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LOT 0048
Sasanian Carnelian Gemstone of a Fantastic Creature with Pahlavi Legend
4TH-5TH CENTURY A.D.
3/8 in. (0.32 grams, 10 mm).
Plano-convex in section with advancing winged and horned beast, Pahlavi legend to the border; supplied with a museum-quality impression.
ProvenancePrivate English collection, formed between the late 1970s and early 1990s.
Private collection, London, UK.
Fanciful combinations of various human and animal heads, sometimes with the addition of other elements, are generally called grylloi. These fantastic devices were more than mere artists' fancies and were worn by the ancient Romans and others for their supposed efficacy in averting the evil eye.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0048
Sasanian Carnelian Gemstone of a Fantastic Creature with Pahlavi Legend
Sold for (Inc. bp): £494
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Western Asiatic Red Jasper Cylinder Seal with Court Scene
2nd-1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £195
Frieze depicting a court scene with a seated figure in profile with one hand raised towards a standing figure wearing a floor-length robe, to the rear a bird with wings spread above a cluster of pelleted roundels; supplied with a museum-quality impression. 1.36 grams, 17.76 mm
From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s. -
Western Asiatic Carnelian Portrait Gemstone Seal
1st century B.C.-1st century A.D.Estimate: £200 - 300 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £100
Ellipsoidal in plan and plano-convex in section with tondo, incuse profile bust with brow band; chipped. 3.48 grams, 20 mm
From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s. -
Mesopotamian Clay Bulla with Clay Tokens
Uruk, 3rd millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £975
Spherical, undecorated bulla envelope containing clay tokens. 74 grams, 50 mm
Specialised collection of cuneiform texts, the property of a London gentleman and housed in London before 1992. Thence by descent to family members. Examined by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert FBA (1926-2011), historian, archaeologist, and specialist in Assyriology and Near Eastern archaeology, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. This small collection is exceptional for the variety of types, including some very rare and well-preserved examples. Accompanied by a previous cataloguing slip.
Small globular and hollow clay balls are defined as 'bulla'. They are also known as ‘bulla-envelopes', some of which are plain and some displaying epigraphic, zoomorphic and/or figural decoration, impressed by either cylinder or stamp seals. Bullae first emerged in Mesopotamia, and their earliest occurrence can be traced to circa 8000 B.C. Most known decorated bullae come from the Uruk area and offer an insight into its culture.
