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LOT 0313
Stone Age Goddess Idol Collection
NEOLITHIC PERIOD, CIRCA 6TH-4TH MILLENNIUM B.C. OR LATER
3 3/8 - 7 1/8 in. (1.65 kg total, 8.5-18 cm including stand).
Group of three carved and polished figurines with rounded heads and broad shoulders, folded arms resting on each side of the protruding belly, legs folded beneath the body; each mounted on a custom-made stand. [3, No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000.
From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent.
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.12159-217186.
Cf. Morris, D., The Art of Ancient Cyprus, Oxford, 1985, figs.108-109, p.119, for similar idols; Various, Idoles, Au commencement etait l’image, A la Reine Margot, 22 Novembre 1990-28 Fevrier 1991, Paris, 1990, figs.10-11, for similar; also see the view of Caldwell, Duncan, The Use of Animals in Birth Protection Rituals and Possible Uses of Stone Figurines from the Central Sahel, 2015 winter issue, vol.48, no.4, Nov., pp.14-25.
FootnotesMost scholars consider these as symbols of the fertility cult and as evidence of the existence of a matriarchal society as a form of organisation of the earliest human society. The people of the Stone Age may have considered figures such as this to represent women and mothers with their life-giving powers, or as depictions of the ancestors.
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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Stone Age Knapped Ovate Knife Group
Neolithic Period, circa 4th-3rd millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £208
Each with carefully knapped cutting; three discoid and one lozengiform. 107 grams total, 51-55 mm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent. -
Massive European Stone Age Flint Axehead
Neolithic Period, circa 4000-2000 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £715
Substantial cleaver pre-form with rounded butt. 22 grams, 24.5 cm
Found continental Europe. Ex Victor Brox collection, UK, formed during the 1980s-1990s. From the collection of a South West London, UK, specialist Stone Age collector.
Preforms such as this unusually large and undamaged example were widely traded during Neolithic times and were a valuable commodity in communities which lacked suitable material for stone tool production. There has been research showing signs of wear from rubbing against cloth, suggesting that they might have been carried over long distances. -
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Neolithic Period, circa 3000-2000 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £78
With broad square butt and rounded edge, some cortex remaining; old collector's legend 'TROUSSENCOURT' to one face. 161 grams, 10.1 cm
Found Troussencourt, Northern France. Ex old French collection. Acquired prior to 2000. From a private Norfolk, UK, collection. From the collection of a South West London, UK, specialist Stone Age collector.
