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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 Flint Handaxe Group
Neolithic Period, 3000-2000 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £208
Comprising three flake blades: one triangular with old inked inscription 'Mont St. Aignant / Briqueterie'; one triangular in section, leaf-shaped with old inked inscription 'St. Pierre les Elbeu[.] / Colo. G. Séhet'; One an irregular ellipsoid, triangular in section with old inked inscription 'Env. Rouen / Bné'. 275 grams total, 9.8-13.3 cm
From the collection of François Bigot (1950-2009). with Auction Art Rémy Le Fur & Associés, 28th September 2021, no.128. -
Large Stone Age Oval Pecked Stone Macehead
Neolithic Period, circa 4th-3rd millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £143
Ellipsoid in plan with shallow socket to each face. 1.22 kg, 14.5 cm
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.
The opposed depressions imply that the creator had begun the process of making the vertical mounting socket. -
Stone Age Knapped Flint Handaxe
Lower Palaeolithic Period, 480,000-250,000 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
Irregular ovate cleaver with broad cutting edge, chipped through usage; amber-coloured patination. 209 grams, 11.1 cm
From the collection of Jean-Claude Debenne (1936-2020), an amateur prehistorian and former member of the French Society of Prehistory and the Prehistoric Association of the South-West, as well as an Honorary Member of the Geological Club of Ile-de-France. This collection of flints was assembled between the 1950s and 1990s and originates from Ile-de-France, Oise, and Val-d'Oise.
