Sasanian Silver-Plated Lion Shield Boss

Comprising: a fob seal with a trigonal matrix, one face with a reclining facing lion with a sun behind and a crescent and a star before, inscription below, one face with an inscription on a field of tendrils, and the third face with an inscription on a field of flowers and tendrils; a chess piece seal matrix with a hinged, swivelling handle, set with a bronze intaglio showing a liuon attacking a stag from above, inscription above and below; supplied with museum-quality impressions. 17.35 grams total, 29-30 mm



Acquired in the late 1980s-early 1990s. Private collection, London.

Rectangular-section tapering body with a short tang with cuneiform text to one side translating to: '(belonging to) the Palace of Ipiq-Adad'. 260 grams, 36 cm



UK private collection before 2000. Acquired on the UK art market. Private collection, London, UK. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13259-253470.

There were three kings of the name Ipiq-Adad, kings of the city Eshnunna in the Diyala region of Mesopotamia in the early Old Babylonian period. Eshnunna was an ancient Sumerian (and later Akkadian) city and city-state 12.6 miles northwest of Tell Agrab​. Although situated in the Diyala Valley northwest of Sumer proper, the city nonetheless belonged securely within the Sumerian cultural milieu. Ipiq-Adad II was the son of Ibal-pi-el I, king of Eshnunna. Upon his ascent, he used the title ensi; later in his reign, he shifted to describing himself as lugal (king). He was the first ruler of Eshnunna to use the term lugal since Shu-iliya. Inscriptions also refer to him as ​'king who enlarges Eshnunna​', ​'shepherd of the black-headed people​', and ​'king of the universe​'. He oversaw a great expansion of the state and laid the foundation for Eshnunna to become a regional power. The spearhead belongs to the category of bipartite pikes (Gernez classification L 1.A.a). It is the simplest category of spearheads. The butt consisted solely of a widening located at the junction between the point and the tang. The tang was inserted into the handle up to the butt. The wood, split and/or hollowed out to allow for the passage of the tang, was then secured with a cord or strap wrapped around it, probably up to the base of the blade, thus ensuring its stability.

Comprising a penannular round-section body and stylised ibex-head finials with curving horns. 13.7 grams, 66 mm



From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s.