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LOT 1571
Sumerian Shell Amulet
3RD-2ND MILLENNIUM B.C.
2 in. (13.1 grams, 52 mm).
Fragment of a carved zoomorphic plaque with a suspension hole at the shoulder and ring-and-dot motifs along the flank; old collector's card 'Sumerian 3rd millennium B.C. Shell amulet in form of a stylised recumbant [sic] animal. Eyes represented by roundels similar on body & drilled for suspension. 60 x 35 mm (max). Similar amulets have occured [sic] at Tel Hadidi & have been dated to 2300 BC. Last auction prices £300-370 each)'. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired from John L.Homan, Lincolnshire, UK, 1990s.
Accompanied by an original, old handwritten collector's information card.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 1571
Sumerian Shell Amulet
Estimate £50 - 70€58 - 81 (for guidance only)$68 - 95 (for guidance only)
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Jemdet Nasr White Stone Stamp Seal in the Form of a Lion with Engraved Animals
Circa 3000 B.C.Estimate: £800 - 1,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £400
Carved in the half-round as a stylised animal head, restrung with round red stone beads at each end, 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 White Marble, 20 x 24 x 7.5 mm. This seal has the form of a lion's head on the top side, cut from a pebble with snout, mouth, eyes and ears marked by cuts in the stone. It is pierced from top to bottom in the middle. The flat base is engraved with five animals done mostly with the drill. One horned animal, and three springing rodents and one sheep (?) can be made out. Five almost vertical lines, four between the animals, one in the centre, probably represent snakes. This is a seal of the Jemdet Nasr period, c. 3000 B.C., from Sumer or south-west Iran, and is in very good state of preservation. It is an interesting example of sculpture from the dawn of history'; supplied with a museum-quality impression. 6.9 grams total, seal: 24.5 mm
Ex Mr K. Kobayashi, Galerie Archaique Ltd, Osaka, Japan, prior to 1988. Accompanied by a copy of an old scholarly note, typed and signed by W.G. Lambert, late Professor of Assyriology, University of Birmingham, 1990. -
Western Asiatic Alabaster Jar
Circa 2nd-1st millennium B.C.Estimate: £350 - 450 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £75
Conical in profile with rounded rim to the mouth, discoid foot. 835 grams, 13 cm wide
Ex London, UK, collection, 1990s. -
Luristan Terracotta Handled Pouring Vessel
Bronze Age, 2nd-1st millennium B.C.Estimate: £120 - 170 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £5
With bulbous body and broad sloped shoulder, tall tubular neck with strap handle to rear; arched spout with lateral lugs at the base. 1.55 kg, 28.5 wide
Acquired on the UK art market since the 1990s. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman; thence by descent.
