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LOT 0170
Old Babylonian Pictographic Tablet
2600-2400 B.C.
2 in. (47 grams, 50 mm).
A roughly pillow-shaped clay tablet bearing pictographs to one face.
ProvenanceAcquired early 1990s.
Ex private American collection; thence by descent.
Private Swiss collection since 1998.
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AUCTIONS:
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Amlash Cage Pendant Collection
2nd-1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £152
A group of three bronze cage beads with suspension loops and openwork geometric ornament studded with pellets. 64 grams total, 75-79 mm
Fine condition.
Acquired before 1983. Ex London gallery, 1990s. -
Luristan Zoomorphic Spouted Vessel
2nd-1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £169
A zoomorphic ceramic pouring vessel, possibly in the form of a wading bird; formed with a bulbous body, everted rim, tapering spout with U-section channel and hooked projection, loop handle with conical apex to rear; two knop 'feet' to base. 548 grams, 39 cm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection. -
Aramaic Magical Bowl Bearing an Incantation Against Evil Spirits
4th-8th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £780
A ceramic flat-based bowl, inscribed in spiral from the bottom inner wall to the rim with Aramaic text, and on the outer rim. 692 grams, 19.5 cm wide
Early 1990s London collection. Acquired on the UK art market. From a private collection, Lancashire, UK
Aramaic incantation bowls are particular to the Sassanian period and have been found in the regions of modern Iraq. These simple ceramic bowls, also known as magic bowls, each contain an Aramaic inscription, written in ink, which spirals from the centre. The bowls seem to have played an important part in domestic life. For example, during excavation in Nippur in 1889, one or more incantation bowls were found in each house together with domestic artefacts, most often in doorways or under floorboards in the corner of rooms. The bowls are predominantly apotropaic, and the inscriptions tend to protect their owners from misfortunes such as child-birth, illness and evil spirits.
