numbered T-871, typed and signed by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert.
