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LOT 0240
Proto-Sumerian Pictographic Terracotta Tablet
URUK III, CIRCA 3200-3000 B.C.
2 1/8 in. (26.2 grams, 55 mm).
Lentoid in section with design to one face in three registers: left, large panel with impressed grid, square and spray; right, two smaller panels with hatching and geometric forms.
ProvenanceFrom an important collection formed before 1988.
Examined by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert FBA (1926-2011), historian, archaeologist, and specialist in Assyriology and Near Eastern archaeology, in the late 1980s and 1990s.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12543-231889.
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.
Cf. Salvatore Monaco, Archaic Cuneiform Tablets from Private Collections, CUSAS 31, for other comparable tablets.
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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Anatolian Stone Stamp Seal with Hunting Scene
1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £364
Carved in the round crouching lion with head slightly turned, on a rectangular base; intaglio beast-tamer scene to underside with running human figure wielding a knife, leaping gazelle above a pouncing lion, objects in the field. 12.7 grams, 24 mm
From the collection of Mr S.M., London, UK, formed from 1979-1999. 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. -
Mesopotamian Bronze Cylinder Seal with Double-Faced Demon Head
900-700 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £572
Cylinder with attached cord and bead handle; accompanied by a copy of an old scholarly note, typed and signed by W.G. Lambert, late Professor of Assyriology, University of Birmingham, 1970-1993, which states: ' Cylinder-Stamp Seal of Bronze, 330x08.5 mm. The seal is surmounted by a suspension loop, beneath which is a double-faced demon head with large, animal-like ears and beards. The neck is decorated with horizontal lines at the fronts and vertical lines at the sides. This rests immediately on the seal proper. The design of the cylinder seal is put between double lines above and beneath. It shows a standing worshipper with raised hands before an incense burner, a group of seven dots, a lunar cresent [sic], a lozenge-shape and a slender tree. The base, the stamp seal, shows a winged solar disc. Such seals, which are quite rare, come from the mountainous area to the north of Mesopotamia, and date from c. 900-700 B.C. In this case the worshipper and the winged disc are borrowed from Assyrian art, but the combination of items before the worshipper is not Assyrian. The demon-head cannot be identified with certainty, though it may be a variety of the Mesopotamian Pazuzu.'; accompanied by museum-quality impressions. 7.82 grams total, 8.1-32.64 mm
UK private collection, acquired 1980-1983. Accompanied by a copy of a scholarly note, typed and signed by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert in September 1990. 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. -
Western Asiatic Chlorite Stone Mould
1st millennium B.C.Estimate: £400 - 600 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £200
Trapezoidal mould with pierced locating holes, ovate recess with irregular maze-pattern and lateral blocks with pseudo-script. 515 grams, 17.8 cm wide
Ex London, UK, gallery, 1971-early 2000s. London, UK, collection. 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.
