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LOT 1181
Personal Bronze Tag of Zahra Governor of Esphahan
14TH CENTURY A.D.
2 in. (10.6 grams, 51 mm).
A medieval period flat-section rectangular plaque pierced at the broad end with incised calligraphic legend: 'Zahra the splendid or the radiant governor of Esphahan ...', Zaraa or Zahra is a female name which also refers to boundless beauty (ذرع اصفهانی واسع الخلیفه با ما معمور).
ProvenanceFrom the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s.
CONDITIONTimeLine 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:
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Tibetan Wooden Bread Stamp with Yak and Inscription
19th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £208
Trapezoidal in plan with a thick wedge-shaped handle; image of a zebu with idiograms above. 390 grams, 15.1 cm wide
Private collection, UK. -
Neo-Assyrian Stone Relief with Standing Figure
9th-8th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,900
Corner fragment from a high-relief pictorial panel with raised border; domed dais with low-relief scaled detailing; lower legs and sandaled feet in advancing pose with ankle-length open-fronted robe, horizontal woven texture and curled fleece; high-relief stele with flared base, bulbous upper and sugar-loaf finial; pitted surface, with tooling to reverse. 2.81 kg, 24.3 cm
Ex German collection, c.1980. with Toufic Arakji, Hamburg, 1997. Private collection, Europe. 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 no.12579-232134.
Stylistically, the figure seems to be linked to the kingdom of Ashurnasirpal II (883-859 B.C.) or his son Shalmaneser III (858-824 B.C.). The exposed lower leg with exaggerated musculature is seen in many Assyrian and Babylonian depictions of divine and heroic figures. The position of the figure, corresponding to some reliefs kept in the Louvre, where a spirit is worshipping a poppy flower (Houston, 1954, pl.V.1), and the high-relief carving, strongly refer to a cult scene. -
Syro-Hittite Bronze Male Idol
2nd millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £182
Flat-section casting with pinched nose and impressed-point etes, right arm extended, left hand supporting an axe, prominent phallus. 23 grams, 72 mm
Previously the property of an Islington, London, UK, dealer. From a London, UK, private collector since circa 1990.