Details

LOT 1317

Syrian Carnelian Cylinder Seal with Figures

CIRCA 700-800 B.C.

3/4 in. (3.63 grams, 20 mm).

Accompanied by a copy of an old scholarly note, typed and signed by W.G. Lambert, late Professor of Assyriology, University of Birmingham, 1970-1993, which states: ' Cylinder Seal of Carnelian, 19 x 10 mm. The design, which is placed between upper and lower rulings consists of a group of three figures. In the centre is a deity, standing in a frontal pose, with strange head and body, the head with horns projecting each side, also a tail hanging down between the splayed legs. With each hand he is holding off a composite animal. The one on the right has a quadruped's body with wings and a bird's head. There is a 'bib' between the front legs as the creature sits on its haunches. The creature on the left is meant to be the same, but is slightly different in details due to less space being available. This is a seal from Syria, c. 800-600 B.C., and is an unusual type. It is based on the common Assyro-Babylonian type of a standing god between two animals, but the god in this case is a variant of the Egyptian Bes and the animals are forms of creatures belonging to East Mediterranean art, not to Assyro-Babylonian art. Save for chipping of the edges the seal is in good condition.'; supplied with a museum-quality impression.

Provenance

Ex N. Colville collection.
Acquired Christie's, London, 6 July 1994, lot 159.
From the private collection of a North American lady, formed 1970s-early 1990s, with collection reference no.344.

Accompanied by a copy of a scholarly note, typed and signed by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert dated August 1994.
This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.