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LOT 0197
Sumerian Limestone Plaque with Lion
3RD MILLENNIUM B.C.
3 3/4 in. (246 grams, 96 mm).
Fragment from a plaque or large bowl with high-relief head and foreparts of a lion with broad piriform face and sunken eyes; rounded rim above.
ProvenanceEx Mr J.K. Maryland, USA.
Private collection.
Acquired in 1999.
Cf. Woolley, L., Medio Oriente (Near East), Milano, 1961, p.48, for near identical lions on the sacrificial vessel coming from Uruk with images of bulls and lions in relief.
FootnotesFrom a technical point of view, the sculpture, in low relief, belonged to a ritual element with profile figures highlighted by an extremely delicate internal modelling, with space between the various decorative bands that admirably preserves the figure of the lion, giving it full value, according to an artistic principle also found in the seals of the Jemdet Nasr period (2800-2600 BC).
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West Central Asian Bronze Double-Headed Heraldic Eagle Seal Matrix
Circa 2300-2000 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £117
Eagle-shaped seal matrix with a large loop on the back, accompanied by an old scholarly note, typed and signed by W.G. Lambert, late Professor of Assyriology, University of Birmingham, 1970-1993, which states: 'Stamp Seal of Bronze, 25 x 21.5 x 1mm. This bears the shape of the design, with flat compartmented face and flat back of which is mounted a loop handle of metal rod. The design shows a heraldic eagle with two heads: heads at the top sideways, wings hanging beneath, and tail feathers spread at the bottom. This comes from west central Asia and dates to c. 2300-2000 B.C. It is a rare type (the double-headed eagle) and in very good condition save for a nick at the bottom.' 9.51 grams, 25 mm
Acquired in the late 1980s-early 1990s. Ex property of a West London businessman. Academically researched and catalogued by the late Professor Lambert in the early 1990s. Accompanied by a copy of a scholarly report, numbered V-850, typed and signed by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert. -
Western Asiatic and Other Bead Group
1st millennium B.C. and laterSold for (Inc. bp): £85
Mixed group of beads, mainly in glass and stone. 136 grams total, 1-22 mm
Acquired in the 1990s. Ex London, UK, collection. -
Western Asiatic Bronze Bowl
Circa 1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £52
Shallow bowl with rounded base and inturned rim. 232 grams, 14.3 cm
From a London, UK, collection, 1990s-2010.
