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LOT 0242
South Arabian Alabaster Head of a Woman
1ST CENTURY B.C.-1ST CENTURY A.D.
8 7/8 in. (3.49 kg total, 22.5 cm high including stand).
Carved in the half-round, the eyes with drilled pupils to accept inserts; mounted on a custom-made display stand.
ProvenanceFrom the collection of Dr Mohammed Saïd Farsi (1936-2019), acquired between 1960-1990 at Christie's, Sotheby's and Mayfair galleries.
LiteratureSee Simpson, S.T., Queen of Sheba: Treasures From Ancient Yemen, The British Museum Press, London, 2002, items 126, 270, and 282, for similar portraits.
FootnotesThe eyes of these beautiful statues were inlaid with blue glass or lapis lazuli. These portraits could have been inserted in a funerary stele, but most probably this portrait comes from a statue similar to the 'Myriam of Tamna', as can be understood from the flat back, to which braided hair in plaster was probably attached.
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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Mesopotamian Round School Cuneiform Tablet
3rd-2nd millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £182
Domed underside with cuneiform text to the upper face; chipped. 114 grams, 70 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. -
Amlash Bronze Zoomorphic Clasp
10th-6th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £52
Comprising two brings with a central wire-bound bar between and lateral twisted stringers; to one end a hook, to the other a knop formed as a quatrefoil. 39 grams, 90 mm
From a North Yorkshire, UK, private collection. Acquired from Adam Partridge Auctioneers, Macclesfield, UK. Property of Mr A.B., an American collector. -
Large Silver Dish with Ibexes
3rd-6th century A.D. or earlierEstimate: £2,000 - 3,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £500
A finely hammered bowl, the surface punched with vegetal and zoomorphic decoration comprising standing rams or mouflons enclosed within a circle, spear-shaped leaves separating the figures, low foot; the engraving possibly later. 800 grams, 37 cm wide
UK private collection before 2000. Acquired on the UK art market. Property of a London gentleman. 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.12169-220737.
The plate exhibits a typical hammered form, and was probably reinforced with an organic base. The subject of the decoration, rams or mouflons with the head facing right or left, is a theme found on Sassanid art and is also visible on a decorated silver and gilt vessel of the Sackler Gallery collection (Gunter, Jett, no.21). Decoration in the form of such animal enclosed in a medallion appears in the central exterior roundel of a silver bowl in the Detroit Institute of Arts (Grabar, 1967, p.125, no.41).
