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LOT 0097
Scythian Bronze Finial with Animal Head
5TH-4TH CENTURY B.C.
9 3/4 in. (570 grams, 24.6 cm).
Comprising an ellipsoid panel mounted on a conical socket; openwork lattice design with lozenge voids; socket with horse-head to one face, lateral lugs above the mouth.
ProvenancePrivate European collection, 1990s.
Private collection, London, UK.
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 number no.13278-254311.
Cf. similar elements in Artamanov, M., I., Treasures from Scythian Tombs), London, 1969, figs.73-75; for Scythian Horse Harness cf. Galanina, L.K. Die Kurgane von Kelermes:“Königsgräber” der frühskythischen Zeit, Moscow, 1997.
FootnotesBronze pole tops, together with mirrors and horse trappings, were characteristic of Scythian art. Usually, Scythian warrior burials were accompanied by horses, the number of which corresponded to the status of the deceased (Galanina, 1997, p.54, fig.16). In the famous Chrertomlyk barrow, together with a deposit of 250 bridles, several openwork pole-tops were found, with figures of animals and birds, which could have been mounts for the harness or top of standards. However, they could also have been the upper part of staff poles decorating funeral wagons. Pole tops are one of the most significant objects used by the Scythians, and formed part of the ritual furnishings.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0097
Scythian Bronze Finial with Animal Head
Estimate £2,000 - 3,000€2,320 - 3,480 (for guidance only)$2,700 - 4,050 (for guidance only)
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Parthian Blue Glazed Water Vessel
1st century B.C.-1st century A.D.Estimate: £300 - 400 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £135
Discoid body and short tubular neck with everted rim, two loop handles. 561 grams, 19.2 cm
Ex London, UK gallery, 1971-early 2000s. Private collection, London. -
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Eastern Greek Parcel-Gilt Bowl with Inscription
Hellenistic, late 2nd-early 1st century B.C.Estimate: £6,000 - 8,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £3,000
Broad and shallow with thick rolled rim; parcel-gilt band to the inner face below the rim of running scrolls on a pounced field; to the centre, a hexafoil reserved on a pounced field with border of running scrolls; pointillé cursive Aramaic inscription to the outer face. 413 grams, 20.6 cm wide
Private collection, London, 1990s or earlier. with Gorny & Mosch, 22 June 2007, no.37. with Christie's, New York, 5 December 2012, no.52. Accompanied by copies of the relevant Gorny & Mosch and Christie's catalogue pages. 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 number no.13217-250131.
The bowl is related to a large group of Hellenistic silver vessels of similar shape, some with Aramaic inscriptions on the exterior beneath the rim, all thought to be of eastern origin, produced within the Seleucid Empire. Here, the Aramaic inscription, now mostly unreadable, reports the name of the maker and the weight of the bowl as 118 zuzim. -
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Greek Solid Gold Earring Pair
4th-2nd century B.C.Estimate: £3,000 - 4,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £1,500
Each a thick braided hoop with a collar of twisted filigree and a lion's mask finial. 18.43 grams total, 27 mm each
Private London collection, 1980s. Private collection, acquired on the British art market in 1993. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13185-249263.
The earrings belong to the hoop-type earrings, in which animal and human heads form the terminal as small miniature sculptures modelled in the round. The heads were attached to collars made from a single piece of gold. The group is characterised by lion heads.
